Roaster Profile
Light Up Coffee
東京（吉祥寺・新宿）
A popular Tokyo roaster specializing in light-roast single origins, showcasing the fruity, bright acidity of Ethiopia and Kenya. Devoted to making bean buying simple and fun, with carefully written tasting notes.
Roast
Light
Online sales
Yes
Origins
4 origins
Tags
Origins carried
Editorial
How to read this roaster
Light Up Coffee is a specialty roaster in Kichijoji and Shinjuku, Tokyo, specializing in light-roast single origins. Founded in Kichijoji in 2014, its mission is to make the joy of specialty — "bright, fruity coffee" — easy to grasp even for first-timers.
A doorway that overturns "coffee is bitter"
Many of Light Up’s fans started out thinking they disliked coffee because it was bitter. Presenting the berry, citrus and floral fruit of light-roasted Ethiopia and Kenya with the brightness of tea or juice, Light Up bridged the third-wave experience to Japan’s casual drinkers. Even the tasting notes are beginner-friendly, painting the flavor in concrete words like "blackberry and milk chocolate."
A lineup centered on Africa and Latin America
The core is origins that shine brightest at light roasts — Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Colombia. Dark-roast devotees may find it leaves them wanting; for anyone who wants to learn the world of acidity, there is no better teaching material. Monthly seasonal lots turn over often, so each visit brings a different flavor.
A seamless line from café to take-home
The experience is designed so you drink a cup in the shop, then buy the beans you liked on the way out — and it works beautifully. Baristas help you choose, so the path from "I want to recreate this at home" actually functions. The online shop pairs every bag with careful tasting notes and brewing tips, keeping the in-store experience portable.
Recommended brewing
Recommended: paper drip (V60) at 93°C, 1:16 coffee to water. To draw out the bright acidity of light roasts, give the bloom a full 30 seconds and finish the whole brew in 2:30–3:00.
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Find Light Up Coffee’s beans
Opens the official online shop via Google. Stock and prices on the official site take precedence.
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