Roasteries / Prodigal Coffee
Prodigal Coffee
Boulder, Colorado, United States
Boulder, Colorado specialty roastery founded by Scott Rao — a 30-year coffee veteran as cafe owner, roaster, consultant, and author of The Coffee Roaster's Companion and Coffee Roasting: Best Practices — alongside Mark Benedetto, a trained chef turned Q-Grader who founded Last Stand Coffee in San Francisco. Prodigal roasts small, fast-rotating lots of fruit-forward single origins, sourced largely through subscriber-first releases, and ships nationally with no public café — local pickup is by appointment only.
14
coffees
United States
base
Location
Prodigal Coffee — Roastery
2500 47th St Ste 10, Boulder, CO 80301, United StatesMon–Fri 9:00 AM–4:00 PM, Sat–Sun Closed
Coffees
14 coffees
Prodigal's flagship blend, crafted week to week from their limited headline coffees rather than beans bought specifically to blend — combining washed and natural/honey-processed lots for a fruity, bright, balanced everyday cup.
Fruity, bright, balanced
Prodigal's first 2026 lot from Angel Arturo Paz, met at World of Coffee San Diego: a Geisha from his 3-hectare Itacayo farm in Santa Bárbara (70% Pacas, 30% Geisha), processed with the same 48/48 anaerobic method as his 2025 COE-winning lot. Refined and delicate, with little trace of process flavour.
Melon, peach
A super-ripe Geisha from Cup of Excellence winner Pablo Andrés Guerrero's El Obraje in Nariño, where over half the land is a nature reserve. Whole cherries ferment sealed for 12-96 hours, then the parchment ferments again for 12-72 hours before washing and raised-bed plus mechanical drying.
Apricot, melon, florals
A washed Sidra from Cesar Dario, son of past menu star Fabiola Ortega, at the family's 15-hectare Finca El Tabor. Fermented 48 hours, washed through concrete channels and dried 16-22 days in parabolic dryers.
Grape, cherry, red wine
Roasted for Prodigal's monthly subscribers and now released as a small rested reserve. Big, ripe apricot coupled with a touch of pineapple and jasmine-like florals. Producer: Habtamu Fikadu Aga / Kuri Mountain Coffee.
Apricot, pineapple, jasmine
The Habtamu Danche washed lot roasted a touch darker than the filter version, for straight shots and Americanos.
Apricot, pineapple, jasmine
A limited washed Guji from Habtamu Fikadu Aga, producer and exporter behind Kuri Mountain Coffee, a family business since 1945. Pulped cherries ferment submerged for 48-72 hours and dry 10-12 days on raised beds.
Cranberry, rhubarb, peach syrup
A just-landed Chiroso from Jorge Rojas's Finca El Jardín in Tolima, one of his four farms. Floated, pulped straight away, fermented without water for 16 hours, then fully washed and dried on marquesinas: Jorge's turn back to a more traditional method. Milled by Desarrolladores de Café.
Blackberry, mandarin orange, fruit punch
A summer-2025 Kenyan re-released from Prodigal's freezer. Karinga, founded in 1983 and managed by Samwel Muteti, processes cherry from about 500 smallholders of the Gitwe co-operative. Stone fruit and every kind of citrus, tied together by bright acidity.
Apricot, peach, grapefruit, orange, berries
The #4 winner of the Exotic category at the 2026 Honduras Cup of Excellence, from Fabio Antonio Caballero, a fifth-generation farmer who has won four COE auctions since starting in 2020. Floated and rested whole for 16 hours of aerobic fermentation; sold in 100 g boxes.
Mango, rhubarb, rum-raisin
Prodigal's signature milk-drink espresso blend — a clean, soft Colombian caturra as the base, blended with a rotating second component for a bit of sparkle.
Clean, soft, optimized for milk drinks
Prodigal's new seasonal espresso blend of fresh Ethiopian washed and natural coffees: citrus and florals from the washed part, rich cherry from the natural. Components rotate with the headline coffees.
Citrus, florals, cherry
A seasonal filter blend of fresh Ethiopian washed and natural coffees with a Colombian washed Chiroso: a zesty, bold cup of concord grape, plum and apricot.
Concord grape, plum, apricot