Cutbow Coffee Roastery

Cutbow Coffee was established in 2018 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, by Paul Gallegos, a native of the state who returned home after a distinguished career in the California coffee industry. Gallegos began his professional journey in 1989 at Peet’s Coffee, where he spent nearly thirty years honing his craft. During his tenure at Peet’s, he gained extensive experience in large-scale production, reportedly overseeing the roasting and cupping of over 70 million pounds of coffee, which provided him with a deep technical foundation in roast profiles and quality control.

The company’s name, Cutbow, is a tribute to the cutbow trout—a hybrid of the rainbow trout and the New Mexico state fish, the Rio Grande cutthroat—and serves as an homage to Gallegos’s father and their shared history of fly fishing in northern New Mexico. This connection to the local landscape extends to the company’s branding, where coffee blends are often named after regional rivers and lakes. A portion of the proceeds from every bag sold is donated to the Hermit’s Peak Watershed Alliance to support water quality in the region.

Operating as a roastery, tasting room, and coffee bar, Cutbow Coffee emphasizes a sensory-based approach to roasting. Gallegos utilizes the skills developed under the mentorship of Alfred Peet, applying traditional cupping techniques to evaluate and refine his roasts. The company’s philosophy centers on the belief that coffee should be fully developed to express its inherent characteristics, with each batch undergoing diligent taste-testing to ensure consistency and quality.

In practice, the roastery is known for its meticulous attention to detail, particularly in the creation of its proprietary blends. For example, the company’s 'Tres Ritos' espresso blend is crafted by roasting each component of the blend separately before combining them 'cold.' This method allows the roaster to tailor the roast profile of each individual coffee specifically for the final blend, rather than relying on a uniform roast approach for all components.

Sourcing at Cutbow Coffee focuses on specialty-grade beans from around the world. The company maintains a philosophy of respecting the labor and ethics of the farmers, harvesters, and importers involved in the supply chain. By maintaining a small-batch, artisanal operation, the roastery aims to reveal the complexities of its single-origin offerings while providing a curated experience for the consumer.

Since its inception, Cutbow Coffee has been recognized for its role in the Albuquerque specialty coffee scene. The business was self-financed and required Gallegos to transition from a production-focused role to managing the complexities of retail operations. Today, the roastery continues to operate out of its location on Rio Grande Boulevard, serving as both a production facility and a public-facing coffee bar that reflects the intersection of Gallegos’s decades of industry experience and his commitment to his home state.