La Mulita Coffee

La Mulita Coffee is a specialty roastery and coffee bar located in Rye, New Hampshire, established in 2019 by founder Max Pruna. The company’s identity is deeply rooted in Pruna’s Colombian heritage and his transition from a corporate career to the specialty coffee industry. The name 'La Mulita'—meaning 'little mule'—pays homage to the animals traditionally used by Colombian farmers to transport coffee cherries from mountainous terrain to processing mills, symbolizing the labor-intensive journey from farm to cup.

The company’s founding followed Pruna’s discovery of the specialty coffee sector, a revelation sparked by tasting high-grade Colombian coffee that contrasted sharply with the coffee he consumed during his upbringing. After experimenting with roasting in his garage and building connections through social media, Pruna launched the physical roastery at 15 Sagamore Road. Despite opening shortly before the global pandemic, the business transitioned to online sales and community-supported models to maintain operations.

La Mulita’s sourcing philosophy centers on direct relationships with small-to-mid-sized farms in Colombia, typically ranging from two to fifteen acres. Pruna and his wife, Andrea Echavarria Pruna, travel to Colombia annually to visit these producers. This direct-trade approach is designed to bypass traditional intermediaries, allowing the roastery to pay premiums reported to be three times higher per pound of green coffee than standard market prices, with the stated goal of ensuring a living wage for the farmers.

In terms of product, the roastery focuses exclusively on Colombian specialty-grade coffee, typically sourcing beans graded 84 points or higher on the SCA scale. Their offerings frequently highlight specific regions such as Huila and Santa Maria, utilizing various processing methods including fully washed and natural processes. The roastery emphasizes small-batch roasting to maintain freshness and profile consistency, often highlighting the volcanic soil and high-altitude conditions of the Colombian highlands where their coffee is grown.

The roastery serves as both a production facility and a community hub in the Seacoast region of New Hampshire. By maintaining a transparent supply chain and displaying imagery of their partner farmers, the company aims to educate consumers on the origin of their coffee. The business model is built on the intersection of Colombian hospitality and the technical standards of the specialty coffee industry, focusing on the traceability of every lot they roast.

Today, La Mulita Coffee continues to operate as a boutique roastery, balancing its retail coffee bar presence with an e-commerce platform. Its reputation is built on the specificity of its Colombian focus and its commitment to the economic welfare of its partner growers. The company remains a documented example of a small-scale, founder-led enterprise that leverages direct-trade relationships to differentiate its product in the competitive specialty coffee market.