Estas Manos Lends a Hand for New Mexico State University Coffee

The Estas Manos/NMSU A Mountain Roast coffee. Image courtesy of New Mexico State University.

Offering a little dash of team spirit in these days of isolation and canceled athletic events, New Mexico State University and Estas Manos Coffee Roasters have partnered to launch a roasted coffee called the A Mountain Roast.

It’s rare, indeed, that colleges and universities delve into the branded beverage business, but the NMSU coffee product follows previous licensed products all benefitting the athletic department, including a Cabernet Sauvignon called Pistol Pete’s Crimson Legacy, and the first collegiate-licensed whiskey in the country, Pistol Pete’s Six-Shooter.

Rather than nodding to NMSU’s ridiculous gun-toting cowboy caricature logo Pistol Pete, the coffee product refers more to the university’s heritage as an agricultural school. The “A Mountain” refers to the football-field-sized A logo painted anew each year into a mountainside just off the Aggie campus in Las Cruces.

Founded by Nicholas Gonzales in 2018 and a member of the Bay Area’s CoRo Coffee, Estas Manos sources traceable coffees from a small handful of producer groups, with a stated mission to honor and support the coffee’s growers — a fine sentiment on the agricultural value stream. A partner in the coffee business is NMSU business school graduate Leandra Gamboa.

“We are thrilled to be working with NMSU on this collaboration. This roast is bold and finishes smooth and delicious,” Gonzales said in an announcement from the university. “We hope that when you try a cup of ‘A’ Mountain Roast, it sparks that Aggie spirit and brings you back to ‘A’ Mountain. It’s truly a landmark that unites the Aggie and Las Cruces communities, and we are honored to be offering this roast with NMSU.”