About Our Roastery
Roasting Coffee started as a fun DIY project for Dave years ago. He built his first home roaster using some scrap sheet metal and a gas cooker. He wired together two sieves to make a drum and would hand-spin them over the heat to patiently wait for the crack and roast to happen. Much to his delight, despite his lack of expertise, the coffee tasted okay.
There was a lot of experimentation and a disaster or two before Dave made the first step towards perfecting the "proper roasting technique." He purchased a sample roaster, the Quest M3. This little beauty roasts 250 grams per batch and is designed for larger commercial roasters to test new bean varieties, or test new roast profiles without having to do full-size batches as experiments. This was the perfect size to satisfy his hunger for learning more about roasting as well as supplying our home consumption. Since then we've upgraded roaster again to keep up with demand, and we're now using the 2kg North roaster.
As you've probably figured out, our roastery is located in a big Red Shed in beautiful Matata. The shed was built around the same time the coffee business was beginning, so we decided to stick with it.
The Beans
When searching for the perfect beans to start our business, we had a very particular list of requirements and values. Flavour and taste was at the top of the list (obviously), but also sourcing responsibly and ethically grown beans. The beans we use are Fair Trade Organic and/or Rainforest Alliance Certified.
We wanted to make sure we were supporting fair wages for the people growing, harvesting, washing, and preparing our green beans. We also wanted to ensure that we were supporting organic growing practices. This is critical for us as stewards of our planet, and we believe that Environmental Preservation and Responsible Commerce need to be at the forefront of all of our decisions as consumers.
The beans we select are always the best quality and flavour possible. They are grown in the mountains of Peru and Central & South America, 1000-1900 metres above sea level.
We think it tastes best as a long black with a splash of cream, but give it a try however you like your coffee, and let us know what you think!
We decided that we would market our coffee to people like us, real coffee lovers, well, basically coffee snobs. People that really enjoy coffee and make it at home every day.
Who are we?
Dave is a science lover. He has a degree in chemistry which he has never been able to put to use in his professional life. He loves tinkering, experimenting, but most of all he loves good coffee.
Dave drinks his daily fix as a long black with cream and enjoys a V60 pour-over at the office around mid-day.
Jess, originally from Vermont USA, grew up in the Smugglers Notch Mountains in a ski lodge restaurant. She has lived in NZ on and off since 1996 and has been in Matata for about 10 years. Throughout her childhood, she was exposed to exceptional cuisine and a wide variety of food and flavors. Great coffee was never optional, it was a lifestyle.
Jess drinks her daily fix as an Americano with Half & Half.