I love coffee. I wouldn’t say that I’m addicted to coffee but it’s something that I usually enjoy on a daily bases. Coffee is a very interesting drink in that is a science to make a good cup of coffee. As soon as you think you know what a good cup of coffee is you experience something that blows your mind and makes you rethink what it means to have a good cup of coffee. I am not a coffee expert by any means but let me share with you three coffee roasters that have been blowing my mind in recent months, and here they are in no particular order.

1. Intelligentsia

Doug Zell and Emily Mange came to Chicago from San Francisco to open a in-store coffee roaster/retainer. They intended to just roast the coffee for their retail store, but now have roasterys in Chicago, LA and New York. One of the great things about Intelligentsia is that they have Direct Trade coffees. You may have heard of Fair Trade which in agreement with the growers to give them a fair price for their coffee year round. Direct Trade is an even higher standard of payment for the coffee growers who often get the short end of the stick. They also deal in single origin coffees so when you get a coffee it all comes from the same region and sometimes all from the same farm.

I was first introduced to this coffee at a great coffee shop in Pittsburgh called Big Dog located in South Side Works. Intelligentsia coffee runs anywhere from $15 -$29 for a 12oz bag of beans. This is a little bit more expensive then you might be use to, but trust me when I say it is worth it. You can really taste the difference in all their roasts which makes trying new coffees a lot more interesting.

2. Coava

Coava, a turkish word for green coffee beans, comes to us from Portland Oregon thanks to Matt Higgins who started roasting coffee in his garage. His experience in the industry taught him that going to the source and getting the best coffee from the best regions is the only way to roast good coffee. Coava boasts has some of the best single origin coffees in the world. They only deal in single origin coffee so you pay a little bit more than Intelligentsia but you will not believe the flavor and balance in this cup. Also check out their super cool coffee bar in Portland, which is located right next door to the roastery. If you live in the pittsburgh you can give Coava a try at Marty’s Market in the Strip District. They brew Coava exclusively and you can even pick up some beans while you are there.

3. Klatch

Klatch comes to us from the greater Los Angeles area and now has four coffee shops in California. They boast a high quality coffee chosen from the top 1% of coffee beans, and are also a direct trade coffee company. I don’t know that much about this coffee company other than their coffee is really good and pretty affordable. Most of their coffee runs $12-$14 for 12 oz with some going as high as $60. Even though I know little about this company their credentials seem to speak for themselves.

MICRO ROASTER OF THE YEAR [ Roast Magazine 2009 ]
WORLD’S BEST ESPRESSO [ at World Barista Championships, Tokyo 2007 ]
GOLDEN CUP [ For Excellence in Coffee Brewing ]
BEST COFFEE AND COFFEE HOUSE [ Daily Bulletin ]
SMALL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR [ IVEDC ]
UNITED STATES BARISTA CHAMPION [ Heather Perry 2003 and 2007 ]
BEST COFFEEHOUSE IN AMERICA [ Heather Perry Holly Perry and Jenette Green – 2012 ]

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