While many coffee shops and cafés around the world typically begin by sourcing roast their own beans, this remains the most common practice in major coffee markets today. However, an increasing number of coffee shops are transitioning to roasting their own beans. This approach allows for greater control over the quality and enhances freshness.
To explore the reasons why a coffee shop might choose this method, I consulted two experts from Nestlé Professional. They shared insights on the benefits of in-house roasting and discussed how their Roastelier solution helps roast their own beans overcome common challenges. Read on to learn more about their perspectives.
Advantages of Roast Their Own Beans
In today’s coffee industry, freshness is paramount. Once coffee beans are exposed to air, they begin to lose their complex flavors, and oxidation can result in undesirable, stale tastes.
When coffee shops purchase large quantities of beans from roasters without an accurate estimate of demand, they risk serving coffee made with older beans, potentially leading to less appealing flavors in the cup.
Patrick Stern, Head of Beverages at Nestlé Professional’s Strategic Business Unit, highlights that beyond ensuring freshness, Roast Their Own Beans in-house also addresses key trends in the coffee market. Modern consumers are increasingly interested in knowing more about the origin of their coffee, including details such as where it was grown, the terroir, and how it was processed.
For coffee shops wanting to cater to these preferences, roasting on-site offers the ability to provide a broader range of coffee options while educating customers about their origins.
According to Patrick, roasting in-store not only boosts sales by increasing the number of cups sold and allowing for higher prices per cup, but also gives coffee shops the chance to sell freshly roasted beans for customers to enjoy at home.
Key Considerations for Coffee Shops Thinking About Roasting In-House
While roasting coffee in-house may sound appealing, it’s far from a simple task. It demands a high level of expertise and experience to execute successfully.
In addition to the costs associated with equipment and overhead, coffee shops must also tackle challenges like finding adequate space for roast their own beans, sourcing high-quality green coffee, managing roasting waste, and developing precise flavor profiles. These factors are crucial for large roasting companies, and even more so for coffee shops that also need to focus on serving their customers.
Below, we explore four important areas to consider before diving into in-house roasting.
Beans Crafting a Signature Blend and Profiling Your
Unlocking the distinct flavors and characteristics of green coffee and delivering a high-quality result is no small task. Even the most seasoned roasters roast their own beans often need multiple attempts before achieving the desired flavor profile.
Without proper expertise and a deep understanding of the roasting process, it’s easy to waste batch after batch of green coffee. For example, even minor adjustments to heat or airflow during roasting can drastically affect the flavor, potentially compromising the bean’s quality. Over time, this trial and error can become expensive, even when using smaller roasting machines.
Green coffee varies greatly depending on its origin, with differences even appearing between varieties or processing methods from the same region. This means that roast their own beans must carefully consider factors such as moisture content and bean density with roast their own beans every new batch.
Patrick Stern explains, “With the Roastelier roaster, we offer training and guide our clients through a simplified roasting process. Using our coffee expertise, we predefine roasting levels—light, medium, and dark—for each of our prime roasted beans. Customers can scan a QR code on the coffee pouch, then select their preferred roast level directly from the roaster.”
Roast Their Own Beans Sourcing Green Coffee: Challenges and Considerations
Sourcing green coffee, even when working through an importer, demands significant time, expertise, and attention to detail.
For most coffee shops, roast their own beans the key factors to weigh are quality and price. The process of cupping various coffees to ensure you’re getting the best flavor at the right price can be lengthy. Rushing this step can result in overpaying for a coffee that doesn’t align with your brand or appeal to your customers.
For smaller or newer coffee shops, sourcing can be even more challenging and expensive. Without the advantage of buying in bulk, negotiating favorable prices becomes difficult.
Patrick Stern highlights that the Roastelier solution’s Prime Roast beans, sourced from Ethiopia, Brazil, and Colombia, maintain high-quality standards while making roasting more accessible for coffee enthusiasts and small businesses.
Roast Their Own Beans Installation and Space Considerations for In-House
One of the major challenges for coffee shops looking to roast their own coffee is finding adequate space. Many establishments lack the room necessary for a full roasting setup, which is essential for efficient operation, particularly if roast their own beans must occur while serving customers.
Christos Sotiros, Head Barista at Nestlé Professional, points out that coffee shops encounter several obstacles when installing roasting equipment. They must have sufficient in-store space, advanced ventilation systems, and a substantial capital investment to cover the costs.
Additionally, storing both green and roast their own beans coffee presents another challenge. While some suppliers offer smaller quantities, most green coffee arrives in 60kg bags and requires climate-controlled storage. In retail environments where space is limited, this can be a significant issue.
Patrick Stern adds, “Roastelier offers a comprehensive solution, providing not just the roasting system but also the products and support services needed to transform any café or bakery into a fully functional roastery.”
Roast Their Own Beans Training Staff and Implementing In-House Roasting
Addressing challenges like installation, roast their own beans sourcing, profiling, and ventilation is just the beginning. Ensuring consistent quality also hinges on having skilled staff in-house.
Roasting and barista roles require distinct skill sets. Assuming that baristas will seamlessly transition to roasting without formal training can be a major oversight for coffee shop owners.
To address this, consider investing in training and development. While an entry-level roasting course can be beneficial, hiring an experienced roast their own beans may also be necessary. However, this option can be expensive and may not be feasible if you’ve already invested heavily in roasting equipment.
Christos Sotiros highlights that the Roastelier system simplifies the roasting process. It enables baristas and other coffee professionals to roast on-site with minimal training. “With the Prime Roast coffee and Roastelier system, there’s no need for extensive roasting training. Staff can be quickly trained to use the system, selecting from predefined roast profiles for different coffee origins to ensure consistency.”
Additionally, the system allows staff to create unique signature blends tailored to their shop roast their own beans, the season, or even daily specials, enhancing the customer experience.
In today’s highly competitive hospitality industry, upgrading services to offer exceptional coffee experiences is crucial for differentiation. For coffee shops, roasting in-house may provide a significant advantage. It allows for the creation of signature blends and improves coffee freshness, which can help attract and retain customers.
Overall, roasting in-house is a growing trend among coffee shop managers and owners looking to set themselves apart from the competition.
