It used to be the best part of waking up was a cup of Folgers sourced from the supermarket. Now, for many coffee enthusiasts, morning means hand-washed, hand-dried beans grown on a Southern Ethiopian hillside, impeccably roasted in small batches and known to impart notes of jasmine, tea and strawberry.
For decades a watery vehicle for caffeine, American coffee has grown up. The 1970s and ’80s saw the rise of more robust roasts at Pacific Northwestern coffee houses; most notably Seattle’s Starbucks went from modest purveyor to mega-chain and helped transform the country’s daily routine to include pricey, full-flavored coffee. Purists are taking coffee a step further, using responsibly sourced beans and precision roasting techniques, and finding incredibly complex and nuanced flavors. Coffee has become an object of foodie fetish, scrutinized and appreciated like fine wine. But its essential role is still the same: weary-eyed pick-me-up, trusted routine and a hot, steamy comfort to enjoy with the newspaper … er … MSN news. That’s what I meant. With the help of Bill Walsh, coffee enthusiast and founder of the Pure Coffee blog, I’ve highlighted some of the country’s finest coffee roasters. Give us your own recommendations in the comments.
But first, coffee talk 101. “Direct trade” refers to a roaster or retailer having direct contact with a farmer. This helps ensure quality coffee and that farmers are being treated — and paid — appropriately. A “blend” (as in “house blend”) comes from mixing multiple coffees to achieve a certain flavor, while “single origin” coffees are brewed from one variety of bean from one location. Single origins usually offer more intriguing, intense flavors.
And now the roasters.