From New York to Melbourne and now Canberra, community coffee roasting spaces are creating a stir in the coffee-drinking world.
What is a community coffee roasting space?
A community coffee roasting space is a communal workspace, often with a collaborative, inclusive vibe. Coffee roasters come together to learn and perfect the craft of roasting coffee by using shared coffee roasting facilities and equipment. It’s a low cost and low-risk way to create a signature roast.
Community coffee roasting spaces are typically set up to meet the needs of small to medium scale coffee roasters.
Who needs a community coffee roasting space?
Even if you’re a coffee professional, having your own coffee roasting facilities is expensive and time-consuming. You also need a certain level of technical skill to maintain and operate coffee roasting equipment.
Of course, if you’re a coffee professional or just a coffee lover, you can buy roasted coffee. You may have to pay a heavy price markup, however.
By using a community coffee roasting space, you can produce your own product and save a good deal of money. This will allow you to invest in higher quality green coffee. You will also have more control and choice over the green coffee you use to produce your own roasted coffee.
How does a community coffee roasting space work?
Most community coffee roasting spaces operate on a timeshare basis. Members are allocated time shifts, ranging from hourly slots to half days. Prices reflect the duration of the time shift.
Facilities are generally reserved for one roaster at a time. It’s when the shifts change, that a lot of knowledge sharing and networking go on. Moreover, many community coffee roasting spaces offer activities outside of roasting to facilitate coffee roasting education.
Do these spaces actually work?
When community coffee roasting spaces first began to appear, many people in the coffee industry said they simply wouldn’t work. They were wrong.
The Pulley Collective in coffee-loving Brooklyn, New York, was one of the first community coffee roasters on the scene and their success has been well-documented.
Maillard Atelier in the suburb of Coburg in coffee-obsessed Melbourne is another thriving communal coffee roasting outfit.
A community roasting space in Canberra
And now Canberra has a community coffee roasting space. Would you like to try your hand at creating your own delicious roast? Contact Bean Culture today to find out more about the open space community coffee roasting Canberra residents are falling in love with.