We seem to be in a swing towards local products from farmers markets, handmade crafts, small batch jellies and local boutique stores. After malls and big box stores took over the world, we realized there really was a need for smaller stores and opportunities.
But what about coffee? Cafes and coffee trucks everywhere talk about local and small batch roasters. How is that better or even different the from grocery brands or mass coffee production?
Small batch roasters can actually mean more than one thing. First, the amount of coffee roasted at one time is a smaller quantity such as roasting 50 lbs at a time as opposed to a million lbs at once. The other meaning can be roasting a smaller amount in a larger roaster, such as roasting 50 lbs in a 100 lbs capacity roaster. (Words, they are so tricky!)
Lucky for you, fresher better tasting coffee comes from either definition. But why? Because there are humans involved in small batch production. If you roast a smaller amount of coffee at a time, you are not mass producing product and are monitoring the situation more closely. If you roast a smaller amount than the roaster can hold, beans aren’t smashed in together creating a more even and better baking experience.
In reality, knowing the difference doesn’t change how you drink coffee. What you need to know is to look for that information from your coffee choices. Often local roaster are small batch roasters which is great because you get better coffee and are supporting a local business at the same time!
Go ahead and keep choosing local! From coffee to jelly, your products are fresher and real humans worked hard to make it that way.