Peet's Coffee is a San Francisco Bay Area-based specialty coffee roaster and retailer owned by JAB Holding Company via JDE Peet's. Founded in 1966 by Alfred Peet in Berkeley, California, Peet's introduced the United States to its darker roasted Arabica coffee in blends including French roast and grades appropriate for espresso drinks. Peet's offers freshly roasted beans, brewed coffee and espresso beverages, as well as bottled cold brew. In 2007, Peet's opened the first LEED Gold Certified roastery in the United States. Peet's coffee is sold in over 14,000 grocery stores across the United States.
Roasting coffee transforms the chemical and physical properties of green coffee beans into roasted coffee products. The roasting process is what produces the characteristic flavor of coffee by causing the green coffee beans to change in taste. Unroasted beans contain similar if not higher levels of acids, protein, sugars, and caffeine as those that have been roasted, but lack the taste of roasted coffee beans due to the Maillard and other chemical reactions that occur during roasting.
Gimme! Coffee is a coffee roaster and third-wave coffee shop, based in New York, US, with espresso bars in Ithaca and Trumansburg. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Gimme! in 2020 closed the Manhattan and Brooklyn-based locations, and began an Ithaca-area delivery service. Gimme! Coffee also has a wholesale service that caters to coffee and espresso establishments. In January 2020, Colleen Anunu replaced founder Kevin Cuddeback as CEO after he had served 20 years in the role; Anunu then made the company into a worker-owned cooperative, which it remains in July 25, 2022. Gimme says that it forms relationships with farmers who grow coffee; farmers may receive a price premium which can help them improve their operations.
Intelligentsia Coffee is an American coffee roasting company and retailer based in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1995 by Doug Zell and Emily Mange, Intelligentsia is considered a major representative of third-wave coffee in the United States. In 2015, Peet's Coffee & Tea acquired a majority stake in the company.
Alfred H. Peet was a Dutch-American entrepreneur and the founder of Peet's Coffee & Tea in Berkeley, California, in 1966. Peet is widely credited with starting the specialty coffee revolution in the US. Among coffee historians, Peet has been called "the Dutchman who taught America how to drink coffee." Peet taught his style of roasting beans to Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl and Gordon Bowker, who, with his blessing, took the technique to Seattle and founded Starbucks in 1971. Peet later distanced himself, however, from the Starbucks trio as they experimented with ultra-dark roasts. "Baldwin never learned anything from me," Peet was later quoted as saying.
The Unseen Bean is a coffee roasting company and café in Boulder, Colorado. Gerry Leary, blind since birth, started selling roasted coffee in 2004, and opened the retail café in March, 2007. Leary, who is also an advocate for the disabled, advertises "blind roasted coffee" to rouse interest in prospective customers. Leary runs the business and roasts coffee with the help of a guide dog, who is also featured on the coffee's packaging; talking thermometers; and timers. He gauges when the coffee beans are roasted by smell and hearing. The Unseen Bean was featured in the 2008 Top of the Town issue of Denver magazine 5280. Leary received training and certification in roasting coffee from the Coffee Training Institute and West Coast Specialty Coffee Company in San Francisco, California.
Third-wave coffee is a movement in coffee marketing emphasizing high quality. Beans are typically sourced from individual farms and are roasted more lightly to bring out their distinctive flavors. Though the term was coined in 1999, the approach originated in the 1970s, with roasters such as the Coffee Connection.
Blue Bottle Coffee, Inc., is a coffee roaster and retailer once headquartered in Oakland, California, United States. In 2017, a majority stake in the company was acquired by Nestlé (68%). It is a major player in third wave coffee. The company focuses on single-origin beans.
Seattle is regarded as a world center for coffee roasting and coffee supply chain management. Related to this, many of the city's inhabitants are coffee enthusiasts; the city is known for its prominent coffee culture and numerous coffeehouses.
Ritual Coffee Roasters is a coffee roaster based in San Francisco, California, with six cafes in San Francisco and Napa. Founded in 2005, Ritual Roasters is considered part of the "third wave of coffee" independent companies which both roast their own beans, wholesale, and operate cafes. Their peers include Blue Bottle Coffee Company and Four Barrel Coffee, among others. In March 2017, Somatik partnered with Ritual Coffee to make $12 marijuana-infused cold brew.
Portland, Oregon, in the United States, is known for having an established coffee culture. In February 2012, The New York Times reported that Portland had more than 30 coffee roasters. Comparing Portland's coffee culture to other major cities along the West Coast, Oliver Strand wrote: "Seattle coffee might have more muscle, and San Francisco coffee might have more mystique, but Portland's coffee scene is arguably the country's most intimate. It's also one of the most relaxed."
Heart Coffee Roasters is a small specialty coffee roasting company with cafes in Portland, Oregon, United States. It was established in 2009 by Wille and Rebekah Yli-Luoma.
Caffè Umbria is a coffee roaster based in Seattle, Washington, United States. The chain has been described as "an Italian family business". Caffè Umbria was established by third-generation roaster Emanuele Bizzarri, the son of Umberto.
Roman Candle Baking Co., or simply Roman Candle, was a bakery and pizzeria–restaurant in the Richmond neighborhood of Portland, Oregon. Duane Sorenson opened Roman Candle in 2013, with a menu offering wood-fired pizza and other Italian cuisine, including sandwiches, breads, green salads, pastries, and baked potatoes. Dan Griffin and Joshua McFadden served as the baker and chef, respectively. The bakery started supplying select menu items to Sorenson's Stumptown Coffee Roasters locations in late 2015. Roman Candle received a generally positive reception, with the pizzas and kouign-amann receiving the most praise. The restaurant closed in April 2018 for renovations, ahead of a rebrand as a gluten-free and vegan cafe called Holiday, which Sorenson launched one month later.
Spella Caffè is a coffee shop in Portland, Oregon, United States. Andrea Spella started the business as a cart in 2006, before opening a brick and mortar space in downtown Portland in 2010. The business has garnered a positive reception, and has been cited as an influence for other coffee company founders.
Public Domain Coffee is a coffee shop in Portland, Oregon. Coffee Bean International opened the cafe in 2010.
Case Study Coffee Roasters is a coffee company with multiple locations in Portland, Oregon, United States.
Water Avenue Coffee is a coffee "micro-roaster" with multiple locations in Portland, Oregon. Matt Milletto is a co-owner.
Nossa Familia Coffee is a coffee company based in Portland, Oregon. The roaster was founded by Augusto Carneiro in 2004 and uses sustainably sourced beans imported from Africa as well as Central and South America.
Spielman Bagels & Coffee, originally known as Spielman Coffee Roasters, is a small chain of bagel and coffee shops in Portland, Oregon. Established by the father and son duo of Rick and Raf Spielman in 2011, the business operates four locations.
