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| Product type | Coffee |
|---|---|
| Owner | |
| Introduced | 1986 Seattle, Washington, U.S. |
| Markets | Worldwide |
Torrefazione Italia is a high-end brand of Starbucks coffee beans sold in grocery stores. It started out as its own coffeehouse chain before being acquired by Starbucks in 2003.
The first Torrefazione Italia café opened in Seattle, Washington in 1986. Espresso, coffee and baked goods were served in their cafés.
Umberto Bizzarri, Torrefazione's founder, teamed up with Stewart Brother's Coffee (later renamed Seattle's Best Coffee) founder, Jim Stewart, in the mid-1980s to create Seattle Coffee Holdings. This new company built a more modern roasterie on Vashon Island, Washington in 1995 and manufactured Seattle's Best Coffee and Torrefazione Italia Coffee. Seattle Coffee Holdings was purchased in 1998 by AFC Enterprises and renamed Seattle Coffee Company.
Torrefazione Italia expanded to other cities in North America, notably, Vancouver BC, the San Francisco Bay Area, Portland, Boston, Chicago, and Dallas. Their coffees are also wholesaled to restaurants, hotels, bakeries and cafés.
Starbucks, another Seattle-based coffee company, purchased Torrefazione Italia along with Seattle's Best Coffee in 2003. Starbucks announced in 2005 that all 17 Torrefazione Italia cafés would be closed before the end of the year, [1] and all of the San Francisco retail locations were closed on 27 October 2005. The coffee brand has been retained, however, and the coffee is available throughout the United States in coffee shops, hotels, resorts, offices, schools, hospitals, and elsewhere.
The Bizzarri family has since started another roaster and coffee chain, Caffè Umbria, which was established by third-generation roaster Emanuele Bizzarri, the son of Umberto. [2] Umbria has been roasting since 2002, and opened its first retail branch in Seattle in 2005, following Starbucks' decision to shutter the Torrefazione cafés. The first Umbria branch is in fact in the same location as the first Torrefazione Italia branch, located at 320 Occidental Avenue in Pioneer Square. Caffè Umbria's main roastery is in the South Park neighborhood of Seattle and in 2017 opened a second roastery in the Bucktown neighborhood of Chicago. As of May 2021 the chain operates across 4 cities: four cafes in Seattle—-three downtown and one in the Ballard neighborhood; three in Portland, Oregon—-one in the city's Pearl District, and two downtown; two in Chicago—-one in the Bucktown roastery and one in the River North Neighborhood; and one in South Beach, Miami. The roasted coffee is sold wholesale to hotels, cafes, restaurants, and grocery stores across the US and Canada.
Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational chain of coffeehouses and roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It is the world's largest coffeehouse chain.
A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, e.g. espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee, iced tea, and other non-caffeinated beverages. In continental Europe, cafés serve alcoholic drinks. A coffeehouse may also serve food, such as light snacks, sandwiches, muffins, fruit, or pastries. Coffeehouses range from owner-operated small businesses to large multinational corporations. Some coffeehouse chains operate on a franchise business model, with numerous branches across various countries around the world.
Seattle's Best Coffee LLC is an American coffee retailer and wholesaler based in Seattle, Washington. Since 2003, they have been a subsidiary of American coffeehouse chain Starbucks. Seattle's Best Coffee has retail stores and grocery sub-stores in 20 states and provinces and the District of Columbia. Sub-stores can also be found at many other businesses and college campuses, including JCPenney and Subway restaurants.
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.
Timothy's World Coffee is a large Canadian coffee roasting company and chain of coffeeshops.
Costa Coffee is a British coffeehouse chain with headquarters in Dunstable, England.
Stumptown Coffee Roasters is a coffee roaster and retailer based in Portland, Oregon, United States. The chain's flagship café and roastery opened in 1999. Three other cafes, a roastery and a tasting annex have since opened in Portland, as well as locations in Seattle, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and New Orleans. Stumptown is owned by Peet's Coffee, which in turn is owned by JAB Holding Company. The company was an early innovator with cold brew coffee in nitro cans and have continued to develop other cold brew product innovations.
Van Houtte Inc. is a company based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada that processes, distributes and sells coffee and coffee related goods. They have expanded their product selection, which now includes tropical teas, sandwiches and salads. It was founded by Albert-Louis Van Houtte.
Diedrich Coffee is a coffee company based in Irvine, CA. Its first coffee house in Orange County, California, was opened in 1972.
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 2015, Peet's Coffee & Tea acquired a majority stake in the company.
Espresso Vivace is a Seattle area coffee shop and roaster known for its coffee and roasting practices. Vivace's owner, David Schomer, is credited with developing and popularizing latte art in the United States.
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 originates in the 1970s, with roasters such as the Coffee Connection.
Caffè Vita Coffee Roasting Company, commonly known as Caffè Vita, is an American coffee roasting company based in Seattle, Washington. Part of the third wave of coffee movement, it has been named one of 10 places offering "the best coffee in America."
Café Allegro is a coffeeshop in the University District of Seattle, Washington, United States. It is notable for being one of the city's first espresso shops and for its role in the history of Starbucks, as the place where founding proprietor Dave Olsen designed the Starbucks coffee product line. Situated in an alleyway, the cafe features multiple entrances and rooms.
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.
Colectivo Coffee Roasters is a specialty coffee roaster based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Until July 2013, the company was known as Alterra Coffee Roasters. Colectivo roasts its coffee and makes all its food products in Milwaukee and is known nationwide as a wholesale coffee supplier.
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."
Coffee in South Korea has been a strong element in South Korean culture. Originating in the 19th century, it has become a prominent commodity in South Korean marketplaces. It is one of the most popular beverages in the area.
Starbucks Reserve is a program by the international coffeehouse chain Starbucks. The program involves operation of worldwide roasteries; currently six are in operation. Also part of the program are 43 coffee bars preparing Starbucks Reserve products, what Starbucks considers its rarest and best-quality coffees, usually single-origin coffees. Some Starbucks Reserve coffee is also sold in about 1,500 of the chain's traditional outlets.
Victrola Coffee Roasters is a coffee roasting company with multiple locations in Seattle, in the U.S. state of Washington.
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