28 Coffee Roasters We Love

1000 Faces Coffee, based in Athens, Ga., has a delicious selection of organic and direct trade coffees. It practices small-batch roasting, which means every bag bought will taste fresh and have true coffee flavors. Runner-up for the Micro Roaster of the Year award three years in a row, this coffee roaster is one of the best. One of the signature blends is Aldo's Blend, a mix of beans from Indonesia and South America. At $14 for a 12-ounce bag, this is a relatively inexpensive option for truly delicious grounds.

Bard Coffee has a mission to tell the stories of the incredible people who grow coffee. By carefully sourcing, roasting, and preparing its coffees, the roasting company believes that every cup is fulfilling this promise. Friendly and knowledgeable baristas in the historic Old Port neighborhood shop can help even the most novice coffee drinkers. With a 94 rating from Coffee Review, the Sumatra Wahana Natural at $16.20 for a 12-ounce bag is a great choice. 

Jon and Jillian Dolin operate Barefoot Coffee Roasters with the idea of treating coffee as a culinary product by delivering seasonal, farm-fresh beans with varied intense flavors. The owners travel worldwide to hand-select coffees and purchase beans directly from family farms. The company roasts with an emphasis on highlighting origin character versus roast character using the Probat L-12 and Dietrich IR24 machines. They were rated by Food & Wine magazine as one of the best gourmet coffees; try blends like The Heavy, made with Central American beans, for $16.95 per 12-ounce bag.

Batdorf & Bronson Coffee Roasters has been handcrafting coffees from around the world since 1986. From sourcing to roasting, this company puts in an enormous effort to every step of the crafting process. It offers certified organic, fair trade certified, bird-friendly, and shade-grown coffees and is always trying to lighten its environmental footprint. One of its most popular blends is the Dancing Goat Blend, with beans from East Africa, Central America, and Indonesia for $15.95 per 16-ounce bag.

Blue Bottle Coffee Roasters has been growing from its Oakland base, expanding to San Francisco, Brooklyn, N.Y., and New York City. This roaster offers some certified organic coffees from compostable bags, and it only sells coffee that has spent less than 48 hours out of the vintage roaster. This means ultimate freshness for each bag of beans. One of its most popular roasts is the Three Africans blend, which uses Ugandan beans and sells for $17.50 per 16-ounce bag.

Also one of America's Best Coffee Shops.

The Café Grumpy Roastery has been an integral part of the Brooklyn, N.Y., café since 2009. The roasters work to select green beans from socially and environmentally responsible producers. They then spend time developing the best roast profiles to bring out dynamic tones in the beans. Quality control is part of the daily routine. One 12-ounce bag of El Meridiano, whole Colombian beans, sells for $18.

Also one of America's Best Coffee Shops.

Counter Culture Coffee is a North Carolina-based roaster that is dedicated to coffee perfection. It was founded in 1995 and sources the greatest handcrafted coffees in the world directly to farmers themselves. It participates in many sustainable coffee practices, including direct trade, shade, natural decaffeination, the CUPS Initiative, SEEDS, and giving back to local communities. A bag of Number 46, a blend of beans from Guatemala, Rwanda, and Ethiopia, sells for $13.75 per 12-ounce bag.

Dallis Bros. Coffee is a New York original, providing delicious coffee for 100 years. The roaster was started in 1913 in Ozone Park by Russian-born brothers, who packed coffee into 5-pound paper bags and delivered door-to-door throughout Brooklyn and Queens. Today, the staff keeps the standards that Morris and Abe Dallis had from the beginning, transforming green coffee into delicious roasted blends every day and offering some fair trade and organic options. The Red Den Blend is a mix of Central American, Indonesian, and South American beans and sells for $12 per 12-ounce bag.

Dogwood Coffee uses a Probat roaster to execute the craft of roasting. The company began in 2010 when a group of coffee lovers wanted to create a company that didn't have to buy or roast coffees of which the baristas didn't approve. Dogwood tries to develop as many relationships as possible in the sourcing process and relies on a few trusted specialty importers. The Café Palmira of Guatemalan beans is a 12-ounce bag for $16.25.

DOMA Coffee Roasting Company lives out its tagline of "Coffee. Culture. Meaning" through a devotion to handcrafted sustainability, from roasting to purchasing, a passion for building a more sustainable and just world, building direct relationships to go above and beyond fair trade, and cultivating a leadership role in the business community. The top-rated roaster by Food & Wine magazine buys above fair trade prices and works directly with farmer suppliers. The roasting process includes a gas hybrid convection drum and Loring Kestrel S35. The Chronic, a Latin American blend, sells for $14.30 per 16-ounce bag.

George Howell Coffees has some of the highest ratings on Coffee Review. Its La Esmeralda Mario Carnaval 2012 from Panama is currently sold out after receiving a 96 rating from Coffee Review. The roaster was created in early 2004 and was earlier known as Terroir Select Coffee. An artisan roaster, George Howell Coffee tries to find benchmark quality coffees from single identified sources and will fly the coffee to its location when there is any doubt of quality.

Intelligentsia Coffee was founded in 1995 by Doug Zell and Emily Mange after they left San Francisco to open an in-store coffee roaster-retailer in Chicago. Since then, Intelligentsia has opened bases in Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York City in order to offer the finest coffees to a variety of people. They focus on relationships with farmers and pay prices far above fair trade standards. The House Blend is one of its most popular and sells for $14 per 12 ounce-bag.

Also one of America's Best Coffee Shops.

Founded in 2003, Joe the Art of Coffee is a local family-owned roaster and chain of coffee shops in New York City. It's dedicated to making flawless coffee served with hospitality, which is noticed by many media outlets and has consistently positive acclaim. Its house blend, Joe Roasted House Selection, is one of its most popular. The Southern Mexican beans sell for $13.

Also one of America's Best Coffee Shops.

Kéan Coffee is famous in the Orange County, Calif., area, having received numerous awards from local publications for some of the best coffee around. The roaster is constantly finding new coffees to roast, including single origin, organic, and fair-trade options. Kéan uses a specialized Diedrich roasting machine that measures time and temperature precisely. With a 93 rating on Coffee Review, the Bolivia Copacabana sells for $14.75 per 12-ounce bag.

Madcap Coffee is devoted to buying, roasting, retailing, and wholesaling specialty coffees. By building relationships with everyone who participates in bringing coffee to the roaster, Madcap ensures the highest quality. The company uses a Gas Diedrich IR-12 roaster to bring out the best flavor profiles of the beans. The Third Coast blend of South American and Ethiopian beans sells for $15 per 12-ounce bag.

Novo Coffee believes that coffee has an important culture that should be shared with its customers. The people who grow and harvest coffee cherries, the economic relationships that are formed with every coffee purchase, and the quality of the drink are taken into consideration for every roast in the custom rebuilt Vittoria roaster. Novo was named Bon Appétit and Forbes Magazine's favorite gourmet coffee. The Four Leftys is a Colombian blend in a 12-ounce bag that sells for $13.50.

Olympia Coffee Roasting Co. seek to work with the best farmers in the world. It obsesses about roasting coffee to bring out its perfect coffee profiles, and coffee is shipped out the same day it's roasted. This means ultimate freshness every time. As the 2013 Roaster of the Year according to Roast Magazine, there's no reason not to trust this organic and direct relationship roaster. The Big Truck Organic Espresso of Bolivian, Guatemalan, and Ethiopian beans sells for $14.45 per 12-ounce bag.

Ozo Coffee was founded in 2007 with the idea that coffee needs as much focus, dedication, and prowess as humanly possible. It roasts all of its coffees each week for optimal flavor and freshness. A local roaster, it won Best of Boulder awards for Best Coffee House, Best Coffee Roaster, Best Latte, and Best Mocha. Whether in the Boulder area or looking for a pound of coffee to buy online, Ozo Coffee is a great option. The Organic Ozo is a mix of beans from Sumatra, Peru, and Honduras and sells for $14 per 16-ounce bag.

Paradise Coffee Roasters was founded in 2002 when R. Miguel Meza opened a small micro-roaster in Ramsey, Minn., with the help of his parents. His goal was simply to provide unique and high-quality coffee and has proved that this is possible with consistent scores above 90 on Coffee Review. In fact, this roaster has more 94 ratings than any other roaster and offers some certified organic and fair trade options. The Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Kochere Micro-Lot sells for $16.95 per 12-ounce bag.

PT's Coffee Roasting Co. became the 2009 Roast Magazine Roaster of the Year award-winner by living out its mission: "Great coffee, lifelong friendships, wisdom to appreciate both!" Beginning in 1993 as a single coffee shop, the roaster has grown and has been able to travel to countries that provide them with unparalleled coffee and lifelong relationships with artisan farmers. The roaster was the first to win the Coffee Review's highest rating of 96 points for the Panama Esmeralda Especial back in 2009. For a roast that's just as delicious, try the Bolivia Dos Caros, $16.84 for a 12-ounce bag.

Also one of America's Best Coffee Shops.

Ritual Coffee Roasters is a San Francisco-based roaster that's racking up awards like the 2011 Nation's Top 17 Coffee Roasters by CNN & Fortune Online and is top rated by Food & Wine magazine. The mission statement is "to be a playground for people who love coffee while building a sustainable business model and investing in the communities both locally and globally." The roaster uses a Probat machine to live out this mission and craft delicious coffee. The Organic Los Anonos Costa Rican blend is $18.75 for a 12-ounce bag.

Also one of America's Best Coffee Shops.

The Roasterie serves only the best coffee beans, air-roasted at the perfect temperature in order to unlock the most exquisite flavor profile possible. The roaster imports 100 percent Arabica Specialty Grade coffees from 31 different coffee-producing countries. In addition to paying prices that are generally four times higher than what commercial coffee companies pay, The Roasterie contributes a percentage to the communities who grow the beans as part of its St. Drogo Foundation. A bag of the Kenya Nyeri Peaberry sells for $16.22 per 12-ounce bag and has a 93 rating on Coffee Review.  

Stumptown Coffee believes that coffee is king, but the relationships are what keep the roaster among the top roasters in America. The roaster sources the best coffees in the world strives to keep the truest relationships with the coffee farmers providing them with beans. It also believes that relationships with customers are just as important, so quality of the product is of the utmost importance. The House Blend of Latin American and East African beans sells for $14.25 per 12-ounce bag.

Also one of America's Best Coffee Shops.

thirty-three Coffee Co. is an independent, locally owned coffee shop that works tirelessly to provide a unique and inclusive atmosphere for customers. Every owner and employee within the thirty-three Coffee Co. shares an obsession for coffee beans and continues to strive to make excellent coffee. The Momma Bear Espresso is of Ethiopian beans and sells for $17 per 12-ounce bag.

Temple Coffee is a quality-focused retail and wholesale specialty roaster from that began roasting in Sacramento in 2005. It is committed to sourcing, roasting, and brewing the finest coffee, and it features distinguished single estates and cooperatives around the world. It earned a 97 rating on Coffee Review for its Guatemala Hunapu Antigua Bourbon for $15 per 12-ounce bag.

Think Coffee believes in its slogan, "Beyond fair trade. Beyond organic." The roaster is devoted to fairness in the coffee trade, from farmer to customer. It takes part in a number of farm and social projects and encourages customers to give back to their communities. The Think Blend is roasted by Dallis Brothers and is a blend of Ethiopian, Brazilian, Nicaraguan, and Mexican beans and sells for $12 per 12-ounce bag.

Victrola Coffee Roasters opened in 2000 because they felt there was a lack of great coffee and great coffee shops. The year 2003 marked the beginning of the shop roasting its own coffees, and in 2007, Victrola opened a new location complete with a roaster and training facility. The roaster provides a number of single-origin coffees. The Empire Blend is $12.38 for a 12-ounce bag.

Also one of America's Best Coffee Shops.

Zoka Coffee Roaster and Tea Company focuses on local community. From the customers to the farmers to the baristas, Zoka tries to create coffees that will be able to give back to every community it touches. The roaster offers some organic options and was a favorite in the Food & Wine coffee taste test. One of the magazine's favorite blends was the Ethiopian Yirgacheffe, which is $15.50 for one bag.

Also one of America's Best Coffee Shops.