26 beanscenemag.com.auINDUSTRY PROFILE
to three coffees we really thought
were fantastic,” Jonathan says.
“We then had people throughout the
industry independently and blindly cup
several coffees, including our’s, to make
sure we were putting out the best tasting
coffee we could.”
He adds that involving people from
outside SoCo Roasters in the research
and development phase ensured
they were not only appealing to their
own taste preferences.“A lot of small roasters create coffees
they like, but no-one else does. Having
other knowledgeable people in the room
with you is often good. That way you’re
not just stabbing in the dark until you find
something only you like,” Jonathan says.
The Society Blend contains tasting
notes of dark chocolate and juicy
cherries. Steven says in Australia’s
current coffee climate, it’s important to
offer something memorable as well as
high-quality.
“You can absolutely taste those
flavours – it’s obvious and distinctive.
The best and most popular coffees in
Australia are those that you can recognise
with one sip. That’s what we were
after, something that would really stand
out,” he says.
Jonathan adds that the real challenge
is finding this type of quality coffee for
use in a house blend.
“When you’re trying to find
something unique, with some kind of
connection to the farm, it’s tough to
source it in a large quantity. A lot of
people forget that when they beginroasting,” he says.
Since the blend made its debut,
Steven says it has been well received,
with SoCo’s wholesale customers
experimenting with different
ways to serve the coffee.
“I was visiting a customer who was
trying different shot times to get the best
out of the coffee,” he says. “They found
if they extract it for longer, it will taste
more chocolatey, and a shorter yield
draws out more acidity.”Jonathan agrees that people
enjoy the versatility of the blend.
“Some blends are hard to manage,
whereas this is quite flexible and easy to
use. It can behave differently depending
on how it’s treated,” he says.
“Most coffees use a standard two-
to-one water-to-coffee ratio, but we’re
pouring it with a short yield and it’s
tasting great, really highlighting the nice
juicy acidity of the Zambian coffee.”
Alongside the Society Blend, SoCo
Roasters has introduced a single origin
program to its offering. Jonathan says so
far, the standout of the program has been
a Sidamo Guji from Ethiopia.
“I think it’s the best single origin
we’ve ever made,” Jonathan says.
“It has an amazing, really strong
strawberry flavour in the grind
and as a piccolo, it cuts through
like a strawberry milkshake.”
Jonathan assists master roasters with
procuring coffees like this from origins
around the world, as well as quality
control and research and development
with a team of Coffee Specialistsacross Australia. He brings with him a
decade of experience as a barista and
seniority as the Chairperson of the
Australian Specialty Coffee Association
Central Region.
“We meet on a fortnightly basis
and work with roasters to tweak the
roast profiles and make sure we have
best tasting coffee we can put on the
market,” Jonathan says.
“We also communicate internally
about what the brand is about and
sharestories from origin. SoCo Roasters
is built on the stories of where we get
our coffee.”FROM THE GROUND UP
As well as communicating these
stories, Steven felt it was important
the look of SoCo Roaster stood out
in the marketplace. He says SoCo’s
brighter colours contrast with the darker
packaging that was popular at the time.
“We wanted something to reflect
a clean, fresh palate that was easily
recognisable,” Steven says. “The star in
our logo, between ‘So’ and ‘Co’, reflects
the acronym of society and coffee. It
brings the two idea together.”
Much of the other imagery SoCo
uses connects to the folklore of the
British pilot and projects carried out
at origin. Steven says this represents
the importance of Zambian coffee to
SoCo Roasters.
“People in the industry want to know
every detail they can about the coffee
they sell and consume. Café owners
and baristas want to hear the story of
where that coffee came from and how it’s
changed over the years,” he says.
“Promoting our connection to Zambia
and these stories provides a richness to
the brand while raising awareness of the
country’s coffee industry.”
Like Zambian coffee production,
SoCo Roasters is still relatively young,
but at less than a year old, its retail
operations have extended outside of
Melbourne to New South Wales and
the Northern Territory.
“There’re only a few specialty cafés
around Darwin and we were lucky
enough to find a particular owner that
absolutely loved the coffee and said that’s
what he wanted for his café,” Steven
says. “He even named it Society Café
and for its backdrop, he painted a cool
mural of a skeleton preparing an inverted
AeroPress from a pre-launch Halloween
event we ran last year.
“Our goal is to build an ecosystem
which is the ‘Society of Coffee’. We want
our customers to be online, connected,
and understanding what we’re tryingSoCSoCSoCSoCCoCo Co CooCo CCCofoffofffeeoffoffeeeeeeeeeeRoaoRRoaRoaRoaRoaoao stesteteesteteers’’stestesteersrs’rrrrrrs’rs’SoSoSSSoSoSoSSociecieciecieecieciecieicieetyciecietytytytyyty BleBlettyyty yyBBleBleBleeBleeBBleBleBleBleBlenddndndnddndnndnddndndnddnddd conddconcononcono taicconconcononcccononontatitiaitaiainsntaitaaitaitaittaitaaiaansnsnsnsnsnsns nns
tasting noteotes os f ddarkarkchchocoocolatlate ae and d juiuicy cy checherrirries.es.26 beanscenemag.com.au
INDUSTRY PROFILE
to three coffees we really thought
were fantastic,” Jonathan says.
“We then had people throughout the
industry independently and blindly cup
several coffees, including our’s, to make
sure we were putting out the best tasting
coffee we could.”
He adds that involving people from
outside SoCo Roasters in the research
and development phase ensured
they were not only appealing to their
own taste preferences.
“A lot of small roasters create coffees
they like, but no-one else does. Having
other knowledgeable people in the room
with you is often good. That way you’re
not just stabbing in the dark until you find
something only you like,” Jonathan says.
The Society Blend contains tasting
notes of dark chocolate and juicy
cherries. Steven says in Australia’s
current coffee climate, it’s important to
offer something memorable as well as
high-quality.
“You can absolutely taste those
flavours – it’s obvious and distinctive.
The best and most popular coffees in
Australia are those that you can recognise
with one sip. That’s what we were
after, something that would really stand
out,” he says.
Jonathan adds that the real challenge
is finding this type of quality coffee for
use in a house blend.
“When you’re trying to find
something unique, with some kind of
connection to the farm, it’s tough to
source it in a large quantity. A lot of
people forget that when they begin
roasting,” he says.
Since the blend made its debut,
Steven says it has been well received,
with SoCo’s wholesale customers
experimenting with different
ways to serve the coffee.
“I was visiting a customer who was
trying different shot times to get the best
out of the coffee,” he says. “They found
if they extract it for longer, it will taste
more chocolatey, and a shorter yield
draws out more acidity.”Jonathan agrees that people
enjoy the versatility of the blend.
“Some blends are hard to manage,
whereas this is quite flexible and easy to
use. It can behave differently depending
on how it’s treated,” he says.
“Most coffees use a standard two-
to-one water-to-coffee ratio, but we’re
pouring it with a short yield and it’s
tasting great, really highlighting the nice
juicy acidity of the Zambian coffee.”
Alongside the Society Blend, SoCo
Roasters has introduced a single origin
program to its offering. Jonathan says so
far, the standout of the program has been
a Sidamo Guji from Ethiopia.
“I think it’s the best single origin
we’ve ever made,” Jonathan says.
“It has an amazing, really strong
strawberry flavour in the grind
and as a piccolo, it cuts through
like a strawberry milkshake.”
Jonathan assists master roasters with
procuring coffees like this from origins
around the world, as well as quality
control and research and development
with a team of Coffee Specialistsacross Australia. He brings with him a
decade of experience as a barista and
seniority as the Chairperson of the
Australian Specialty Coffee Association
Central Region.
“We meet on a fortnightly basis
and work with roasters to tweak the
roast profiles and make sure we have
best tasting coffee we can put on the
market,” Jonathan says.
“We also communicate internally
about what the brand is about and
sharestories from origin. SoCo Roasters
is built on the stories of where we get
our coffee.”FROM THE GROUND UP
As well as communicating these
stories, Steven felt it was important
the look of SoCo Roaster stood out
in the marketplace. He says SoCo’s
brighter colours contrast with the darker
packaging that was popular at the time.
“We wanted something to reflect
a clean, fresh palate that was easily
recognisable,” Steven says. “The star in
our logo, between ‘So’ and ‘Co’, reflects
the acronym of society and coffee. It
brings the two idea together.”
Much of the other imagery SoCo
uses connects to the folklore of the
British pilot and projects carried out
at origin. Steven says this represents
the importance of Zambian coffee to
SoCo Roasters.
“People in the industry want to know
every detail they can about the coffee
they sell and consume. Café owners
and baristas want to hear the story of
where that coffee came from and how it’s
changed over the years,” he says.
“Promoting our connection to Zambia
and these stories provides a richness to
the brand while raising awareness of the
country’s coffee industry.”
Like Zambian coffee production,
SoCo Roasters is still relatively young,
but at less than a year old, its retail
operations have extended outside of
Melbourne to New South Wales and
the Northern Territory.
“There’re only a few specialty cafés
around Darwin and we were lucky
enough to find a particular owner that
absolutely loved the coffee and said that’s
what he wanted for his café,” Steven
says. “He even named it Society Café
and for its backdrop, he painted a cool
mural of a skeleton preparing an inverted
AeroPress from a pre-launch Halloween
event we ran last year.
“Our goal is to build an ecosystem
which is the ‘Society of Coffee’. We want
our customers to be online, connected,
and understanding what we’re tryingS CoCC eeeeR ’ ooo
tasting noteotes of darkchchocoocolatlae ae anddjuiuicycherrirrieses.