An idea sparked on the other side of the world has become, in just three years, an
artisan coffee-roasting business in rural Cheshire, producing top-quality beans that create
joy in a cup. Lynda Searby went to meet the makers of an outstanding coffee blend
“We knew we had
something special
with this coffee”
L
ost Barn Coffee Roasters’
Bloomsbury Blend was a
coffee that was always going
to be a strong contender for the 2020
Great Taste Awards. The easy-
drinking espresso had been given
two coveted stars the previous year,
but the coffee has come of age in the
12 months that have elapsed since.
“We knew we had something
special when we were awarded
two stars, but at that point we were
still a relatively young business.
We had to build on that with more
experience,” says Jo McKerchar, who
founded the Cheshire micro-roasterywith her husband Blair, a chef, and
their business partner Martyn
Moloney. This year, the company’s
coffee has been awarded three stars
and the Great Taste Golden Fork
for the north of England.
“We’ve refined the blend in terms
of the proportion of beans. It’s based
on a new crop of mundo novo
beans from a family farm in Brazil.
Every year, the flavour of the bean
is improving,” says Jo.
Not many coffee brands can claim
to have a direct line to the farm
that supplies their beans, but this is
the way Lost Barn Coffee operates- and the company pays a price
agreed with the grower rather than
set by the commodities market.
WHERE IT ALL BEGAN
The idea for a coffee company was
conceived while the three founders
lived and worked in Melbourne,
Australia, a city with coffee
running through its veins and
bursting with speciality roasters.
“We realised that, back home, no
one was hand-roasting coffee in
our corner of the UK,” recalls Jo.
“With Blair’s expertise and palate,
we saw a real opportunity.” And