What are good places to buy fresh roasted espresso beans?

I'd prefer to try some local roasters near Alpharetta / Atlanta - or what are some good retail web sites to use?

As a start, the Resources page lists the site sponsors under Commerce. All of them have a long history with the online espresso community and this forum contains numerous threads detailing the membership's experience with their offerings.

Monkey, in atlanta i buy my coffee from Batdorf and Bronson, which has an outlet at Star Provisions off howell mill as well as in Decatur. Or from Octane Coffee which stocks Counter Culture coffee. They're also off howell mill/midtown.
One more is Method Coffee Bar & Tea Lounge (1593 North Decatur Road. 404-549-8942. http://www.methodcoffeebar.com). I think they use Intelligentsia coffee, don't know if they carry espresso blends as well.

Sorry, dont know any in Atlanta. CounterCulture's roastery is in NC. Ive not personally tried it, but many people will swear by the toscano espresso.

Im a home roaster, but once a month(or two) I order a pound of roasted espresso, for three reasons. One, it allow me to get ahead of my roasting/resting, so I can let some beans rest for as much as week, Two, to see how my home roasts compare to pro roasts, and three, cuz I have a absolute favorite blend.

What is it? Klatch Belle Espresso. This may very well be, my all time favorite espresso blend. Its just so perfect, that I order it exclusively. Once I month I buy some already roasted, and Its always klatch. Once, I ordered Gimme! Leftist blend, and while it was good, I missed my Belle.

If you dont mind not ordering local, I really very highly suggest Klatch. Ive tried all their espresso blends but the "worlds best" and they were all top notch. House and Belle are my favorites. As far as SO goes, Ive yet to try one I did not like. They do some really great stuff to beans there, and I love it. Try the Colombian Frutas de Popayan. Or the Ethiopian Wondo Bonko. I suggest Gimme! Coffee second.

Again, sorry, IDK any local roasters, but any of three I suggested will be sure to please, if you dont mind non-local

Jeff

Paul,

Keep in mind that some roasters do a better job of getting the coffee to you than others. For example, I live in Berkeley, California, and coffee arrives faster from Espresso Vivace in Seattle, Washington (my usual source, BTW) via USPS Priority Mail than it does from Ecco Caffè in Santa Rosa, California via FedEx ground (and I can drive there in one hour).

Most premium roasters will ship in sealed bags with a one-way gas valve protecting the coffee's freshness. Even here in California, I've enjoyed some wonderful beans from (in alphabetical order) Coffee Klatch Roasting in Southern California; Counter Culture in North Carolina; from both Intelligentsia Coffee and Metropolis Coffee in Chicago; and from Paradise Roasters in Minnesota.

I'd recommend any of these roasters mentioned above based upon personal experience.

Cheers,
Jason

hi there,

first of all thanks for the new places to try, and here are a few places that i like:

i used to live in portland and and some of the people at http://stumptowncoffee.com/ are also good friends.
they are sincere and genuine, and do a really great job with their beans. the panamanian esmerelda is one of my favorites for french press, and i have tried and liked most of their others as well, gravitating towards their ethiopians. their espresso is called hair bender and without being able to offer the technical details of the blend, i will say that i loved living near a stumptown and drinking shots of this every day, and felt no need to make espresso at home as a result.

here in massachusetts, i have been buying nimac kapeh from http://barismo.com/ and this is really one of my favorites for french press and it reminds me precisely of the flavors i would savor every morning during the month my wife and i stayed on lago de atitlan. good stuff and they seem like great people as well. i have not yet tried their espresso blends, but i have high expectations and expect to do so soon. i'd be interested to hear what others opinions are of these blends.


sincerely,
mjm

I am in the Dallas area. I just stumbled across these guys.

Marks Brothers "Big World" Coffee http://marksbrotherscoffee.com/

They just opened up about a week ago. They are only a few miles away, so I went to visit them in person. Being that I am fairly new to the hobby, I won't try to rate their products.

Nice people, I wish them well.