Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Joseph Robertson on January 7, 2010 at 12:02pm

Frank,
This list is a great place to start. If someone needs work they would be mistaken not to check this BX site. It has become the FaceBook of coffee for a number of professionals.

Permalink Reply by Joseph Robertson on January 7, 2010 at 12:04pm

If you are looking for a professional roaster have you posted here on this site? Matt has a new feature here for employers looking for help.

Permalink Reply by Patrick Bock on January 7, 2010 at 2:01pm

If you are going have a coffee roasting company, you need to learn how to roast even if plan on some else doing it. You need to know that they are doing right. Take a few classes and get some experence in roasting. In terms of pay I thing about 10 to 20 cents a pound if doing a large volume. Ie if your roasting 1000lb a day 100 to 200 a day for pay with a Min of 15 hr.

You can advertise in the coffee trades, I have had a lot of luck with craigslist.org. There are a lot of roasting companies around LA. I would visit the ones I liked as a proseptive buyer and check to see if there any assistants ready to move up. Who ever you get make sure they are passinate about coffee. be careful and selective, I have meet a lot of people calling themselfs roasters that were making some really bad coffee and did not even know it.

Permalink Reply by frank jonson on January 7, 2010 at 3:35pm

Thank you. That is wonderful advice. Do you think that companies would help me "take" one of their assistants? I would not want to create any bad blood.

Permalink Reply by Joseph Robertson on January 7, 2010 at 5:07pm

The mention of it to the wrong roaster might be a great start of "Bad Blood"
Especially if they are a busy roaster. Hard to get good help..especially skilled good help.

frank jonson said:

Thank you. That is wonderful advice. Do you think that companies would help me "take" one of their assistants? I would not want to create any bad blood.

Permalink Reply by Joseph Robertson on January 13, 2010 at 3:30pm

Michael,
This is were I went for a week or so. http://www.coffeelab.com/
I would not even consider anything less than an independent course like I took. It is true though that any training is better than none. One should keep in mind that as a friend and mentor of mine likes to say, anyone can turn coffee beans brown but it takes years of experience to make them sing.
There is a big difference between a Master Roaster and someone who like me has taken a week or two worth of training. A wise employer would only hire someone who has serious experience as a roaster. At best I would be an apprentice. I'm employed as a roaster because I own the business. I have had the luxury of being able to get experience with my own green beans not an employers.
Sincerely,
Joseph

Michael said:

Where would someone go about taking a class? This is all new to me as I was just told by a friend she might be able to get me a job as a coffee roaster. I had never heard about it before so I'm trying to soak up anything I can find on it...

Patrick Bock said:

If you are going have a coffee roasting company, you need to learn how to roast even if plan on some else doing it. You need to know that they are doing right. Take a few classes and get some experence in roasting. In terms of pay I thing about 10 to 20 cents a pound if doing a large volume. Ie if your roasting 1000lb a day 100 to 200 a day for pay with a Min of 15 hr.

You can advertise in the coffee trades, I have had a lot of luck with craigslist.org. There are a lot of roasting companies around LA. I would visit the ones I liked as a proseptive buyer and check to see if there any assistants ready to move up. Who ever you get make sure they are passinate about coffee. be careful and selective, I have meet a lot of people calling themselfs roasters that were making some really bad coffee and did not even know it.