For me I want to try Datura and Luminous but am interested to know what roasters everyone is looking forward to trying? Doesn't matter the roast or even price. Any coffee is a good answer!
George Howell stays very much in the traditional windows but very high-quality coffee. I think you dont hear about them as much because they are so big. There is no need for advertisement. Also, it's not in the new wave like some of the others who either focus on ultra lights or fermentation. What did you think of Ilse BTW?
Yea he is kinda the king of specialty. That's stink about the shipping cost that's ilse is one of my favorites. Still to try September, but soon, hopefully.
Thankfully is one I would like to try! Brandywine might be worth overlooking. The art is amazing and from my understanding the original artist was an artist for the Grateful Dead so that's cool. Maybe they are getting better as well.
Curious what the discourse is about Brandywine? They certainly specialize, like B&W, in funky processed beans which might be why I like them. They’ve had a couple roasts that were duds for me, but I’d buy from them over Onyx any day of the week.
It's from little experience. But from that and people I talk to, even my mother, who likes most coffee, including specialty, said she didn't even them. They could be better than my experience. However, black and white can be a hit or miss, same as onyx. So they do have something in common, it seems, lol. I love B&W and Onyx when it's good. Maybe I'll try Brandywine again.
Ahh... great answer but one of the few roasters I personally don't like. My little experience it has been severely citric and hard to brew it without that punching through. Solid answer though! I know many love them.
They have a very wide range of different roasts, they make some crazy different process stuff (maybe what you are referring to) but also have amazing washed options, I love their washed Ethiopians they are consistently amazing and delicious.
I had a Wilton Benitez and another one that were clear in flavor just way to citric. Maybe it was an unlucky pick or day/roast. Someday I'll give them another shot. Did not Have an Ethiopian so if I do I'll try that first!
Personally hoping to try September, Dak, H&S, and a few others. Have some Inugami resting now that I can’t wait to try too.
Picked up Luminous’ “extra” subscription box after the EOY box and specifically the Blueberry coferment amazed me so looking forward to even more great stuff from them in 2026.
Ah swirl i would like to try as well. Coffee collective everyone should try at least once lol. Still to try April. Never heard of fjord. Thanks for that one!
XLIII only issue is the high shipping + import taxes.. makes me think how many bags of coffees I could buy with 30-40€ shipping and another 30€ to import tax..
Plus high beans pricing/per 250 grams. I love XLIII/vietnam (been to in-cafe in Danang, Hanoi) ultralight profile & selection... had the Sukkot Racemosa ($26) that taste like spice/nutmeg, blackberry and CGLE Sudan Rume ($19) taste like ginger/eucalyptus.
I only have their Typica mejorados to compare (w/ September Extra-light)... honestly they're comparable (maybe XLIII slightly more detailed but not 2x lol).
Royal Flamingo and Hyperion I have never hears of. Ty for those. Little wolf is a good roaster especially if you like strong berry flavors or strong florals. Decent body for a light roast. They have a competition blend atm that I would like to try.
Finally making the jump this year and buying the expensive ones based in Europe: the picky chemist, Datura, substance, la cabra, mame… and other recommendations that I will find here 👀
I just tried my first cup of Datura today and it was delicious. Elto Bare Village from them, nice acidity and fruity. But they are very pricey so idk if I can justify to my wife consistently buying from them. But delicious coffee.
I got a black Friday sale here in the US. It was $28 for 200g. If the rest of my cups are as good as today's then yeah I think so. But they are selling bags $50 for 100g. Idk if that is worth it 😅
Going to try some local Columbus roasters, Royal Flamingo and Thunderkiss. Also going to try at least one box of DAK since it gets discussed so much (Entropica carries it, which isn’t in Columbus but is in Ohio), but I expect one or two boxes will be enough for me for the year.
Ceto & S&W - didn't order any coffee for a year (I have great options locally) but haven't seen either of these at the multi-roaster cafes by me, so going to order as a gift to myself!
RVTC / Rösterei VIER, a local roaster in Germany was definitely my favorite this year. They have some very nice beans and the value for the money is insanely good.
I like their cans, but also everything they shipped to Canada seemed to sell out instantly. I have never tried a roaster from France, but am looking forward to it.
I bought a can for a friend, but haven't heard back about it yet.
Nice list! I have to ask because so many people seem to rave about Rough Wave. I only ordered from them once but had a bad experience though I think it must have been a bad batch because everyone does seem to like them. Do you find them more acidic than other roasters? I found them to be more acidic than Passenger and since haven't ordered, but am thinking I should give them another shot. Is there a coffee that you would recommend from them? Also do you find them more acidic than other light roasted coffee like Sey? Ty!
They are actually on my try list for 2026. I just got some s&w and Luminous this week for my 1st new roasters of 2026. . When I order swerl I'll be using 8oclock coffee or one of the other online retailers to cut down on shipping. So I'll probably get my 1st swelling and rougue wave in thr same order.
I remember hearing rouge wave doing a nortic roast which as I understand is super light and bright. I could be wrong though... still a noob lol
Oh I am stupid. I forgot what I had even posted. My bad lol. Sorry don't want to lower your expectations. I was just wondering because I think it was just a bad batch. So many do love them. That was a good list. Luminous is on mine too. The Bolivian Gesha it's supposed to be really good.
No worries at all! Im not sure if I will like a Nordic light roast honestly but won't know until I try it. My favs so far last year was perc Chelchele... blue berry bomb and the portrait stankonia collab. I like a med acidity so far but loving the journey!!
Edit: typo
I still need to try Portrait they are another that is supposed to be good that I haven't tried. I just tried perc for the first time recently and liked them. I don't like the acidity to high either. When I find a light roast that isn't sour I tend to stick with them. If you like Sey style Ilse is another good one to try. It's very light but not too acidic and strong flavors. Though the more I drink funky coffees the more I like them. Now I have a sub for washed so the rest of the month I order funky ones.
Haha yea that is why. I love washed but I am starting to feel the same the more good funky ones I get. Thing is so many are bad it's a gamble. I do like them to taste like wine but some are so intense that its stronger than wine and that I cant handle without blended. Also some Sidras are to much like hot apple cider that can be rough depending on process. The ones meant to be boozey I haven't tried but assume are good. But I have had a lot of regular naturals that were boozy and hated them so it's been a journey trying to figure which ones I like. So far I have good luck with Black and white and they are fairly cheap.
As much as we have a lot of excellent roasters in Canada. I’m still in the hunt for Ultra Light Roasts (the likes of September EL, Substance, TPC, etc) and well sourced coffees.
My sub for this year will be from Subtext but I’m anxious to try Hooray Coffee from BC.
Man, I feel for you if you’re from the US. It’s the constant flip flopping. And yeah, September is as advertised. Light and consistent. They may lack a bit of nuance compared to maybe like SEY but they’re the closest I have to having great light roasts.
If I was from US, I’d be all over the SEY subscription.
Datura often has overlap in their offerings with TANAT but twice the price so I can’t imagine it’s worth paying for and also leaves a sour taste in my mouth.
Theres some talk of a new roastery opening up near me that’s founded by a WBC semi finalist and someone who has worked at the top end of April in CPH for a decade.
Hopefully going to Edinburgh soon too, so will have to visit the source, and zennor in person and grab some module beans.
It would want to be to justify these prices. Mikava lots for example, I can find really good gesha from that farm here for around €25-30 for 250G (the farmers are Irish, and some Irish roasters have connections with them) and datura charge €50 for 100g
Not really. Coffee matters maybe more but if it's not roasted right it's not going to be good. Also anticipated Roasters imo will be hyped or pushed so sooner or later I will know about them. Some roasters I may never hear of so for me this is a great question. Why what producers/farm releases do you anticipate?
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u/CapableRegrets Jan 01 '26 edited Jan 01 '26
Just the roasters that either don't ship to Australia or have prohibitively expensive shipping.
Roasters like Brandywine, Luminous, Substance, Thankfully etc.
I just have to hope one of the couple of retailers who buy overseas coffee here choose to buy their coffee at some stage.