Bellingham, Wash.-based The Woods Coffee today announced that all of its 14 Whatcom County retail locations will for the first time be selling house-roasted coffees.
The 12-year-old company set up a roastery at its Lynden headquarters in December, hired head roaster Shea Hagan, and began rolling out its own roasts earlier this year. Woods had maintained a private label relationship with a Seattle roaster prior to launching its own operation.
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“This is one of the biggest things we’ve done in our 12 years of business,” owner Wes Herman said in an announcement today. “Roasting all of our own coffee is something we have always wanted to do.”
The move makes sense for Woods, which has been maintaining its own first-rate bakery for years. To promote the roasting launch, the company is offering 2-for-1 bags of coffee to its customers throughout the month of June.
(related: Historic Seattle Shop Cafe Allegro Launching In-House Roasting Operation)
“We waited to announce our new coffee roasting until now, but we heard back from our guests who noticed the change almost immediately,” Herman said. “Our guests have already appreciated the improvement.”
In addition to the roaster, Woods has also opened a cupping lab, including a sample roaster, which will double as a training and event space. Here’s a short video introduction to the roasting operation from Herman:
Nick Brown
Nick Brown is the editor of Daily Coffee News by Roast Magazine.
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