Coffee Roaster in Somerville

[tomgaroo]

Looking to buy fresh roasted coffee beans somewhere in Somerville/Cambridge that is not Whole Foods. Anyone aware of a coffee shop or other retail concern that roasts their own beans? Is True Grounds in Somerville worth trying? Judging by their horrendous website I have my doubts.

[Parsnipity]

Crema in Harvard Square sells Terroir beans too.

[autopi]

true grounds sells terroir beans. diesel & bloc 11 sell intelligentsia. peet's in h.sq. has their beans. and then there's simon's, which sells terroir, atomic (haven't tried yet) and barismo. barismo is based out of arlington, just up the road from camberville, and iirc they are a small outfit roasting their own beans and selling to a couple places locally. i've tried a couple of their offerings and found the quality to be pretty high. oh and dave's fresh pasta also sells barismo.

[finlero]

A few weeks ago, my wife brought home a bag of the "In Season" Intelligentsia beans from Diesel. The packaging was so pretentious [flowery writing as to the origin of the beans, rigid instructions about the tiny proper range of temperatures at which to brew it, vigorous admonishment against using a coffeemaker with a hot plate] that the angry anti-elitist in me was really looking forward to being underwhelmed.

Long story short [too late], easily the best coffee I've ever brewed at home. I tend to prefer dark roast coffee, but this was light, subtle and complex.

The George Howell stuff is good (and I like that it's local), but IMO, it can't hold a candle to Intelligentsia. I wish I could hate it, but I'm definitely a believer now.

[bear]

finlero, do you remember how much it was per pound?

[finlero]

Since I didn't buy it myself, I don't know exactly, but I'm sure it's on the pricey side. I'll guess it's right around the $15 mark; next time I'm there, I'll check, unless another hound beats me to it.

[tallullah]

$15 sounds about right. I'm a Chicago girl and loooove my intelligentsia. Diesel does a good job of rotating their stock.

[bear]

Thanks. Sounds more like an occasional treat rather than an everyday cup.

[rlh]

Barismo is consistently high quality, but the prices seem high for 12 oz bags, their inventory is often really limited (to the whims of the roaster, I think - sometimes only 1 or 2 varieties and NOTHING from South Pacific region - ever) and their hours are erratic -call to make sure they are there and have some beans before making a special trip.

I very much want them to be successful but they need to operate the business closer to the quality level at which they roast their beans IMHO.

[poptart]

Barismo's Guatemalan is sublime. I do love their beans and they are very friendly and informative. I agree about the hours being slightly quirky.

Check their website to see when they have another tasting. It's a good way to try their selections.

www.barismo.com