Minnesota Roasted, a Collaboration to Support Service Industry Workers

Minnesota Roasted is the collaboration coffee in which Spyhouse is proud to participate, along with eight fellow roasters. We partnered with Cafe Imports to all use the same coffee, a delicious Colombia Nariño, but roast it in our own unique ways. This will not only showcase the different roasters in town and how they all work their magic, but will also highlight how one coffee roasted nine different ways, truly creates nine different coffees.

All proceeds of this fundraiser will go to The North Stands, an organization formed last year to aid service industry workers in the Twin Cities who were impacted by COVID-19 and the resulting shutdowns of bars and restaurants. I am honored to once again be asked to participate in Coffee For A Cause, and for being in the position where I can use my craft to help raise some funds for my service industry family. If 2020 showed us anything, it’s that community is everything. Through such great adversity, I saw the people in this community and this industry as a whole pull together, forming stronger bonds than I have ever seen before. We all need to take care of each other because we all need help sometimes. We are fortunate enough to be in a position where we can both help give back and share some delicious coffee in the process!

Our goal is not only to give back to our community, but also to strengthen professional bonds with our fellow coffee roasters. I firmly believe we as an industry do better when we work together, open channels of communication, and provide feedback and assistance to one another. This project is special for me because networking is one of my favorite things to do. Whether it’s making new connections in Peru, Colombia, Mexico or Honduras, or forging new relationships with my fellow roasters just down the street. These bonds and these relationships are the things I love to create. They keep me motivated, hopeful, and driven. Our community has never been stronger than it is right now, and roasting alongside these folks who are rallying for a cause is humbling.

Stay safe, take care of one another, and as always—caffeinate well!

—
CJ Porter Born
Head Roaster / Green Coffee Buyer