They're calling it the `fourth wave' of coffee...first there was instant, then there was French style cafetieres and the like; then came the Starbucks-style latte type shops; and now there's artisan coffee.
"It's the fourth wave and is where we're at now" explains Nik Storey who has set up Salford Roasters with the mission `to bring proper coffee to the people of Salford and Manchester, and inspire a passion for artisan roasted, speciality beans, and their origin...'
The idea is to treat coffee like craft beers and organic food... "People are now more concerned with where their steaks and eggs come from, like what farm is it from? Is it ethically sourced? Is it local?" Nik explains "That's where we're at now, so why can't that be the same for coffee?"
Nik imports the coffee from Peru, Nicaragua, El Salvador and Ethiopia, and each packet comes with the bean's speciality and its history. So, for the Peru (Organic) coffee, it's got `orange and chocolate notes, with crème finish' – and was grown 1800m up in the Andes Mountains at the Cooperativa Agraria...Now, you don't get that with a bucket of Nescafe.
To become `artisan', the bean must be hand picked, roasted to a specific profile, and then judged on ten criteria, including aroma, taste and aftertaste. Each is marked out of ten and anything over eighty is classed as a speciality coffee. Salford Roasters coffees score 84 and 92.
It all sounds very hipster but Nik is coming from a different place... "A lot of the speciality coffee business is too serious" he insists "They class themselves as `connoisseurs' but I want to change that and make it for everyone; a fun and unique brand."
Just a month or so since opening, the Salford Roaster coffees are already available for customers to drink at the Deli Lama on Bexley Square, at Playfoots in Monton, Malaga Drift in Eccles, John's Diner in Trafford Park and at the National Football Museum.
Nik's also going to be at the Christmas Market at Spinningfields tomorrow, Sunday, 27th November and on 1st, 2nd and 4th December selling special packs of the coffees to the public. Salford Roasters is very much a new niche business but there's a lot more personal history and social value behind it than the normal grab-a-profit enterprise.
Nik is a former senior manager of health improvement at Salford City Council and Director of Delivery at Unlimited Potential, who got disillusioned with all the cuts... "I loved the job working in health improvement services and day care, and that is still my passion but with cuts from central government I was finding it more and more difficult to stay in the arena" he explains "It got too much.
"I needed to think outside of the box, always wanted to own my own company and that was where Salford Roasters came from" he adds "There was also a bit of a social value connection which comes from my background and that's what I'm trying to create as well. Eventually a proportion of the profits will go to create a Sleep Disorder Foundation for the north, which is a big passion of mine."
Nik is one of only sixty people in the UK with a rare condition called parasomnia, which is different to insomnia in that it's an inability to stay asleep, rather than get to sleep.
"I can wake up 132 times a night, which has been recorded when I've been hooked up to machines" he explains "It's a very unique condition. I've literally got no energy every day but try to get out there and work twelve hour shifts to get this business up and running. And I want to pump money into better parasomnia sleep research, because it always goes into insomnia but everyone forgets about people like us."
Given his condition, coffee has always been a huge part of Nik's life and now he's united the `medicine', his ethics and the need to kickstart a new career into Salford Roasters, which has begun life out of his garage in Worsley, with family members helping to package the beans. As the company grows, it's hoped that local people will be employed to benefit the city.
The signs are all looking good, not least the great big Salford Roasters boards outside all outlets. And the response from customers is totally positive, with cafes already upping their orders to meet demands.
The city has Salford beers, Salford sauces, Salford honey and lots more. Now there's speciality coffee to drink with a Salford kick and ethical values percolating from its soul...
For wholesale or retail enquiries contact Nik on 07786 38 2000 or email info@salfordroasters.co.uk
Also see the website www.salfordroasters.co.uk and on Twitter @salfordroasters
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