Barriques, the six-site local coffee-and-wine house, is now roasting its own beans. Previously, Barriques obtained its beans from Milwaukee's Alterra.
Co-owner Matt Weygandt says the transition will happen over the next week. The Middleton location has already switched over; it's largely a matter of when different shops will use up their existing supply of Alterra.
The switch was prompted by the desire "to have control over a key piece of the business," says Weygandt -- coffee makes up about half of Barriques trade. This way, it will be possible to offer "harder-to-get, special lots of coffee," and to "switch up the mix" of what's served at any given time.
Now that Barriques has six locations, Weygandt adds, "Economically it works for us."
"Alterra is one of the best in the business," Weygandt continues, "and we're big fans of their coffee. There are a ton of great things to look to, to emulate." Stylewise, the coffee will take some time to develop. The customer's preferences will dictate what direction Barriques will take the coffee.
"Are they into single-origin? We can get more of those. We're not trying to dictate how people should be drinking coffee. I really don't think that's the future of specialty coffee," Weygandt says, citing "boutiquey coffeehouses" in "major urban areas" that, for instance, won't make a red-eye because they refuse to put espresso in their coffee.
Roasting takes place at the new location on South Park Street, where 700 of the 2700 square feet has been reserved for the roasting operation. Rob Jeffries, whose 25-some years roasting coffee includes a stint at Ancora, is in charge.
