We use a cast iron roaster for our coffee, and our roasting levels create a coffee that tastes just like the coffee of old world Europe and early America.
We started out roasting in a cast iron pan, then we built custom cast iron stovetop roasters, and now we use a cast iron drum roaster. We make sure to maintain the flavor of traditional stovetop roasted coffee. It’s the way coffee was originally roasted, and modern roasting methods using stainless steel, composite, or air roasting doesn’t give coffee that same bold classic flavor.
Combined with the Arabica supremo grade beans we source from Colombia, and the sealed-fresh Mason jar storage, it creates a classic, full-bodied coffee. If you want a detailed breakdown of what makes our coffee different, look here.
The German Norwegian style blend refers to the spectrum of roast levels in addition to our heritage and the history of Wisconsin. Germans opt for a darker roast while Norwegians prefer a lighter variety. Our roast is a blend of dark and medium beans, all in one roast. By the time the first beans reach the second crack (beans crack twice during roasting) others are still a few shades lighter. This creates a spectrum of flavors all within the same roast. The result is a balanced medium dark flavor profile.
We also include more of the coffee bean skin in our roast. This layer surrounding the coffee bean is high in vitamins, minerals, and caffeine. Many roasters today remove it, but traditional coffee roasters kept it, and it adds flavor.
Hoffskeller is a German Norwegian word which combines “Hoff” and “skeller”. Rathskellers are repurposed cellars in government buildings common in Germany. Hoff means “farm” in Old Norse. Put them together and you get a repurposed farm basement. Our venue is located in the basement of our family barn and styled after classic Enlightenment-era coffeehouses and ratskellers… Der Hoffskeller. For more history on the terminology, look here.
Coffee first reached Europe at the very beginning of the 17th century, and by the 18th century there were coffee houses and roasters everywhere, including early America. This coffee explosion coincided with the Enlightenment, with philosophical and political discussions often taking place in coffee houses. Many European kings banned coffee, fearing its invigorating effects would cause political dissent, but coffee ultimately prevailed, and the kings enjoyed it as well. So imagine yourself sitting around an Enlightenment-era speakeasy coffee house table with fellow revolutionaries as you drink Der Hoffskeller Coffee.
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