Skip to main content

6 Craft Breweries That Also Roast Excellent Coffee

Brewing Up More Than Coffee: These Breweries Roast Coffee, Too

Beer could be consumed all day long ( if monks do it, you can too!), but if you’re one of those folks that wants to support a craft brewery at all times (such as, say, at nine in the morning) and still exercise a modicum of moderation, there are options to do it without pounding an amber ale first thing in the morning. How? You can brew up a pot of coffee made by a craft brewery!

Beer and coffee go hand-in-hand, as exemplified by the many great coffee beers on the market. Beyond the use of coffee in a growing amount of beer styles, the two base beverages also share many awesome flavor profiles on their own (there’s a reason coffee malt is a type of malted barley). These similarities also are attractive to brewers and more than a few across the country have started to roast their own coffees, helping diversify their businesses in an ever-more-saturated market and helping offer their loyal customers a way to experience their product at all hours of the day.

Recommended Videos

Related Guides

Here are some of the best breweries that also roast coffee.

Modern Times

modern times coffee
Modern Times/Facebook

This California brewery opened in 2013 and immediately began both brewing and roasting. Modern Times’ coffee bags are labeled with its signature logo and are sold online, as well as in some of the brewery’s distribution markets. Modern Times even had to expand its roasting operation in 2015 due to high demand. Just like with the beer, Modern Times has also ventured into bourbon barrel-aging coffee beans. The coffee also goes into the beer — the year-round Black House stout shares its name with the house coffee.

Two Brothers

Two Brothers Coffee Roasters
Two Brothers Coffee Roasters/Facebook

When Modern Times launched, the folks there believed they were the second brewery to start roasting behind Two Brothers Brewing in Chicago. Two Brothers Coffee Roasters sources its coffee from across the globe and roasts the beans in small batches and before selling it in retail locations around Chicago, as well as three cafes. The roasting operation has pumped out more than 100,000 pounds in 2018 and has doubled its production each year, to the point where the coffee is even in K-Cups.

Oskar Blues

oskar blues brewery and hot box coffee
Hot Box Roasters/Facebook

Why did Oskar Blues founder Dale Katechis start roasting coffee? Because he could! Oskar Blues is well-known for its use of cans in brewing (in fact, the brewery is largely responsible for starting the trend) and Hot Box Roasters use cans for coffee, too. Cans come in particularly handy for the Nitro Cold Brew, the creamy smooth coffee type that more brewers should be packaging. In addition, Hot Box offers up a subscription service for those in need of a regular fix. Oskar Blues uses its coffee in the Hot Box Coffee Porter, while sister brewery Perrin Brewing brews up Hot Box Brown.

Heritage Brewing

varitas bold cold press coffee
Cold Press Coffee/Facebook

The veteran-owned brewing company in Virginia operates also its sister company, Veritas Coffee. In 2016, it released cold press coffee in cans and, in 2017, opened its first brick-and-mortar location: Heritage Brewing Market Common Brewpub and Roastery. The canned nitro coffees come in bold and blonde varieties.

Red Horn Coffee House & Brewing

Red Horn Coffee House and Brewing Co
Red Horn Coffee House and Brewing Co./Faacebook

Sure, it gets hot in Texas, but that doesn’t mean coffee isn’t needed. In Cedar Park, Texas, Red Horn Coffee House and Brewing offers up its own house-roasted coffee. The crew includes dedicated baristas making sure customers experience the brand’s coffee as intended. It’s rare to have a business put such an equal emphasis on coffee and beer, but Red Horn accomplishes the goal the founders set out when they opened.

Fifth Frame Brewing

Fifth Frame Brewing Co.
Fifth Frame Brewing Co./Facebook

Fifth Frame Brewing started serving its coffee before its beer when it opened in Rochester, New York. The trio of founders had a wealth of experience in both coffee and beer and it’s been put to good use. While the name is an homage to bowling — the fifth frame is apparently the time for a beer — it also references using coffee as the fifth ingredient in beer (joining water, malt, hops, and yeast). Now that Fifth Frame is serving up beers, many of the brews use the house-roasted coffee, including Fauxka, a coffee brown ale.

Pat Evans
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Pat Evans is a writer based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, focusing on food and beer, spirits, business, and sports. His full…
The highest ranked organic coffee company in the U.S. has a tasty new roast
Light roast coffee-lovers, pay attention
death-wish-light-roast

Known as the #1 organic coffee brand and #1 fair trade brand in the United States, Death Wish Coffee is known for its high-quality and delicious coffee blends. Until now, however, the brand has focused on medium roast and dark roast blends. The brand has now announced a light roast coffee has finally been added to their roasts, ideal for those who enjoy the lighter, fruity notes of a light roast coffee.

Made from a blend of three different coffee beans, the new Death Wish blend combines the sweet fruit notes of Columbian coffee, the bright acidity of Peruvian coffee, and the depth that Robusta beans provide. The combination of these coffee beans delivers a sweet, bright, and bold blend that is jam-packed with quality and flavor. Like all of Death Wish's products, this coffee roast is Fair Trade Certified, USDA Organic, and Kosher. The coffee tastes bright, with notes of golden raisins and a sweet and bright aftertaste. The aroma features a hunt of plum and agave -- both sweet and fruity.

Read more
Our nation’s oldest craft brewery is no more (probably)
The nation's oldest craft brewery is going to be liquidated. What does that mean?
anchor brewing liberty ale

Anchor Brewing Company will soon be laid to rest. The iconic San Francisco brewery is officially closing, after 127 years in the business. The brand is behind some of the most celebrated West Coast beers, from the refreshing Anchor Steam to the perennial Christmas Ale.

Reportedly, parent company Sapporo, which took Anchor over in 2017, has no interest in continuing with the brand. The Japanese beer giant has had a tough time with Anchor since the acquisition, which could at least partly be blamed on the pandemic, which has downed so many drinks companies, bars, and restaurants.
Anchor Brewing's origins
Anchor has a rich history and has had its share of ups and downs. The brewery shut down during Prohibition and then again in the late 1950s due to poor sales. The famed Maytag family bought Anchor in the mid-1960s and gave the label some much-needed cash. This is when Anchor started creating and dialing in the recipes for some of its best beers, like Anchor Steam.

Read more
Craft Beer Trends To Watch as 2022 Approaches
Oakshire Brewing Smoothie Sour beers on table.

The world of craft beer is massive and always in motion. Seems like just a generation ago we had a handful of macro options, plus the occasional micro selection. Today, we are gifted with thousands of players in the craft beer scene, all working to elevate the industry and push it even further ahead.

We reached out to Jim McCune, who has spent decades in craft beer, for some insights and things to look out for. He's had runs at brewers like Blue Point and is presently the executive director of the Craft Beverage Division at EGC. What's he seeing in his crystal ball? For one, even more innovation in the hazy IPA, sour, and traditional lager genres. Also, more in the way of fusion beers made with CBD and THC.

Read more