Previously operating solely as coffee wholesalers, Rumble Coffee Roasters has announced the opening of a new espresso bar on its Kensington premises, which will allow the public to have direct access to the brand and its beans.
Established in 2014, Rumble Coffee Roasters began as a passion project for friends and long-time business partners, Matt Hampton and Joe Molloy.
Originally from New Zealand, the duo have spent decades running award-winning cafés and espresso bars (Octane Espresso, The Truffala Seed) and developing passions for both hospitality and specialty coffee.
They say they felt that there was so much more that coffee roasters could, and should, be doing to support both the cafés they sold their coffee to, and the producers and farmers from whom they purchase their beans. Rumble Coffee Roasters was born “with a vision to source consciously, trade wholeheartedly, do business honestly, roast with passion, and support others to do the same.”
Since then, Rumble has achieved several successes, including the launch of The Transparency Project in 2018, an initiative which reflects Rumble’s commitment to improve the sustainability and longevity of the specialty coffee industry. “It’s about placing real value on the labour of those producing the coffees we all love and making sustainable and ethical business decisions wherever we can,” Matt and Joe say.
A key pillar of The Transparency Project is publishing real pricing data. In fact, Rumble says it was the first roaster in Australia to publish data for all their coffees. By sharing this information with the supply chain, consumers have an increased awareness of the cost of coffee production, helping even the smallest of operations fetch fairer prices for their products.
Rumble also encourages customers to purchase their coffee in tubs (rather than bags), to return their used coffee bags to the roaster for recycling, or even to bring their own coffee containers. With the arrival of their new Loring roaster, Rumble says it is able to produce 83 per cent less CO2 than a traditional roaster/afterburner setup while increasing its roasting capacity.
Located in front of the roastery, the espresso bar will allow Melbourne coffee enthusiasts to experience a rotating selection of single origins, a ‘filter coffee of the week’ served in whichever style desired (pour over, batch et cetera), and various roast styles and brew methods. However, the espresso bar will also be used for training, masterclasses, cupping sessions, and as a space for Rumble’s message of transparency and sustainability in specialty coffee to be communicated directly to consumers. “The aim is that consumers can come in and do a cupping, buy coffee and take home products, as well as participate in walkthroughs and masterclasses on the same site,” says the Rumble team.
The team hopes that by encouraging consumers to interact directly with the brand and their coffee, they will better understand all the facets of coffee production, including the true value of labour in the industry.
For more information, visit www.rumblecoffee.com.au