the east alstead story

I grew up in East Alstead, a small town in southwestern New Hampshire nestled within a wider community of creative and kind people. As a kid I played outside a lot - in our backyard, in the woods, at the pond up the road, and at the lake down the road. I think this is when my curiosity of tastes and smells started to develop; I've always loved the bouquet of fragrances nature provides throughout all seasons. I followed my love of nature into college, where I studied biology, but got a little sidetracked by my burgeoning affinity for craft beer. This was 2008ish, when a second wave of craft beer was beginning to grow into a tsunami. After graduating I threw my diploma aside, decided I was going to dedicate my life to crafting delicious things, and struck out on a gustatory adventure that I still haven't returned from in spirit.

I now have over fifteen years of experience working with food or drink of some kind. I worked with L.A. Burdick Chocolate to support cacao growers in Grenada. I spent a year in Europe as a (beer) brewer's apprentice, working with De Struise Brouwers, Brouwerij De Ranke, and Brouwerij Alvinne in Belgium; Brasserie Thiriez in France; Thornbridge Brewery and Marble Brewery in England; and BrewDog in Scotland. When I returned to the states I joined Hill Farmstead Brewery as an apprentice, and later in life moved to Washington, D.C. to share head brewing duties at Bluejacket Brewery.

My truest love, though, is coffee. I cut my teeth as a barista and roaster at Four Barrel Coffee in San Francisco, one of the West Coast's most revered roasters. The company attracted talented baristas, roasters, and trainers and indelibly shaped my path in the industry. After moving to D.C. and retiring from beer brewing I was fortunate to find a job at one of the city's best cafes, A Baked Joint, where weekends were a nonstop blur of pulling espresso shots. As a multi-roaster cafe, A Baked Joint allowed me to explore coffees from roasters all around the country. 

In December 2019 I moved back to East Alstead, seeking to build a sustainable future within the community that raised me. When the pandemic hit and I had more time on my hands I decided to lean into the dream of starting a roasting business. I started extremely small and questionably, roasting with a flour sifter and heat gun, but soon bought a nifty desktop electric roaster with a capacity of about two pounds. A year later I transitioned to a true commercial roaster, which is what I use today.

My goal is to offer a new coffee experience for the community/area I grew up in; to be able to provide nuanced, complex coffees to the people and places I’ve loved. I may not be the most technical, ambitious, or competitive roasting company out there but that’s not what I’m aiming for. I just want to give people a little taste of how good coffee can be.

Owen Miller, founder/owner