PLOT Roasting is an independent speciality coffee roaster in Woolwich, south-east London, founded in 2019. It's run by a small team of experienced coffee professionals who care about precision, traceability and flavour.
How PLOT started
PLOT's founder, Matthew, worked in hospitality before speciality coffee, and in 2009 he co-founded a small group of speciality cafés in Brighton. After a few years of running the business, he wanted to get more hands-on. Roasting was the next step in the supply chain, and it offered the chance to learn about processing, agronomy and how they affect the cup.
How they source
PLOT buys coffees that are traceable to specific producers, and sometimes even to a single day's picking. The team tastes as many samples as possible from each origin and chooses the best in blind cupping. When we spoke to Matthew, he said: "Price is never really a consideration, I'm looking for coffees with exceptional character." The aim is to build direct relationships with the best producers and buy from them year after year.
How they roast
PLOT roasts on a Loring roaster. Matthew started out on a very basic roaster with a barbecue-style burner, and has since used many different machines. He describes his favourite part of roasting as the sensory analysis: tasting, relating it to the roast profile, and making small adjustments over days and weeks.
In their words
- Favourite brewing method: "I love a Kalita. For me it's the best way to get a good, even extraction."
- Favourite origin: "It would probably be Ethiopia as I love the stone fruit and floral notes."
- Advice for new roasters: "Taste everything mindfully as much as you can, not just coffee. Consider your career as a non-stop learning process."
PLOT also runs coffee training courses. You can find out more on the PLOT Roasting website.
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