The following article first appeared in Society Magazine. Written by Karla Sinclair - 17th July 2020
Quality coffee is becoming far more accessible in the north-east.
With more and more businesses like Bennachie Coffee appearing on the region’s food and drink scene, those of us looking for a well-needed caffeine fix are spoilt for choice.
Founded by Ross M Erskine, Bennachie Coffee has been providing consumers with fresh, great tasting coffee since its inception in 2017.
The family-run firm is the brainchild of Ross, after he discovered his admiration for a quality brew while living in Australia.
“I lived in Australia in the early 2000s,” Ross said.
“Not only did I meet my wife there, but I also tasted superb coffee that was much better than what I had experienced in this area at the time.
“Since then, it has been a dream of mine to help everyone back home in Scotland discover great tasting coffee.”
Ross began his entrepreneurial journey by roasting coffee in his garden shed, and getting friends and family members on board to sample his produce.
With all feedback proving positive, Ross decided to educate himself more on the roasting process in order to enhance his expertise, skills and knowledge.
Ross said: “People kept coming back for more saying it was the best coffee they had ever tasted.
“In order to learn about coffee itself, I spent time with other coffee roasters in the US and Australia, working with them and learning from them.
“When back in the UK, I kept roasting coffee, researching, learning and improving the results.
“I also spent a lot of time in formal training, gaining qualifications in sensory analysis, coffee roasting and green coffee procurement and analysis.”
When it came to developing his business and products, Ross knew exactly what he wanted to do – provide remarkable coffee experiences for consumers.
“We have had several single origin coffees and our house blend,” he said.
“Since our daughter was born towards the end of last year, my wife and I have focused on our most popular coffee – the Seasonal House Blend.
“This is the result of years of hard work and customer feedback. It was crucial that I perfected a coffee that people loved and kept coming back for again, and again.
“It is a blend from central and southern America, consisting of three stand-out coffees which complement each other very well.
“We have also sourced coffees from Brazil, Honduras and the DemocraIc Republic of Congo, from a co-operative called Rebuild Women’s Hope.
“Our coffee is all roasted by us, and we also work with other roasters to ensure our increasing volumes can be met.
“There is a lot involved in the process. But to summarise, we start with a green (raw) coffee cherry seed, ensuring it’s at the correct moisture content and free from any defect.
“Then, we apply heat in a drum style roaster up to around 220C until the coffee seed/bean goes through various changes, pops and cracks.
“Slight variations in times, temperatures and airflow can change the flavour and mouth feel of the final brewed coffee entirely.”
Bennachie Coffee’s products can be found in several stores across the north-east, including The Green Grocer in Inverurie, Rock Salt and Sole, the Strong Water Co. and Marshall’s Farm Shop – to name a few. But before the produce hits the shelves, Ross and his close-knit team work around the clock to ensure it all comes together perfectly.
Ross said: “My role involves lots of coffee roasting, as well as cupping – the standardised method of sensory and taste assessments – and carrying out
tastings with both coffee drinkers and non-coffee drinkers.
“It’s fantastic hearing such great feedback from people. Many customers have said it is the best coffee they have ever tasted, or they didn’t know coffee could taste so good. I have also had several life-long tea drinkers say they never enjoyed coffee until trying ours.”
Other than receiving exceptional reviews over the years, Ross explained that another perk of running his own firm is being able to spend more quality time with family.
Now, the business owner has big plans in store for Bennachie Coffee as lockdown restrictions continue to ease.
Ross said: “As we start to move more out of the lockdown situation – and cafes begin to open up again and refresh themselves – we are looking forward to working with north-east cafes and hotels to help them bring better quality coffee to their customers.
“The business has been structured in such a way that we are ready for rapid growth and have room for expansion.
“Most of our business has come from word of mouth and recommendations, so I am looking forward to establishing new customers as our popularity grows.”
https://www.societyaberdeen.co.uk/food-drink/bennachie-coffee-has-been-providing-north-east-consumers-with-great-tasting-coffee-since-its-inception/