• Quality • Commitment • Community

In late January 2002, the founders of Target Concepts, Inc., a manufacturer/marketer of specialty foodservice products, set out to create a regionally tied coffee brand that would be directly identified with their first love next to coffee, the Chesapeake Bay. Every ounce of free time is spent on the water enjoying all that this beautiful estuary has to offer. After more extensive research to establish their coffees' identity, they realized that the bay's splendor was deceiving...below the surface things did not appear to be quite as beautiful as it once was.

We had seen stories on the news and read articles printed about the condition of today's bay but did not fully realize the severity of the problems. Public awareness of the Chesapeake Bay's condition increases each day and today's generation is taking major steps in the restoration of the bay's ecosystem. Efforts are being made to ensure that our watershed is preserved for our children and future generations. It became evident that we could play a major role in the fight to regain what was once a thriving ecosystem.

"We must join the coalition to preserve our watershed and create a company that will not only raise public awareness but residually provide financial resources for these environmental restoration initiatives for years to come." These were the words spoken by the President of Target Concepts, Inc. during the first board meeting of the company's history in March 2002. As a result of this statement the Chesapeake Bay Roasting Company™ was born.

The Chesapeake Bay Roasting Company™ has started by developing two sophisticated house blend coffees that truly represent the depth of our dynamic region. But, we did not stop there. We wanted to define not only the distinct tastes that would represent the culture in the Chesapeake Bay region but we also wanted to establish a theme that will be represented on every bag sold. Our idea was that each blend of coffee developed would represent a specific cause to which a percentage of the proceeds are contributed. The consumer will have more than one choice to make when purchasing this high quality specialty coffee; the consumer gets the option of choosing a blend by taste profile as well as the cause in which they would like to support.

Our vision is clear; we are determined to be recognized as the region's number one micro-roaster and we hope that our name, Chesapeake Bay Roasting Company™ will become synonymous with words like commitment, community, and quality in our products and also to the restoration of our watershed.

Setting a new standard of excellence

The Chesapeake Bay Roasting Company™ is a small-batch micro-roaster of certified, specialty grade coffees. Every batch of coffee roasted goes through a rigorous set of quality control measures before it is approved to leave the production floor. As we take a moment to walk you through a few of the major components of our production practices, please note the differences that makes the Chesapeake Bay Roasting Company™ the best micro-roaster in the region.

Our green coffee beans are carefully hand-selected from the finest certified specialty-grade coffees offered by the most reputable importer/brokers representing every major growing region in the world. Each shipment is carefully spot checked which entails sample roasting, cupping and a few additional tests to ensure consistency from shipment to shipment.

Once the green coffee has been approved by our coffee specialist through the spot check process, we then take the green coffee and offload it into our holding area. Offloading is performed by our production team and involves dust filtering the green as well as routing the green into the appropriate silo. We do this pneumatically by using a gentle handling air-veyor that softly pushes the green coffee to its final resting place until it is called for by our Roastmaster.

The unique roast profile of each batch of coffee is carefully planned prior to roasting, and adjustments are made to multiple variables that can affect the consistency of the final product. Every finished batch of coffee is then ground, analyzed, brewed and taste-tested prior to packaging. To ensure the freshness and stability of our product after roasting, all coffees are vacuum sealed and nitrogen flushed in airtight valve bags. Roasting is done on a just-in-time production basis to make sure that the product you receive is at its peak of freshness.

The Chesapeake Bay Roasting Company™ represents the perfect balance of art and science; combining the time honored tradition of small batch roasting at the hands of our Roastmaster, with the advantages of micro-electronic technology to control variables in the roast process that no one, no matter how highly trained, could perceive, much less control. The end result is coffee that establishes a new standard of excellence in the specialty coffee industry.

It's not only about great coffee

The Chesapeake Bay Roasting Company™ is committed to excellence in everything we do, without compromise. We put extreme emphasis on both the quality and cause that stands behind every cup of coffee we sell. We are "purist" in our
approach and our roasting style reflects the influences of both the European and American coffee cultures. We are solely focused on the business of properly roasting and packaging exceptional coffees for very discriminating clientele. As a true micro-roaster, our strength is in our attention to detail and our ability to adjust to the needs and demands of the educated coffee buyer.

A tour of our roasting facility proves the substance of our claims. Our coffees are roasted in a hybrid roaster, the Sirocco SR35, which combines the very best of traditional drum and conventional air roasting technology. We are proud to be one of the first roasting houses in the country to have invested in this
21st century technology that truly bridges the gap between the art & science of coffee roasting.

Although we roast in small batches under careful control of our Roastmasters, we also apply cutting-edge micro-electronic technology to manipulate the complex chemical reactions that occur during the roasting process. The result is a coffee that is remarkably consistent, characterized by exceptional flavor development and aroma.

The Chesapeake Bay Roasting Company™ works around the clock to ensure that your coffee
reaches you at the very peak of freshness.

For more information, please read about our Involvement .