PORTLAND, Oregon – Coffee pioneer Kobos Coffee, Portland ‘s original micro-roaster celebrated yesterday its 40th anniversary. Founded on October 22, 1973, Kobos was the city’s first roaster/retailer to recognize coffee as an artisan beverage, and to elevate it through its small-batch roasting of specialty beans.
Kobos planted the seed for what is now Portland’s thriving micro-roasting scene.
This was revolutionary in Portland 40 years ago, when the only other roasters in town were two large-batch, commercial roasters. Kobos sparked Portland’s shift to its current and renowned specialty coffee culture as the first of the third-wave roasters.
“When we started hand-roasting our coffees 40 years ago, we weren’t setting out to be a trailblazer. We just wanted introduce Portland coffee drinkers to a level of coffee they had never experienced before,” said David
Kobos, founder and co-owner. “We are thrilled, 40 years later, to still be an integral part of Portland’s flourishing specialty coffee scene.”
David Kobos – who still leads the independent company, along with his wife Susan and co-owner and head roaster Brian Dibble – was also on the leading edge in terms of sustainability. Kobos was the first roaster/retailer in Portland to offer certified organic coffees from a certified organic roasting facility, and was one of the first roasters in Portland to source certified fair-trade beans that support small farmers.
Kobos coffee is available at regional grocery stores, including Green Zebra, Roth’s Fresh Market and Market of Choice. In addition to being served at more than 250 regional cafes, restaurants and hotels, Kobos is the coffee vendor of record for a number of regional companies and institutions, including Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), Legacy Health System and Sysco Food Services.
The company also has a thriving private label operation, with clients that include Equal Exchange (West Coast).
