Denver · United States
Corvus Coffee Roasters
Corvus Coffee Roasters roasts in Denver, Colorado.
Since 2010 · Phil Goodlaxson
Overview
Phil Goodlaxson — Northern Illinois University marketing graduate, Dell Computers refugee, Starbucks store manager turned home roaster — founded Corvus in 2010 after a Chicago Intelligentsia visit and a tip from Zoka's Jeff Babcock that he should go to Norway to learn what specialty coffee could be. Corvus opened on South Broadway in late 2010 with a 5kg roaster Goodlaxson bought after running farmers' markets in Denver with his then-wife Autumn, and has since grown to roast roughly 50 tons of green coffee a year, with long-term producer partners including Ciro Lugo in Huila, Colombia and the Rung'eto Cooperative in Kenya.
Known for
- South Broadway flagship with conspicuous in-cafe roasting
- Belleview Station/DTC cold-brew specialty cafe (2016)
- Hop-infused draft coffee and whiskey-barrel-aged cold brew
- Direct-trade 'no charity' sourcing philosophy
- Long partnership with Ciro Lugo (Huila, Colombia)
Why it matters
Corvus is one of the most articulate practitioners of value-based direct trade in American specialty — Goodlaxson's writing on 'trust and visibility' set out a sourcing philosophy that influenced how a generation of mid-size roasters talk about producer relationships.
Production
- roaster machine
- Giesen drum roaster (initially 5kg; scaled up)
- cupping frequency
- Daily
- roastery location
- Santa Fe Drive HQ, Denver, CO (~4,000 sq ft training/QC); roasting at South Broadway flagship
- annual volume tonnes
- 45
Café
1740 S Broadway, Denver, CO 80210