Miles Masters and Sandra Allan of Wētā Coffee started their coffee journey in 2013, setting out to create a coffee blend that kiwis could fall in love with. The pair became obsessive coffee nerds, researching, learning and experimenting for many months after purchasing a 15kg Has Garanti roaster from Turkey.
“We knew by the time it reached New Zealand shores, we needed to know a lot more about roasting!”
Putting the stamp on their signature One Tree Hill blend, Masters and Allan opened their Wētā roastery in 2014.
Masters and Allan find a great roast will satisfy the espresso and black coffee drinkers, but must also have a good cut through milk as 80 percent of Kiwi coffee enthusiasts drink milk-based coffee.
The pair decided from day one to have one blend, done really well. At Wētā, they created a blend based on what they like - a bold, citrusy first hit with a well-rounded chocolate caramel finish. Wētā Coffee also roast single origins, generally from microlots that offer something special, and created an award-winning Wētā Hot Chocolate powder that teams up perfectly with their coffee for the perfect mocha.
Creating a product from start to finish and watching people really enjoy it is the most rewarding feeling to the roasters at Wētā Coffee. Masters and Allan enjoy being a person’s choice of beans for their home coffee machine, as well the energy in a group's congregation, chatting and laughing while waiting for their takeaway coffees.
Wētā Coffee is strong on sustainability, and all Wētā takeaway cups are compostable. A return bin is collected for commercial composting along with coffee grounds and chaff from the roasting process. Masters and Allan have noticed a large customer base using their own cups, and encourage this with Wētā’s own branded reusable cups. Wholesale customers have sustainable options in the choice of having coffee delivered in reusable pails which Wētā collect and reuse, and their newly branded about-to-launch compostable coffee bags.
Having outgrown their current roasting space, Wētā Coffee’s next project will be to move the roaster into a larger industrial space with another on-site espresso bar. Their current location’s espresso bar will be staying put and the New Zealand expansion is alongside an international Wētā Coffee outlet operated by a business partner in Tonga.
Overall, the team at Wētā Coffee have found the coffee industry to be very welcoming and friendly, and (except for secret recipes) find roasters generally very happy to help each other.
wetacoffee.co.nz
