Blends have certainly made a comeback in specialty coffee in recent years. Whether it’s on the competition stage or in premium coffee shops, high-quality blends are popping up more and more.

As the industry has largely shifted its perception of blends away from being a more “traditional” option to providing a novel and exciting sensory experience, a growing number of specialty coffee roasters are adding them to their menus. And this presents a unique opportunity for them to market themselves – and drive brand identity in more effective ways.

As part of this, there is a case to argue that roasters can position their blends as something similar to intellectual property, and really make their mark on the wider sector.

To learn more, I spoke to Tony Dreyfuss, co-founder and co-president of Metropolis Coffee Company, Olivia Morris, wholesale account and green sourcing manager at Little Bear Coffee, and Adam Cozens, Managing Director and co-founder of Perky Blenders.

You may also like our article on how roasters can use blends to drive brand identity.

Blends: a new staple of specialty coffee

Whether they’re seasonal or signature, blends have always been a key component of many roasters’ offerings and coffee shop menus. Moreover, they have often been seen as catering to more traditional coffee drinkers who are looking for classic chocolate-forward and nutty flavour profiles.

But this perception is changing. Today, specialty coffee has embraced blends as innovative and creative ways to offer new experiences to consumers.

Tony Dreyfuss is the co-founder and co-president of Metropolis Coffee Company – a Chicago, Illinois roaster which sells several blends.

“Blends are more thoughtful and empathetic, in the sense that they allow you to consider your customer and what they are looking for,” he says. “With single origins, you can only offer what you can and let the customer choose what suits their needs.”

Blends can also be more approachable for many consumers. In addition to being the wholesale account and green sourcing manager at Little Bear Coffee, Olivia Morris is also the quality control and education lead. They explain why blends can be more “welcoming” than single origins.

“Single-estate coffees can be a little overwhelming at times, and not all consumers know enough about the information that we put on the bags,” they tell me. “Bags with specific farm, region, or altitude information can be challenging to navigate, and consumers don’t always feel comfortable asking questions. 

“However, that isn’t the case with specialty coffee blends” they add. “Customers typically feel more comfortable asking questions about them, so they are better able to discover what they like in the process.”

Adam Cozens is the co-founder of Perky Blenders in London, UK – which also sells several blends.

“Having a blend that matches consumers’ specific needs, so that they can identify with it quickly, is a win-win for everyone,” he says.

Offering more control over brand identity

Specialty coffee roasters strive to build a distinctive brand for themselves, and usually have a set of clear business values, too. Offering blends is certainly part of elevating and strengthening their brand identity.

From naming blends to the story behind developing them – including a cause the roaster might want to support or an event they wish to celebrate – blends can be a very strong tool in a roaster’s marketing and branding strategy.

“We offer a blend called Redline Espresso,” Tony says. “‘Metropolis’ is another word for ‘city’ and in Chicago where we roast, the Red Line train system is almost synonymous with the city.

“By naming our flagship espresso blend after the city’s famous transit system, our customers know who we are,” he adds. “And in my experience, customers become fiercely loyal to the blends they connect with, which doesn’t happen the same way with single origins.”

Adam explains how he uses blends to highlight partnerships with other similarly-aligned brands and projects.

“We have a rotating ‘Coffee of the Month’ which is occasionally a blend,” he tells me. “As well as exploring different flavour profiles, we partner with other brands, local projects, and causes for the packaging.

“Our business strongly believes in supporting local communities and different artists, and our blend names reflect that,” he adds.

Creating a new sensory experience

In many cases, roasters can end up using the same coffees – whether origin or variety. They may choose to roast these coffees differently to offer something new, but creating a blend with these coffees as the components can be more valuable to differentiate themselves in the market. 

“Single origin coffees can be considered as ingredients, while blends can be seen as the recipes you can create with these ingredients,” Tony says. “So you can have the same single origins, but you can create different blends with them to suit different needs. 

“This doesn’t just mean more variety for the end consumer, but it also enables wholesale roasters to offer unique coffees to cafés,” he adds.

Perhaps most notably, we have seen this at coffee competitions in recent years, including the World Barista Championship and World Brewers Cup:

• At the 2023 WBC, winner Boram Um used a blend of anaerobically fermented Gesha and natural Pink Bourbon in his milk beverage course
  • Italian competitor Daniele Ricci, who placed second, also used a blend of Colombian Gesha and Caturra from the same farm
• The 2021 WBrC Champion Matt Winton used a blend of eugenioides – a “forgotten” species – and Catucai

“Blends can help play a major role in allowing roasters to differentiate their offerings from other retailers who may have similar options on their menus,” Olivia says. “Additionally, these blends can then serve as an effective bridge between coffees for ‘coffee people’ and general customers.”

Protecting valuable intellectual property?

It’s true that many roasters can source the same coffees from the same farms or co-operatives. A roaster’s skills, knowledge, and expertise, however, all play a critical role in building the right blend to serve specific customer needs and stand out.

In light of this, a small but growing number of roasters have started to copyright blend names and logos to protect their brand equity and intellectual property. As the specialty coffee market is highly competitive, having copyright protection can be a huge advantage – albeit potentially costly for smaller roasters.

“Blends and their recipes are proprietary to the roaster, and roasters should copyright them,” Tony opines. “It is a roaster’s intellectual property, and is therefore worth protecting.

“Understand who you are roasting the blend for and what you wish to achieve with it,” he adds. “Start developing the blend with the customer in mind. Keep it simple, and ensure the results are replicable – as well as consistent – in the long term.”

The role of blends in the future

Blends have been a huge part of the coffee industry since its establishment, and they will continue to play an important role for the foreseeable future.

“Blends are here to stay and evolve,” Adam says. “We expect to see more specialty roasters follow a collaborative approach and create blends that will complement specific foods, be suitable for certain times of the day, or more innovatively reflect the values of the brands that they partner with.”

Olivia agrees, telling me: “Specialty coffee blends will help overcome a lot of ‘what ifs’ in our industry and can help build valuable relationships with customers. In the future, blends will continue to be a great way for roasters, consumers, and even world champions to innovate and create unique experiences for consumers and judges alike. 

“As more people understand the science behind creating the ‘perfect blend’, we will see an increase in demand that is on par with single origin coffees,” they add. “High-quality blends can act as a bridge to connect with customers and the coffee community at large more easily.”

Specialty coffee blends are having their moment, and will certainly continue to shine. But more importantly, blends present roasters with a unique opportunity to market their brands – and they should capitalise on this as much as possible.

Trademarking and copywriting blend names, logos, and recipes is one of many ways to do this. As a result, roasters can protect their brands and “intellectual property”, which is becoming increasingly important in a highly competitive market.

Enjoyed this? Then read our article on whether single origins are actually better than blends.

Photo credits: Melissa Toms, Metropolis Coffee Company

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