"I roast in small batches, by hand, not by computer, using the senses of sight, smell, taste, hearing and feel to bring out the essence of every coffee or blend."
John Roberts began his career in the coffee business in 1972, when he joined Hill Stephens Coffee Company (roasters of Marlboro / La Touraine coffee, later Chock Full O Nuts) as a service technician, later a branch manager and ultimately the company's top producing coffee salesperson.
For several years as Coffee Specialist with Continental Coffee Company, John was responsible for establishing and maintaining accounts in a territory covering several Florida counties, training sales personnel, as well as working with OCS distributors.
In 1986 John bought a Diedrich infra-red roaster, began perfecting his roasting skills and formed Coffee Stop, Inc., of which West Indies Coffee Roasters is a special part.
To this day, John still personally hand-roasts every batch of beans that leaves his facility. As a matter of fact, when John isn't roasting, tasting, selling, or talking about coffee, he's just not happy!