Play Coffee Roulette With The Roasters Pack

Call them the coffee concierges. Or curators. Even sommeliers. The Roasters Pack, launched earlier this year by partners Suneal Pabari and Adam Frank, provides a monthly subscription series that delivers independently roasted coffee blends (whole bean or finely ground) from Canada and the world to people's doors. Despite this boutique approach, their website insists they're not "snobby," and that "no special skills should be required to enjoy an exceptional cup of coffee." The process is simple enough. Each month, three blends are delivered – 4 ounces per blend. One featured in May's box is Anchored Coffee's Duromina (a roaster out of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia). The packaging date stamps the roasting, lists where the beans were sourced, and foreshadows the notes of the bean – in Duromina's case, hints of blackberry, gingersnap, and Tootsie Roll. Proper methods for brewing are advised for optimal tasting and that's that.

Critics (commenters on a blogTO thread) have taken issue with the $30 monthly charge (there are slight price differentials for longer memberships) for 12 ounces of coffee beans. Others wonder what happens to the business when entry-level drinkers get tired of experimenting and settle on a blend. Either way, coffee, as always, continues to keep the conversation going.