Penrose Coffeeโ€™s approach is a little unorthodox: rather than attempting to compete in Denverโ€™s saturated coffee market, its owners, Dustin and Samantha Fuchtman, fancy the business a roaster for out-of-state cafes.

โ€œI am the coffee guy and [Samantha] is a little bit more behind the scenes,โ€ Dustin Fuchtman says. โ€œShe has a background in tech web stuff, so she built out our website and did all our design. We both have an eye for design, but sheโ€™s the one who knows how to implement that.”

Dustin Fuchtman

Located on the northeast side of Denver, Penrose officially opened at the beginning of 2017. The Fuchtmans is a business partnership that plays perfectly to their coffee and design strengths.

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The roasting warehouse is shared by Penrose andย Winter Session, a hand-stitched denim and leather goods companyโ€”canvas aprons destined to be worn by baristas and bartenders sit on a large worktable, which is flanked by green coffee buckets that line the floor just a few feet away.

Penroseโ€™s roasting setup is barebones and reflective of the companyโ€™s youth. Thereโ€™s a 15-kilo Probat roaster, a corner with a La Marzocco GS3 espresso machine and various brewers for quality control, bags of green coffee sitting on shelves, a Mahlkรถnig EK43 grinder, and some cupping and bagging equipment. Itโ€™s a comfortable space, with high ceilings and concrete floors, friendly roommates, and room for growth.

Dustin worked at Novo Coffee, Happy Coffee, and Middlestateโ€”including in the companyโ€™s menโ€™s apparel shop and coffee bar, Steadbrookโ€”before deciding to take the plunge into roasting himself. But the goal for Penrose is focused on offering their coffees to out-of-state cafes, rather than those exclusively in Denverโ€”at least, that is, before they have an opportunity to open a cafe of their own.ย 

โ€œThatโ€™s the goal: do wholesale for now and work into providing coffee for my own cafes,โ€ Fuchtman says. โ€œBut right now, if you look at the model of a multi-roaster cafe, itโ€™s usually one or two local roasters offered and then they cycle through out-of-state coffee, and Iโ€™m just trying to be that for Denver for other states.โ€

With a number of already-established roasteries operating out of Denver, it may be a challenge. But Penrose, driven by an emphasis on beautiful design, knows the lane it wants to be in. Where they’ll go is unknown, butย maybe for a young roastery that’s enough.ย 

Penrose Coffee is located atย 3833 N Steele Street, Unit C, Denver. Visit their official website and follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Ben Wiese is a freelance journalist based in Denver. Read more Ben Wiese on Sprudge.

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