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Berres Brothers Coffee Roasters
Story Index
Berres Brothers Featured on The Food Network
Berres Brothers Roaster Wins at SCAA
Berres Brothers Owner Deployed to Iraq
Food Network Visits Watertown
Berres Brothers Roaster Wins at SCAA
Berres Brothers Owner Deployed to Iraq
Food Network Visits Watertown
Berres Brothers Featured on The Food Network
We've Been Unwrapped!
Watch for us on The Food Network series "Unwrapped!" Check your local listing for the next episode of "Diner Delights."
Thanks for watching!
Watch for us on The Food Network series "Unwrapped!" Check your local listing for the next episode of "Diner Delights."
Thanks for watching!
Berres Brothers Roaster Wins at SCAA
John Johnson - Berres Brothers roast master
Kate Meyers
Watertown, Wis. - Berres Brothers Coffee roast master, John Johnson, earned third place in the Specialty Coffee Association of America’s (SCAA) sixth annual Roaster’s Choice competition. The event took place in Atlanta, Georgia, in April during the SCAA’s annual conference and included entries from coffee roasters across the United States. The competition guidelines specified that entries consist of a single coffee from a specific country as opposed to a blend or flavored roast.
Johnson entered a coffee from Ethiopia which is named after the Yergacheffe region in the southeastern part of the country. He chose this coffee because of its taste and aroma and the subtle fruit-like notes many coffee connoisseurs savor. “I really love the sweetness I can pick up from this roast,” Johnson said. “Whether it’s a faint, caramel-like aroma or the clean, honey-sweet black tea notes in the cup, the sweetness of this coffee has kept it a personal favorite.”
When asked why he continues to compete in the international contest, Johnson answered, “This whole process is such a team effort. It began at the Wonda Worka farm where the coffee cherries were grown and includes everyone from our green bean importer to Pete Berres who gave me the opportunity to roast the best Ethiopian coffee we could find.”
Johnson, who also placed in the competition last year, shared that competing motivates him to strive for constant improvement and enhanced roasting methods. “I really like participating because it makes me work harder. I also love that it gives national exposure to our world roast coffees.”
Johnson, who has been roasting at Berres Brothers for twelve years, began with the company in 1984 by delivering coffee to area offices. In the late ‘90s, he took over the growing roasting operation and has since roasted almost six million pounds of coffee.
The award-winning Ethiopian roast will be available for tasting and purchase at Berres Brothers’ 202 Air Park Drive location.
Johnson entered a coffee from Ethiopia which is named after the Yergacheffe region in the southeastern part of the country. He chose this coffee because of its taste and aroma and the subtle fruit-like notes many coffee connoisseurs savor. “I really love the sweetness I can pick up from this roast,” Johnson said. “Whether it’s a faint, caramel-like aroma or the clean, honey-sweet black tea notes in the cup, the sweetness of this coffee has kept it a personal favorite.”
When asked why he continues to compete in the international contest, Johnson answered, “This whole process is such a team effort. It began at the Wonda Worka farm where the coffee cherries were grown and includes everyone from our green bean importer to Pete Berres who gave me the opportunity to roast the best Ethiopian coffee we could find.”
Johnson, who also placed in the competition last year, shared that competing motivates him to strive for constant improvement and enhanced roasting methods. “I really like participating because it makes me work harder. I also love that it gives national exposure to our world roast coffees.”
Johnson, who has been roasting at Berres Brothers for twelve years, began with the company in 1984 by delivering coffee to area offices. In the late ‘90s, he took over the growing roasting operation and has since roasted almost six million pounds of coffee.
The award-winning Ethiopian roast will be available for tasting and purchase at Berres Brothers’ 202 Air Park Drive location.
Berres Brothers Coffee owner deployed to Iraq
Pete Berres, owner of Berres Brothers Coffee Roasters in Watertown,Wis., recently completed training to prepare him for a nine month deployment with fellow Iraqi combat advisers. Recently he deployed with his team to serve in the United States Army as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom in support of the global war on terrorism.
Berres is a major with the 104th Division based out of Vancouver, Wash.
He and the rest of his 15-man team mobilized to Fort Riley, Kan., in August and deployed to Iraq in November. Military officials never confirm where specific units will be stationed as a force protection measure and due to constant changes in combat needs.
Berres is the son of the late Marvin and Barbara Berres. He is married to Julie and has two sons, Levi and Parker, and three stepsons, Kyle, Cameron and Carson Weber. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse and a 1984 graduate of Johnson Creek High School. He received his commission as an Army officer in 1988 through ROTC at UW-La Crosse.
He has been an Army Reserve officer fo 20 years and this is his first military deployment. Berres will be a combat adviser to an Iraqi colonel at one of the various Iraqi Regional Training Centers.
Berres is a major with the 104th Division based out of Vancouver, Wash.
He and the rest of his 15-man team mobilized to Fort Riley, Kan., in August and deployed to Iraq in November. Military officials never confirm where specific units will be stationed as a force protection measure and due to constant changes in combat needs.
Berres is the son of the late Marvin and Barbara Berres. He is married to Julie and has two sons, Levi and Parker, and three stepsons, Kyle, Cameron and Carson Weber. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse and a 1984 graduate of Johnson Creek High School. He received his commission as an Army officer in 1988 through ROTC at UW-La Crosse.
He has been an Army Reserve officer fo 20 years and this is his first military deployment. Berres will be a combat adviser to an Iraqi colonel at one of the various Iraqi Regional Training Centers.
Food Network Visits Watertown
Berres Brothers Coffee Roasters employee Carol Wollin is pictured being filmed by a crew from The Food Network. The company will be featured on the show “Unwrapped” in early 2009.
(JOHN HART/Daily Times)
Food Network visits Watertown
By Teresa Stowell of the Daily Times staff
Friday, October 17, 2008 10:22 PM CDT
Berres Brothers Coffee Roasters employee Carol Wollin is pictured being filmed by a crew from The Food Network. The company will be featured on the show “Unwrapped” in early 2009. (JOHN HART/Daily Times)
Lights and cameras followed workers around at the Berres Brothers Coffee Roasters in Watertown Friday morning taping a television segment to be aired on The Food Network.
“They've been taping the whole process from roasting the beans to the final package. They've literally followed the product from unwrapped to wrapped,” John Johnson, roast master at Berres Brothers said. “This will be a great push for Berres Brothers and for Watertown.”
The TV crew began filming in the factory at 7 a.m. Friday. Although seven hours are spent filming the behind-the-scenes footage, the final segment will be about four minutes long and will debut on the network's show, “Unwrapped,” sometime in the beginning of 2009. The type of Berres Brothers coffee featured being made is Highlander Grogg, the company's number one seller.
“Unwrapped” uncovers behind-the-scenes details on classic American food, from peanut butter and chocolate syrup to french fries and bubblegum. Some of the nation's biggest food companies have debuted on the show including this week's feature of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. The average viewership of The Food Network is about one million.
“This is huge for us,” Pete Berres, owner of Berres Brothers Coffee, said. “It's still sort of hard to believe. I don't think we realize yet how big a deal this really is.”
Berres Brothers was contacted about a month ago by The Food Network for a request to feature the local coffee company on the television show. The timing to do the filming worked out perfect for Berres, who is home on a two-week leave from serving with the United States Army Reserve. He leaves for Iraq on Wednesday.
“This has just been excellent timing,” Berres said. “Not only because I'm home for two weeks but also because we just finished our first four-color mail catalog.”
Berres Brothers began roasting coffee in 1992 and moved to its current location in 2005. The company sells its product throughout the state and also has a grocery distribution center in Iowa for stores in about eight different states. Berres said they plan to put stickers on their coffee products and catalogs informing customers to watch for them on The Food Network.
“There's a lot of opportunity here for us,” Berres said. “We've been working on extending our business into the mail order gift market and this will certainly help that.”
While the segment on Berres Brothers will only be four minutes long, that show will go into syndication and will be replayed for years to come.
“We've been told that for example, in 2011 someone watching The Food Network might tell us they just saw Berres Brothers on the show even though it was taped in 2008,” Sarah Werner, Berres Brothers sales and marketing employee, said. “I've always been so excited about this product and love to share it with people. Berres Brothers should be a destination for people and this will certainly help that.”
Berres was also interviewed and filmed in the Bean Hall and will be featured in the segment. “Unwrapped” show host Marc Summers was not at Berres Brothers, but will likely record voice-overs for the segment at a television studio.
By Teresa Stowell of the Daily Times staff
Friday, October 17, 2008 10:22 PM CDT
Berres Brothers Coffee Roasters employee Carol Wollin is pictured being filmed by a crew from The Food Network. The company will be featured on the show “Unwrapped” in early 2009. (JOHN HART/Daily Times)
Lights and cameras followed workers around at the Berres Brothers Coffee Roasters in Watertown Friday morning taping a television segment to be aired on The Food Network.
“They've been taping the whole process from roasting the beans to the final package. They've literally followed the product from unwrapped to wrapped,” John Johnson, roast master at Berres Brothers said. “This will be a great push for Berres Brothers and for Watertown.”
The TV crew began filming in the factory at 7 a.m. Friday. Although seven hours are spent filming the behind-the-scenes footage, the final segment will be about four minutes long and will debut on the network's show, “Unwrapped,” sometime in the beginning of 2009. The type of Berres Brothers coffee featured being made is Highlander Grogg, the company's number one seller.
“Unwrapped” uncovers behind-the-scenes details on classic American food, from peanut butter and chocolate syrup to french fries and bubblegum. Some of the nation's biggest food companies have debuted on the show including this week's feature of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. The average viewership of The Food Network is about one million.
“This is huge for us,” Pete Berres, owner of Berres Brothers Coffee, said. “It's still sort of hard to believe. I don't think we realize yet how big a deal this really is.”
Berres Brothers was contacted about a month ago by The Food Network for a request to feature the local coffee company on the television show. The timing to do the filming worked out perfect for Berres, who is home on a two-week leave from serving with the United States Army Reserve. He leaves for Iraq on Wednesday.
“This has just been excellent timing,” Berres said. “Not only because I'm home for two weeks but also because we just finished our first four-color mail catalog.”
Berres Brothers began roasting coffee in 1992 and moved to its current location in 2005. The company sells its product throughout the state and also has a grocery distribution center in Iowa for stores in about eight different states. Berres said they plan to put stickers on their coffee products and catalogs informing customers to watch for them on The Food Network.
“There's a lot of opportunity here for us,” Berres said. “We've been working on extending our business into the mail order gift market and this will certainly help that.”
While the segment on Berres Brothers will only be four minutes long, that show will go into syndication and will be replayed for years to come.
“We've been told that for example, in 2011 someone watching The Food Network might tell us they just saw Berres Brothers on the show even though it was taped in 2008,” Sarah Werner, Berres Brothers sales and marketing employee, said. “I've always been so excited about this product and love to share it with people. Berres Brothers should be a destination for people and this will certainly help that.”
Berres was also interviewed and filmed in the Bean Hall and will be featured in the segment. “Unwrapped” show host Marc Summers was not at Berres Brothers, but will likely record voice-overs for the segment at a television studio.