Cooper’s Coffee

Whiskey and coffee are a classic pairing that Cooper’s Coffee, based in Exeter, embraces. They offer a line of liquor barrel aged coffee beans that impart a distinct flavor of alcohol with none of the buzz, save for that from the caffeine. I spoke with John Speights, co-owner of Cooper’s Coffee, about how he and his partner Jason Maranhao started roasting beans together.

“Jason and I met in 2005 while working in the same department for a technology company,” said John. “I was intrigued when Jason mentioned that he was importing and roasting his own coffee beans. I remember, quite distinctly, being handed a cup of freshly brewed coffee that he’d roasted himself, and then enjoying the time he took to share with me the tasting profile, origin and the best ways to prepare and enjoy it. I was hooked, and ever since then, we’ve been great friends enjoying great coffee.”

But they didn’t stop at roasting single origin coffee beans. “I happened upon a few companies that were aging tea in wine barrels,” said John who quickly made the mental leap to different ways of aging coffee. “I did a search and discovered a few companies that were aging their coffee beans in used whiskey barrels. I ordered their products, but unfortunately, I wasn’t all that impressed. Jason and I have tried some very high-quality coffees made from exceptional beans. I knew that between the two of us, we had the skill to combine the right beans with precise roasting and the best whiskey barrels, and in the end, we would harness an unsurpassable coffee experience.”

I tried some of Cooper’s whiskey aged beans, and unsurpassable is a good word to use. My favorite coffee is strong with a rich flavor, and these beans made a very tasty cup. The coffee has a distinct scent of real whiskey – unlike fake-tasting flavored coffees — that was strong enough to fool me into thinking I was starting my day with a spiked cup, despite John’s assurances that there’s no liquor there. “The alcohol evaporates during the aging process and anything left over is burned off during the roasting process,” he said. Although my husband loved the barrel-aged coffee first thing in the morning, the whiskey scent was strong enough that I preferred to drink it later in the day.

Cooper’s Coffee uses local whiskey barrels to age their beans in a partnership with Sons of Liberty that was formed in a very Rhode Island way. “I knew Mike [Reppucci] from Sons of Liberty in high school,” said John. He loved their whiskey, “so I went and picked up a couple of used barrels of Uprising and Battle Cry [to age the beans].”

Cooper’s also offers coffee beans aged in bourbon barrels and Thomas Tew rum barrels, which John says makes an excellent cold brew. I brewed his coffee with a pour-over system, but his favorite method is a French press. “The mesh filter helps keep the flavor profile intact,” he said.

And this coffee certainly has a flavor you don’t want to mess with. Just be careful where you drink it lest you find yourself embarrassed by your kids’ declarations that, “Mommy’s morning coffee smells like Grandpa.”

Purchase Cooper’s Coffee at cooperscoffeeco.com