Region

Coffee roasters in Essex

Essex has 5 independent coffee roasters operating across the county, anchored by Colchester (H Gunton since 1929, Primo in a converted cattle shed nearby) and reaching out to Writtle (Mac & Me since 2013) and the wider county. The mix is unusually broad on age: one Essex business has been hand roasting alongside fine teas and speciality foods for nearly a century, while two others were founded in the last decade with very specific sourcing positions.

H Gunton Ltd is a family run food and drink retailer established in 1929, on Crouch Street in Colchester, hand roasting coffee alongside fine teas, cheese, chutneys, baked goods and speciality foods; coffee is one part of a wider delicatessen offer built over nearly a century. Primo Coffee was founded on Christmas Eve 2015 by three partners (twins Peter and James, plus Robert), with the roastery in a converted cattle shed on a farm between Colchester and Manningtree; the founders spent months cleaning and rebuilding the space before beginning production. The Coffee Officina was founded in 2013 by Marcella Fiori and Rory Lloyd, who brought design and hospitality backgrounds to the business; the roastery runs a Giesen W15A drum and Cropster software, with sourcing focused explicitly on cooperatives and female led farms.

Colchester is the easiest visitor stop, with H Gunton's Crouch Street shop a direct stop and Primo's rural roastery accessible by car. Writtle (Mac & Me) extends the radius into the Essex farmland.

8 roasters Edited by Si Walker Checked on 8 September 2026

Coffee roasting in Essex, answered

From our own records, updated as the directory changes.

How many coffee roasters are there in Essex?

We list 8 active coffee roasters in Essex. Of those, 2 have a cafe you can visit, 8 sell direct from their own site and 5 run a subscription.

Which coffee roasters in Essex have a cafe you can visit?

H Gunton Ltd and Little Fin Coffee Roastery have a cafe or shop you can visit in Essex. H Gunton Ltd lists 81-83 Crouch Street, Colchester, Essex, CO3 3EZ.

Which coffee roasters in Essex do decaf?

Of the 8 roasters we list in Essex, 4 offer a decaf: Code.194 Coffee Roasters, H Gunton Ltd, Lalico Coffee and Little Fin Coffee Roastery. Where we hold the method, Code.194 Coffee Roasters and Lalico Coffee use sugarcane EA. Little Fin Coffee Roastery uses the Swiss Water process.

Which is the oldest coffee roaster in Essex?

H Gunton Ltd, roasting since 1936. Mac & Me Roasting follows, since 2013. We hold a founding date for 6 of the 8 roasters here.

Which coffee roasters in Essex offer a subscription?

Foxholes Coffee, Lalico Coffee, Little Fin Coffee Roastery, Primo Coffee and The Coffee Officina run a coffee subscription. All 8 roasters in Essex sell direct from their own site.