In the winter of 2011, Steven Webb, went to a rather unique coffee shop in downtown Kansas City Missouri.  This coffee shop brews coffee the old school way, by hand.  They use various pour-over brewing devices, such as a Chemex, to control all aspects of the brewing process.  Up until this point, Steven loved buying freshly roasted coffee, but had not heard of brewing coffee like this.   Before long, he had purchased his own Chemex and was well on his way to pouring some amazing coffee.  Steven soon became aware how many factors can affect a good cup of coffee. He became like a mad coffee scientist, becoming extremely focused on every detail, from buying quality, fresh coffee to using filtered water heated to the correct temperature.

     After about a year of brewing breathtaking coffee, Steven started learning all he could about coffee.  He did extensive research on how to roast coffee at home, paying attention to every detail of the process.  His wife and co-founder, Shondi Webb, liked to tease him about how detailed he was, but this attention to detail would soon pay off.  In just two short months, Steven was roasting top-notch, specialty coffee.

     In July of 2012, Steven entered Kansas City’s first ever home-roasting competition. He entered the contest for the learning experience, not knowing if he would win.  However, on July 27, 2012 he received the exciting news that he had won the competition!  Steven’s coffee, along with 14 other entries, were judged by a panel of coffee professionals.  Steven’s coffee was unanimously chosen as the winning roast.  After winning the competition, it seemed natural to Steven and Shondi to begin selling freshly roasted coffee, and on August 4th, 2012, Red-Headed Philosopher Coffee was established.  The Red-headed philosopher approaches the art of coffee roasting with a scientific, yet philosophical mind.  He buys only the highest quality green coffee beans from a company that buys directly from the farmers, and pays them a premium price of 50-100% above the fair trade minimum wage.  When purchasing from us, you can rest assured that you are directly supporting the farmers and their families.

     Besides his love and passion for coffee, Steven also is very interested in philosophy.  He seeks to create a coffee brand that uniquely blends these two interests together.  The Red-Headed philosopher’s mission is to awaken people to the experience of freshly roasted specialty coffee, while also encouraging them to explore the mysteries of life, seeing past all “limits” to the infinite possibilities in life.  All their coffee comes in an artistic and inspiring package that is sure to ignite philosophical thought.  Each bag of coffee is roasted to a specific roast level to bring out the unique characteristics of the coffee’s origin.  The Red-Headed Philosopher’s Specialty Roasted Coffee may not change your life…but it might.  Anything is possible!