Silvermine Coffee Roasters Opens in Norwalk with Unique Beans From Across the Globe

The smell of freshly roasted coffee greets customers as they step into Silvermine Coffee Roasters in Norwalk. Behind each cup is more than carefully sourced beans- it’s years of experimentation, craftsmanship, and a desire to showcase the unique story each coffee bean has to tell. What began as frustration with bad coffee has evolved into one of Fairfield County's most distinctive specialty coffee roasters, offering nearly 30 carefully crafted blends from around the world.

For owner Thomas Morsanutto, coffee roasting was never part of the original plan. While working at a financial technology company in Wilton, he grew frustrated with the quality of coffee available in the office and began coffee roasting himself.

“I spent hours roasting coffee for friends and family, but eventually it just wasn't sustainable. I decided to take a chance and build a real business that focused on takeout coffee, coffee beans, and online sales. We wanted a concept that could succeed even if people weren't gathering into a cafe,” Morsanutto said.

Silvermine Coffee Roasters is not your typical coffee shop. Much like wine, the business focuses on bringing out the distinct notes in each cup while sharing the story behind every bean’s origin. Each roast has its own unique flavor profile, allowing customers to experience the characteristics of the region where the coffee was grown. 

“I source coffees from around the world based on flavor profiles and characteristics that I think our customers will enjoy,” he said. “When we receive green coffee beans, we roast them several times to determine where it tastes best on the light-to-dark roasting spectrum. We're constantly tasting and adjusting the roast until we feel we've found the ideal profile for that specific coffee.”

“Some single-origin coffees are great on their own, but combining coffees from different regions or roast levels creates something much more complex and interesting,” he said.

Currently, the menu features nearly 30 coffees sourced from exotic regions around the world, including Costa Rica, Ethiopia, and Tanzania. Rather than masking the beans’ natural flavors with flavored syrups, Morsanutto focuses on highlighting the unique notes and characteristics of each roast.

Some of Silvermine Coffee Roasters’ best sellers are the Maritime Blend and the Hangover Blend.

“The Maritime Blend is classic, smooth and chocolatey, made with two Colombian coffees,” he said. “It's one of our top sellers and works extremely well with both drip coffee and espresso. The Hangover Blend is a little roastier. It has strong milk chocolate and brown sugar notes and combines our Brazilian coffee with our Dark Excelso. A lot of people don't realize that coffee can taste like much more than what they've grown up drinking.”

Morsanutto ensures that every customer leaves with a roast tailored perfectly to their preferences. Unlike a typical cafe, Silvermine Coffee Roasters takes a personalized approach, asking customers about their favorite flavors, brewing methods, and at-home equipment to create a coffee experience designed specifically for them.

Currently, the roastery is “looking for locations to open a full cafe,” Morsanutto said. “Right now, we're more of a takeout coffee and coffee bean shop but the demand is definitely there, and we're hoping to have some exciting news soon.”

Q&A with Silvermine Coffee Roasters Owner Thomas Morsanutto

Have you always been into culinary?

Sort of. My family has a long culinary history. My grandfather started a restaurant in Italy years ago, so food has always been a big part of my life. After my freshman year at UConn, I worked at that restaurant making pizzas. I love to cook, and my grandfather loved to cook as well, so I've always had an interest in food and the culinary arts.

How did you get started with Silvermine Coffee, and why did you start this business?

I got started because of bad coffee, honestly. I was working for a financial technology firm based in Wilton, and the coffee in the office was terrible. I started looking for something better but couldn't really find it.

I discovered some local coffee roasters and decided to give them a try. That made me realize coffee roasting was something I could do myself. Since I enjoy cooking and experimenting, I bought a small coffee roaster called a Hottop and began experimenting with different coffees.

I kept roasting and eventually upgraded to a slightly larger gas-powered Arc roaster. I spent hours roasting coffee for friends and family, but eventually I was spending five or six hours in my garage over multiple nights each week and only producing about 20 pounds of coffee. It just wasn't sustainable.

At that point, I decided to take a chance and build a real business. During the middle of COVID, I put a deposit on the Loring roaster we have today. At the time, nobody knew what was going to happen, so we built this business around a model that focused on takeout coffee, coffee beans, and online sales. We wanted a concept that could succeed even if people weren't gathering in cafés. It seemed like a safe way to get started in the coffee business.

Can you tell me a bit about the menu items? 

We're not a typical café. While we do offer some sweeteners, our main focus is telling the story of each coffee's origin.

I source coffees from around the world based on flavor profiles and characteristics that I think our customers will enjoy. When we receive a green coffee bean, we roast it several times to determine where it tastes best on the light-to-dark roasting spectrum. We're constantly tasting and adjusting the roast until we feel we've found the ideal profile for that specific coffee.

We also do post-roast blending. We roast each coffee to its ideal level first, then experiment with different proportions and ratios to create unique blends. Some single-origin coffees are great on their own, but combining coffees from different regions or roast levels creates something much more complex and interesting.

Right now, we offer around 25 to 30 different coffees, and we've developed even more than what's currently on display. We're always searching for new and unique coffees. For example, I have a Pink Bourbon and Gesha green coffee blend arriving today. I have about 100 pounds of green coffee coming in, and I'm excited to roast it and introduce it to customers soon.

What are your best sellers, and what makes them unique?

Our best-selling blends are the Maritime Blend and the Hangover Blend.

The Maritime Blend is a classic, smooth, chocolatey coffee made with two Colombian coffees. It's one of our top sellers and works extremely well as both drip coffee and espresso.

The Hangover Blend is a little roastier. It has strong milk chocolate and brown sugar notes and combines our Brazilian coffee with our Dark Excelso. The Brazilian coffee provides a rich chocolate base, while the Dark Excelso adds roasted character and caramel notes

It's also excellent for cold brew. I think our cold brew is outstanding, and we constantly receive compliments on it. You actually just met Dan, who was talking about how much he loves it. He said it tastes like coffee, but at the same time doesn't taste like coffee because the flavor is so unique.A lot of people don't realize coffee can taste like much more than what they've grown up drinkining.

Why did you choose this location?

Honestly, I chose this location because of the rent. Commercial rent is expensive, and this space was affordable, already in the right zoning, and required the fewest hurdles to get this concept up and running.

It's also centrally located near Norwalk and close to the highway, giving us good access to most of our customers.

One of our biggest challenges now is parking. As we've grown, customers constantly tell us we need more parking. We're aware of it.

We're actually looking for locations to open a full cafe. Right now, we're more of a takeout coffee and coffee bean shop than a traditional cafe. The demand is definitely there, and we're hoping to have some exciting news soon.

Silvermine Coffee Roasters 29 Harbor Ave, Norwalk, CT

@silverminecoffee