Peet's Coffee

Overview

Peet's was founded April 1, 1966 by Dutch immigrant Alfred Peet at the corner of Vine and Walnut in Berkeley — widely credited as the start of American specialty coffee. Three young entrepreneurs trained under Peet during the 1970–71 holiday season and went on to found Starbucks in Seattle the following year, modeling their stores on his. The original Vine Street location remains open. Peet's is now headquartered in Emeryville and owned by JAB Holding (acquired 2012 for $977.6M); under JDE Peet's, the company also holds majority stakes in Stumptown and Intelligentsia.

Known for

• Started American specialty coffee in 1966 — Alfred Peet known as 'the grandfather of specialty coffee'
• Trained the three Starbucks founders (Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl, Gordon Bowker) and supplied their first coffee in 1971
• Major Dickason's Blend — created 1969 with retired Army sergeant Key Dickason, still the all-time bestseller
• Owns majority stakes in Stumptown (2015) and Intelligentsia (2015) — both founded by former Peet's employees
• Defining Bay Area dark-roast house style; 200+ stores plus 14,000+ grocery distribution

Why it matters

Peet's is the origin point of American specialty coffee. Every US third-wave roaster — Stumptown, Intelligentsia, Counter Culture, the rest — descends, directly or by influence, from Alfred Peet's insistence that Americans deserved better than Folger's and his patient willingness to teach his methods to anyone who showed up at the Vine Street counter.

Production

destoning

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head roaster

Doug Welsh (Roastmaster, since 2006); Jim Reynolds (Roastmaster Emeritus)

color sorting

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roaster machine

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filter equipment

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cupping frequency

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roastery location

Alameda, California (primary roastery); historical Emeryville roastery was Peet's first industrial-scale facility from the early 1970s

espresso equipment

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annual volume tonnes

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Café

2124 Vine Street, Berkeley, CA 94709 (original location)

Recognitions

• Alfred Peet — 'grandfather of specialty coffee' (industry consensus)
• Acquired by JAB Holding (2012, $977.6M)
• Acquired Stumptown and Intelligentsia stakes (2015)

Sources

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peet%27s_Coffee
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Peet
• https://www.peets.com/blogs/peets/the-history-of-peets-coffee
• https://www.peets.com/pages/timeline
• https://sprudge.com/peets-biography-104696.html
• https://www.berkeleyside.org/2023/07/25/peets-first-employee-talks-berkeley