Coffee roasters feel heat from competition

As numbers increase, concerns of market saturation are percolating

Steve Bloom/The Olympian

Espresso bars have become as common in the Northwest as the gray skies that invite a caffeine shot.
But what java-philes might not think about while they sip their morning ambrosia -- whether it's a cup of black coffee or a more embellished concoction -- are the people who roast the coffee beans.

Or that a growing number of gourmet roasters are rooted in South Sound.

For coffee lovers, the thickening competition creates more choices. For roasters, a more crowded field means working harder to stand apart.

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