The story of Toby's Estate began in 1997, when coffee-loving lawyer Toby Smith made a life-changing decision, swapping legal books for coffee cups to follow his passion for his favourite brew. Travelling to some of the most remote corners of the globe, Toby lived amongst the coffee-producing communities, experiencing first-hand the lifelong dedication and hard manual labour that went into growing their exquisite beans.

Toby knew that connoisseurs and everyday drinkers would love the specialty coffee as much as he did – but how to get the beans from crop to cafés?

A challenge was brewing. Realising that this world of specialty coffee was at risk of being lost to mass produced alternatives – and driven by a deep respect for the communities who welcomed him in - Toby decided to do it himself.

Returning home he transformed his mum's garage into a mini roastery, spending the next few years using everything he'd learnt to master the art of roasting the specialty beans.

And in 2001, Toby's Estate was born, when he opened his very first café, espresso school and roastery.