Roaster Profile
Maruyama Coffee
丸山珈琲
長野・東京・神奈川
Founded in 1991. A pioneer of Japanese specialty coffee whose founder has served as a Cup of Excellence international judge. An active direct-trade buyer handling top-quality lots from Ethiopia, Colombia, Guatemala and beyond.
Roast
Wide range
Online sales
Yes
Origins
5 origins
Tags
Origins carried
Editorial
How to read this roaster
Maruyama Coffee is one of the pioneers no telling of Japanese specialty coffee can skip. Founded in Karuizawa, Nagano in 1991 — before "specialty" was even a familiar word here — it has pursued quality at the level of origin and farm ever since. Founder Kentaro Maruyama is also known for serving many years as an international Cup of Excellence (COE) judge, directly involved in quality evaluation across producing countries.
The "go to origin" culture, born in Karuizawa
When Maruyama opened, Japan’s coffee trade ran on commodity beans through large trading houses; supply chains where you could see the farm or the grower barely existed. Maruyama Coffee punched a hole in that structure — traveling to producing countries, building relationships with farm owners, and buying the same farmers’ beans year after year as an early practitioner of direct trade, with long-term partnerships across Colombia, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Ethiopia and more. It brought drinkers a continuity Japan’s coffee culture had rarely known: drinking the same variety from the same farm again next year.
A lineup chosen by a COE international judge
The Cup of Excellence is a producer-country quality competition held around the world, whose winning lots are auctioned globally online. Kentaro Maruyama has judged it for more than 20 years, making Maruyama a major gateway for rare COE lots entering Japan. The shop and online store regularly carry micro lots scored far above world averages and exclusive lots earned through long farm relationships — one of the few places in Japan where "drinking the top of the world’s competitions" is simply on the menu.
Balance-first roasting across a wide range
The roasting style is varied — light through medium-dark — matching the optimal roast to each origin and variety: fruity Ethiopian naturals roasted light, the sweetness and body of Colombia and Guatemala at medium, blends and kissaten-style cups at medium-dark. The hallmark is that "Maruyama’s light roasts" and "Maruyama’s blends" don’t compete — both coexist.
Recommended brewing
Recommended: paper drip at a medium grind, 91–93°C, water at 15–16× the coffee’s weight. With COE lots and single farms, listen to the material straight through a hand drip first, then check its other faces with a French press or AeroPress — the same bean, enjoyed from several angles.
Buy
Find Maruyama Coffee’s beans
Opens the official online shop via Google. Stock and prices on the official site take precedence.
Search official siteSimilar roasters
Horiguchi Coffee
東京（世田谷・新宿ほか）
Founded in 1990, a pioneer who laid the groundwork of Japanese specialty coffee. Known for direct origin visits, long-term farmer relationships, and books that systematized brewing and roasting theory. Excels at balanced medium to medium-dark roasts.
Light Up Coffee
東京（吉祥寺・新宿）
A popular Tokyo roaster specializing in light-roast single origins, showcasing the fruity, bright acidity of Ethiopia and Kenya. Devoted to making bean buying simple and fun, with carefully written tasting notes.
Glitch Coffee & Roasters
東京（神保町・赤坂）
A Tokyo roaster known for ultra-light specialty roasts, actively selecting strongly characterful lots — Ethiopian Gesha, natural process and more — and proposing a culture of enjoying coffee like wine.
ONIBUS COFFEE
東京（奥沢・中目黒・浅草ほか）
True to a name meaning "the bus for everyone" in Portuguese, its mission is bringing coffee to more people. An Africa specialist, carefully roasting fruity Ethiopian and Rwandan lots while keeping lasting relationships with farmers.