Roast Summit 2024: A Powerful Gathering of Roasting Knowledge in Chicago

In October, Diedrich Roasters was proud to be the event sponsor Roast Summit, an immersive two-day event presented by Roast Magazine and held at our Chicago Education & Training Facility. Designed for roasters of all levels, Roast Summit 2024 brought together a vibrant community of coffee professionals for in-depth learning, conversation, and collaboration centered around the art and science of roasting.

From hands-on workshops and lectures to thoughtful panel discussions, the Summit offered attendees the chance to sharpen their skills, explore emerging technologies, and engage directly with fellow roasters and educators in the field. One of the highlights was the opportunity for attendees to roast side by side on a full lineup of Diedrich machines—an experience that is all too rare in the day-to-day life of many production roasters.

We were honored to host a wide range of educational sessions, including a standout presentation by our own Karl Schmidt on the True Cost of Electricity. His deep dive into the real-world challenges and infrastructure considerations behind electric roasting systems helped demystify one of the industry’s most talked-about transitions.

At Diedrich, we believe education is a cornerstone of our commitment to supporting the coffee roasting community. The success of Roast Summit 2024 reaffirmed that when roasters come together to share knowledge and insights, the entire industry moves forward.

We’re grateful to the team at Roast Magazine and Firedancer Coffee Consultants for their partnership in producing this year’s event. And most of all, we thank the attendees, speakers, and sponsors who made this year’s Summit such a success.

We’ll see you in Portland for Roast Summit 2025—October 2–3 at The Redd on Salmon Street.