Wrecking Ball Coffee Roasters was founded in San Francisco in 2011 by Trish Rothgeb and Nicholas Cho, two deeply experienced coffee professionals. Rothgeb, a licensed Q Grader and Q Trainer, was the first woman to earn Q Grader certification in the United States and is widely credited with coining the term "third wave coffee" in a 2002 article for The Flamekeeper. The company sources coffee through direct trade from origins including Bolivia, Congo, Ecuador, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Uganda. Roasting runs on a twice weekly schedule, with every detail from sourcing to packaging reflecting decades of craft and conviction about what specialty coffee can be.