My name is Chris Mellross. I'm 33 and I work at Zentveld's Coffee Farm and Roastery (zentvelds.com.au) in the hills behind Byron Bay in New South Wales, Australia. Established in 1993, the farm has 40 acres of coffee trees and grows coffee in a sustainable way, which we then roast and sell.
Before starting here, I worked at a nearby bakery that served Zentveld's coffee. I actually come from a family of musicians and have been playing drums for most of my life. In my 20s, I often worked at coffee shops in between touring, because it's something you can do anytime, anywhere. But it wasn't until I came here that I developed a passion for coffee.
At Zentveld's, the farm and the roastery are under the same name but they operate as two separate businesses, in harmony with each other. I work at the roastery, on the agritourism side of things. We're open from Monday to Friday. Visitors can come and do a crop-to-cup tour and try some of our freshly roasted coffees.
When I began working here, in 2020, I was the head barista for the retail space, but now, I'm more involved with brand development. The good thing about Australian coffee is that it has a slow ripening period. We only get one harvest a year, so there's a rarity to it. The owners did a great job of positioning our brand when they started the business, and I feel like it's my role to connect with my generation and keep that story alive.
My job also involves hosting visitors and, to do that, I think you have to have good social skills, so that you can have conversations with a million different personalities. I don't know if it's my music background, travelling and meeting people, but I feel like I can quickly pick up on what people are interested in and curate their visit to suit them.
What I find funny is when people come and think they can walk freely around the farm, not realizing that two of the world's deadliest snakes live here! Dangerous animals are very prevalent in Australia, and we're natural farmers, so everything is welcome here. This is something we often have to explain to our visitors, to keep them safe.
I've had jobs in the past where there were days when I didn't want to be there. But this isn't a job with negative experiences. We live near Byron Bay, a beautiful part of the world. And to be able to grow coffee just behind the coastline here - and do it in a way that works with nature and is natural - is incredible.
Working for a company that felt too capitalist never sat right with me. It's nice to work for good people who are passionate about the land. I felt at home as soon as I came here. I'm happy to be here and I want to tell people our story and have them feel the same passion that I do.