On January 2, 2025, Celtic Cup opened its first brick-and-mortar location, a “Coffee Roastery and Tasting Room” at the Argent Spring Building in downtown Silver Spring. The new address is 8455 Colesville Road, Suite 101B, located next to the building lobby entrance. After recently receiving recognition in the trade publication Daily Coffee News by Roast Magazine, Source of the Spring reports that Celtic Cup is planning a Grand Opening celebration soon.
Source of the Spring has shared that as warmer weather approaches, founder and roast master Doug Ilg plans to add a small outdoor seating area along the colonnade in front of the shop and host a grand opening celebration. When it occurs, the event will feature live traditional Irish music, drink specials, and giveaways.
Doug Ilg, who has a background in computer science, transitioned to the coffee industry after a 30+ year career, including work as a contractor with NASA and other agencies. His role involved developing methods for computing, organizing, storing, and distributing scientific data imagery from various Earth-observing environmental satellite systems. Motivated by a passion for coffee, Doug aims to help his community broaden their home coffee brewing horizons.
Doug’s journey in coffee began in his childhood. He recalls his earliest memory of coffee at the age of 6 or 8, when he pleaded with his parents to let him join the adults with a cup of coffee. His initial experience consisted of a carafe of hot water and a packet of Sanka® instant coffee.
In the 1990s, Doug was introduced to home coffee roasting by a co-worker whose husband roasted coffee using a cookie sheet in their home oven. After receiving a brief tutorial, Doug began roasting small batches in his own home oven, which ignited his passion for producing high-quality coffee. Over the years, he experimented with various small home roasters while honing his skills in the craft of coffee roasting.
In 2019, Doug founded Celtic Cup Coffee, focusing on custom roasting coffee in micro-batches and assisting customers in brewing their best cup of coffee at home. Initially, Celtic Cup operated as a Maryland Cottage Food Business, producing low-risk foods from home.