AEROSMITH's JOEY KRAMER To Close His 'Rockin' & Roastin'' Coffee Line: 'There Just Is No Realistic Alternative'

AEROSMITH drummer Joey Kramer has decided to shut down his Rockin' & Roastin' organic coffee line.

On Friday (November 29),Kramer took to social media to write: "To all of Rockin' & Roastin''s loyal subscribers and my coffee loving fans along the way - It is with deep deep sadness that we have had to make the decision to close the business of Rockin & Roastin' Coffee.

"After the years of working to recover from the devastation to our business from the impact of Covid, significant increases in the cost of doing business and the tragic, painful loss of my wife, Linda, there just is no realistic alternative but to close our proverbial doors.

"We will fill all orders received through tomorrow, Saturday, Nov 30 but will not take orders thereafter.

"With so much gratitude and love for you all, Joey Kramer".

Rockin' & Roastin' was established by Kramer in 2012 as an online business after having trouble finding a decent cup of coffee on the road while touring with AEROSMITH. In October of 2013, Kramer landed his first hotel partnership with the Bethel Hill Resort (Bethel, Maine) and the company since had expanded in the foodservice industry.

The story of Joey Kramer's Rockin' & Roastin' organic, custom-roasted coffee blends begins in the field. Unlike "sun grown" coffee that's cheaper to produce but requires chemical fertilizers and pesticides and leads to the destruction of native rainforests, Rockin' & Roastin' coffee was lovingly cultivated using the traditional "shade grown" method, under a canopy of indigenous trees. This sustainable practice supports a wide diversity of plant and animal life, provides food and shelter to migrating birds, and helps to filter carbon dioxide from the air, reducing the danger of global warming.

Speaking to LongIsland.com, Kramer stated about his business venture: "It's always been a passion of mine — coffee has — and I've always wanted to have my own company outside of what I do. Fortunately for me, my career has gone as it has, so I haven't really had the time to do that, but right now we’re enjoying some time off and I've decided to take on this project. I went and got with a couple people that I knew that I wanted to work with and they're now my partners and it's taken off. Everything is working really well."

He added: "The problem is in order to build a brand, you've got to be pretty much hands-on and you've got to be able to do the work yourself and not be afraid of it. I'm the CEO of this company, it's my baby; I'm not just another one of those celebrities that's putting my name on something and expecting to make millions of dollars off it. I'm into the coffee in the same way my band is into the music; you know, we're into it because it's about the music and I'm into this because it's about the coffee. I'm the CEO, I cup the coffee myself, the beans are roasted to my specs, I'm hands-on all the time."

Asked what sets Rockin' & Roastin' apart from some of the other coffees that are out there, Kramer told The Courant: "I like something that's very robust, I like my coffee very strong. The places I like to drink coffee, the coffee is from is Sumatra, Guatemala and Ethiopia and those are the three places we're sourcing our beans.

"I think [Rockin' & Roastin'] is very smooth, which is the way coffee should be," he added. "We're bringing it for public consumption at a very reasonable price because I don't think people should be gouged for gourmet coffee."

Joey's wife Linda Gail Kramer, 55, passed away in June 2022. No cause of death has been revealed.

Joey and Linda were married in October 2009, with the musician calling her "the love of his life." "He once described meeting Linda as "the biggest rush you ever had in your life." Friends and family have always noted that Joey and Linda were simply "inseparable."

In March 2022, Joey announced that he would sit out AEROSMITH's concerts that year so he can "focus his full attention on his family during these uncertain times," according to a statement from the legendary rockers. While Kramer took "a temporary leave of absence" from AEROSMITH, he was once again replaced by his drum tech, John Douglas.

More than four years ago, Kramer rejoined his AEROSMITH bandmates on stage during the group's residency in Las Vegas. A month earlier, he sued the rest of AEROSMITH in a bid to perform with them at two Grammy-related events. But a Massachusetts judge eventually ruled against him and the group played without Kramer.

After Kramer injured his shoulder in 2019, Douglas filled in for a few gigs during AEROSMITH's residency. Kramer did, however, perform with the rest of AEROSMITH in July of that year at the Twin Cities Summer Jam in Shakopee.

In his January 2020 16-page complaint filed in Massachusetts state court, Kramer said the disability he suffered three years ago was minor, and insisted he was ready to return to the group's "lucrative" Las Vegas residency at the MGM Resorts a few months later, as well as its slate of "50th anniversary activities."

Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Tom Hamilton and Brad Whitford later responded to Kramer's suit in a statement to People, saying Joey "has not been emotionally and physically able to perform with the band, by his own admission, for the last 6 months. We have missed him and have encouraged him to rejoin us to play many times but apparently he has not felt ready to do so. Joey has now waited until the last moment to accept our invitation, when we unfortunately have no time for necessary rehearsals during Grammys week. We would be doing a disservice to him, to ourselves and to our fans to have him play without adequate time to prepare and rehearse."

In a statement at the time, Kramer said he was "extremely disappointed" with the judge's ruling.

"I knew filing a lawsuit was a bit of an uphill battle," the drummer said. "I can hold my head high knowing that I did the right thing — to fight for my right to celebrate the band's success that I have dedicated the better part of my life to helping build."