Latest / Coffee People Podcast / Roast! - Erin Nenow, Ascend Roasters & Old California Coffee House & Eatery

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Roast! - Erin Nenow, Ascend Roasters & Old California Coffee House & Eatery · Coffee People Podcast

0:10
Hey, good morning everyone. Welcome to season four episode,
0:13
seven of the roast West Coast coffee podcast.
0:17
I'm Ryan Walton. This is the show where I bring
0:19
you the stories of coffee professionals, entrepreneurship
0:22
and coffee education before I get started.
0:25
Today, I want to thank Jason Simpson and the entire team at
0:29
Camp coffee cup. penny for letting me set up the microphone
0:31
on their patio last weekend to chat with new friends, about
0:35
coffee, friends, like Cindy, My name is Cindy.
0:40
I'm from Melbourne Australia, very cool.
0:43
And I'm wondering if you're the first memory about coffee, my
0:47
first memory was actually my dad drinking Nescafe coffee, growing
0:51
up, and he said that I wasn't allowed to have any coffee as a
0:55
kid. So it was my first memory of
0:56
coffee but growing up in Melbourne, Australia ton of its
1:01
Coffee Culture. A lot of Italians actually came
1:04
over to Melbourne, Australia, and develop the Coffee Culture
1:06
back in the early and he was like 50s and He's so when I was
1:11
old enough and I started going to town lattes was like the
1:14
go-to drink in Melbourne. And don't do, they do like a
1:18
little sprinkle of chocolate. That's the Maca, the mocha.
1:21
Yeah, and we also have flat white Australia is known for the
1:24
flat white. I heard in New York is a ton of
1:27
like coffee shops now that serve flat white and, you know, from
1:31
Australia seeing you were worried that you weren't going
1:33
to be good on the show, you're already fantastic.
1:37
So what is it? Why do you like coffee?
1:40
I love the different textures. I guess when you drink it, and
1:46
the different identities, and flex the flavors, the aroma.
1:50
And so many different layers of coffee that I enjoy.
1:55
I guess, I used to start just drinking coffee with milk, when
1:58
I'm drinking more black coffee, which is what I'm drinking
2:00
today. I'm drinking a just a brewed
2:03
coffee, which I only knew about when I came here to the US
2:06
because in Australia would only drink my coffee with milk.
2:10
But I'm just having as I as I get older, if I travel the
2:13
world, I have a greater appreciation for just black
2:16
coffee, and the different ways in which it can be prepared like
2:19
a pour-over and whatnot. So and that's all I really have
2:22
for you. That's it guys.
2:23
It's that easy. Fun time.
2:26
Unless there's anything you want to tell the world by yourself?
2:29
No no I just I think I just did a great promo for Australia.
2:32
Great plugs everybody here loves Australian.
2:35
I think every coffee person here is that's like their thing.
2:37
They want to go to Australia, to drink, really?
2:39
Yeah, I And it makes me want to go back to Melvin because when I
2:43
travel the world, I coming from Melbourne, I was like, oh
2:45
Italian copulas upon a normal like expresser and then I come
2:49
to the u.s. and it was all the coffee and Melvin's really
2:51
great. I want to go to Australia and
2:53
learn how to make good coffee and in my head, I'm like damn
2:56
it. I wish that I was really into
2:59
that culture more. So, yeah, I wish I had a side
3:03
job as a burst of versus a juice boost juice like smoothie maker.
3:09
I would have come a long way. But that's alright.
3:12
I'll go back and see her it out. There's still time.
3:15
I hope so. I owe a debt of gratitude to
3:23
Cindy and her traveling partner, Alex, they were the first people
3:26
I met at the First, in-person Recording effort.
3:28
I've done for this show, they were engaging in charming and
3:32
after so many interviews done from the comfort of my home
3:35
recording booth here in the closet.
3:37
It was a great reintroduction into the world.
3:40
I'll share more from my Camp coffee.
3:42
Visit after today's interview with Aaron Nino, Aaron is the
3:45
founder and head Roaster at Ascend Coffee Roasters.
3:49
She's also the co-owner of old California, Coffee House in San
3:53
Marcos, California. Her personal motto, is to spread
3:56
caffeine and smiles. And with the coffee shop and the
3:59
new Roastery, she's coming at it from all angles, I'll link to
4:03
ascend Roasters.com and to Old Cal coffee in the roast West
4:08
Coast newsletter, which you can subscribe to or just read at
4:11
roast westcoast.com. When you're done checking out,
4:15
all of that. Good coffee content.
4:17
Give the show a follow on Instagram at roast West Coast
4:20
right now. Now make sure your coffee mug is
4:23
full of something delicious. I'm going to go make myself a
4:26
flat white which is an espresso fully blended with velvety
4:29
steamed. Microphone less microphone than
4:32
you'd find in a cappuccino though.
4:34
Will I go do that? Listen to this interview with
4:37
Aaron nienow, founder and head Roaster at a send coffee
4:41
roasters. It's nice to meet you in person.
4:59
Nice to meet you as well. Thank you so much for for
5:01
joining the show today. Well thank you for making it so
5:05
comfortable for everybody. Well you know where this isn't
5:09
like gotcha journalism. We just want to tell the stories
5:12
of And coffee and and get people excited about, you know, what
5:15
their options are out in the world.
5:17
So, yeah, you know, you look like you're on a very
5:20
comfortable couch. I'm in my closet and I think
5:23
outside, they are like using an electric blower to blow the
5:26
parking lot out. So it's pretty standard
5:29
podcasting. Yeah, you're like doing whatever
5:32
you need to do to make the object, get in the closet if you
5:36
have to yell. Oh yeah.
5:38
Well the closets a lot more impressive than it used to be
5:41
nice. Yeah.
5:42
Now, there's like, little acoustic things and have a
5:44
microphone and mcurtin to block off all my flannel shirts and
5:48
stuff, so works out. Yeah, it looks very
5:51
professional, thank you. So, if we could just for the
5:54
tape, tell us your name, your business, your job title.
5:57
Your favorite Ninja Turtle, favorite 80s movie, something
6:01
about yourself. Okay, cool.
6:04
My name is Aaron Nina. Oh, I am the co-owner of old,
6:08
California, Coffee House and Eatery and San Marcos and the
6:11
owner of Send Roasters which is a brand-new roasting company
6:16
that we just launched something interesting about myself, I'm
6:21
kind of, I can't think of anything.
6:24
I'm so boring. There's got to be something.
6:28
What, what is your favorite thing to do?
6:30
Besides coffee? I like to, I live in South
6:34
Oceanside, so my favorite thing to do is just get outside, walk
6:39
to the coffee shops down the street, the thrift.
6:42
Or as go for a walk on the beach like to go on Hikes.
6:46
I just as much as I'm indoors, working at the coffee house
6:50
whenever I'm not indoors. I want to be outdoors.
6:52
That's kind of what I do when I'm not there.
6:56
I didn't realize we're practically neighbors.
6:58
I'm right in Carlsbad Village so I get over to self.
7:00
Oh, all the time and you just mentioned being at the coffee
7:03
house. So I want to ask a little bit
7:05
about your experience before that because you've been with
7:08
the coffee place for a long time.
7:10
But what was kind of your first? Us with coffee that made you
7:14
think, yeah, this is something I'm interested in or this is
7:16
something I want to take to the next level.
7:19
So I, the family that I grew up in is a bunch of Foodies.
7:23
We just love to cook for each other.
7:25
We love great food. Great wine, great coffee.
7:29
So, as a kid growing up, my parents really tried to find
7:34
like good beans, for at that time.
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Like we would go out of our way, to get Peet's Coffee because
7:40
there just weren't as many options as there are now.
7:42
When I was growing up, but Pete's was definitely, we
7:45
weren't drinking Folgers, or Starbucks, or anything like
7:48
that. And they really went into the
7:51
methods of how we made coffee at home.
7:53
We would make like pour overs and just a little bit of a notch
7:58
up from just brewing coffee in a coffee pot.
8:00
So I was always kind of interested because my family put
8:03
an emphasis on it, I started drinking coffee, maybe 12 years
8:08
old because I just wanted to grow up too fast and I was
8:12
drinking. The opportunity I could I was
8:15
the opposite I'm going to interrupt you because I have to
8:18
say, like I was totally the opposite.
8:20
I had like a coffee candy when I was 12 years old and I didn't
8:23
drink coffee again. So I was like 30, my brother was
8:26
like that he got through all of college without it.
8:30
I don't know how. Yeah, I just wanted to push the
8:32
limits, like if you weren't supposed to have coffee or two
8:36
young men, I wanted it, you know, coffee is at least a
8:40
little, I mean, relatively innocent of the Things.
8:42
You can push the boundaries of that's true.
8:45
So I wasn't too bad. But yeah, when I turned 17, my
8:50
brother's girlfriend was going away to college.
8:52
And she was like do you want my job because she worked at this
8:56
little drive-through coffee shop in Escondido.
8:59
That's not there anymore, but she was going away to Texas and
9:02
she was like, they need somebody.
9:04
So I was so excited. That was my first job.
9:06
It was like this little two-man Hut that we operated.
9:10
I wasn't trained on how to make coffee.
9:12
See there. I was just kind of like thrown
9:14
in so there was a part of me that knew that I didn't know
9:17
what I was doing when I worked there and I went on to work at a
9:23
natural grocery store after that.
9:25
And then when I was like 21 years old, I had left that job
9:29
and I was like what do I want to be doing with my time?
9:31
Where do I want to spend 40 hours a week?
9:33
And that coffee shop kind of vibe drew me back and I
9:39
remembered working the drive-thru knowing my Lawyers
9:43
connecting with people. And I was like, you know what, I
9:45
want to do coffee again, I'm going to look for an opportunity
9:48
to do that. So, that's how I ended up at Old
9:50
Cal coffee and old California. Coffee House is a kind of a
9:55
iconic San Marcos business, right?
9:57
I mean, it's been around quite a long time.
9:59
I actually remember having meetings there when I first
10:02
moved here a long time ago. So you started working there
10:05
more than 10 years ago. I think right.
10:07
Yes, it'll be 11 years in February, the Coffeehouse Has
10:12
been there since 1990. So it was the first Coffee House
10:17
in San Marcos before. The Starbucks is came to town.
10:20
They were serving up coffee though.
10:22
It has a really long history in the community, I showed up on
10:26
the scene in 2011 there was a few owners before us that
10:31
carried the mantle that got it started and then we have this
10:34
incredible opportunity of keeping it going and preserving
10:39
it for the community. Well let's talk through that you
10:43
start working there, 11 years ago, almost 11 years ago.
10:46
How long are you working there before the opportunity to
10:48
purchase the business comes along?
10:50
So I started in 2011, I was a barista, the owners, my business
10:57
partners, Giovanna and Craig, they had bought the business in
11:01
January of 2011, and then they hired me in February of 2011.
11:06
So I was their first hire which kind of feels like the universe
11:10
coming. Gather, but I started off as a
11:12
barista, like, I was sweeping and mopping.
11:15
The floor is taking the trash out, making the coffee
11:18
sandwiches opening, the shop closing the shop, all that
11:21
stuff. But like I said, working is the
11:24
coffee drive-through in high school.
11:26
I didn't learn a lot about coffee and I wanted to angio and
11:30
Craig, having just purchased a coffee shop, a cafe.
11:34
They didn't have any background working with coffee either.
11:39
So I would kind of go Go home and watch YouTube and like,
11:43
learn what are you doing? When you're extracting coffee?
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What's the machine doing? What do I need to know?
11:49
How do I make foam? The right way?
11:52
Like what's it supposed to look like?
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Even it was really like, I didn't know anything.
11:57
I had to figure it out. So I would watch YouTube videos.
12:00
I would come into work and share with Gio and Craig.
12:04
Like what I had learned and their vision for their business,
12:08
was a product that is That no matter who makes it.
12:12
Because if your coffee tastes different, every time you go
12:15
somewhere, you're probably not going to keep going there and
12:18
then also speed a service. They wanted us to make every
12:21
single drink within just a few minutes so that people aren't
12:24
waiting around forever to get a cup of coffee.
12:27
So I had to work within their rules to like I wanted to really
12:31
step up our game and improve the coffee experience for the
12:34
patrons, but I also had to make sure we were fast and I had to
12:37
make sure that what I was making was what, Everybody else was
12:41
making. So that's kind of how I came
12:43
into like the training rule at Old Cal coffee, training, all
12:46
the staff, and it was such an opportunity because the owners
12:51
wanted to learn more, they wanted to do a good service for
12:54
people, and they let me participate in that process.
12:57
So that's how we all became really close and tight and just
13:02
really good at working with each other, I grew into being a shift
13:06
leader. I was the assistant manager.
13:10
I became the Manager. So I did the manager role for
13:13
years and years and then in 2017, my partner's wanted to
13:18
pursue new businesses and real estate.
13:21
So they asked me, would you run this for us, like we trust you?
13:25
So they kind of stepped out there, silent Partners.
13:28
Now, is they like to say and they gave me this opportunity to
13:33
put into practice everything. They taught me about running a
13:36
business about leadership about working with a team of young.
13:41
Young people and cultivating them and giving them room to
13:44
shine. So it's been an awesome
13:48
experience. I took over in 2017, I ran the
13:51
business through covid, which was such a learning experience.
13:54
I'm sure. We'll talk more about everything
13:57
that transpired during covid. Not to interrupt, but covid is
14:01
still going on. So we're still.
14:02
Yeah, absolutely. I was, I felt very optimistic
14:07
when you said I ran it through covid as if it was over and I'll
14:09
wait a minute. No, it's not.
14:11
Out there yet. Yeah, thank you for correcting
14:13
me. I feel like 2020 was its own
14:17
thing and then 2021 was its own thing.
14:20
So it's absolutely not over but I was just more referring to
14:24
that those two years that are behind us and the lessons I've
14:28
learned so far. Surely it's definitely, you
14:31
know. Covid-19 and 30 min visit the VA
14:33
each variant, kind of had its own, like run at the box office.
14:36
It's like an Avengers movie or something every year.
14:39
There's a new one. It's a good way to put it and I
14:42
want to get to ascend Roasters, which is why we're talking
14:45
today. It's why I reached out to you,
14:46
I'm drinking a cup of your coffee.
14:48
This morning. You're single origin, New
14:50
Guinea, dark roast. But before we do, there's six
14:54
years between when you start at Old California, and when you
14:58
become part of the ownership team, at any point during their,
15:02
did you think, you know what, I think I want to go somewhere
15:04
else, or I want to do a different job, or was it just
15:08
kind of straight through this I'm home.
15:10
This is where I belong. I I mean I was 21 when I started
15:14
there. So I had a lot of ideas.
15:17
I was going to college coffee shops are great job for college
15:20
kids. I was majoring in Psychology, I
15:22
just wanted to like make the world a better place and help
15:27
people cultivate skills and I found that I was actually doing
15:31
that at my job. I was teaching people leadership
15:34
skills, I was teaching them, Workforce skills, so I was kind
15:39
of getting out of that job. What?
15:40
What? I had been looking for in
15:42
pursuing psychology, I wouldn't say I was always like this is
15:46
where I'm supposed to be but I did give it my very best effort
15:50
every single day. Tried to get the most out of the
15:52
job, see what I could learn, see where I could be an asset to
15:55
them. And I am extremely happy with
15:59
where that has taken me and that's the advice I give to my
16:02
staff all the time. Like you might not know exactly
16:04
where you're going, whatever is right in front of you, just give
16:07
it your best effort. You'll look back and you'll be
16:10
happy. Where life takes you, you know,
16:13
sure. Well, now that you are the kind
16:16
of the face of the ownership of the business, were there changes
16:20
that you started kind of putting on?
16:21
Like, not when you stepped into that role.
16:23
You mentioned you were working with in the pre with the your
16:26
your co-owners kind of their rules when you got started and
16:29
when you took over management, have you been able to start
16:32
putting your own fingerprint on things?
16:34
Or did you kind of stick with the path you are on or now that
16:37
you are the person who everyone goes to?
16:40
You know, how is that That experience changed.
16:42
I am really grateful for everything that they taught me.
16:45
I'm kind of a fly by the seat of your pants, type of person, just
16:49
kind of like living in the moment and they very much taught
16:53
me structure. Like There are rules to the
16:56
business that you have to maintain at all times.
16:58
Like, that's how people know who you are and what you offer, the
17:02
community can't be like changing it all the time.
17:05
So I'm really grateful for the structure that they taught me,
17:09
but I have very much Been able to get more creative than before
17:15
which is who I am on the inside. I'm more artistic.
17:19
I'm more free-spirited. Yeah, I would say that's what
17:23
has changed over the last four years.
17:24
That I've been in charge, we have gotten more creative with
17:28
the menu items. We've changed up the way we've
17:31
decorated the shop and tried to, like, put my own Flair on it.
17:35
My own Spin and just the relationships that I have with
17:38
the customers is different in the Immunity around old Cal
17:42
coffee, Geo and Craig are great with people.
17:46
Especially Craig, he loves getting out into the community
17:50
and giving back to the community and everybody knows Craig.
17:53
And I'm not as outgoing as he is, but what I like to do is
17:57
really connect one-on-one with people at a time, not in like a
18:00
large group and in my position I've really been able to do that
18:04
and create like my own relationships with people so I
18:07
would say like just the The Vibes a little bit different.
18:10
And not in a good or a bad way. It's just it's me, you know.
18:15
Yeah that's important being being the person that people
18:19
identify with the businesses is a role that that I'm familiar
18:24
with but also I think people don't realize how much
18:27
connection they have with the businesses.
18:29
They go to regularly you know I I see the people at my local
18:33
coffee shop more than I see, like my extended family who and,
18:36
you know, my parents even who live out of town.
18:38
And so you start building relationships.
18:40
It's with people that kind of fill certain roles in your life
18:43
and we were just talking about covid.
18:45
One of the things that I think we stopped at we learn to
18:51
appreciate and then we stopped appreciating and then maybe we
18:54
appreciate again and seems to be a cycle is when all of those
18:58
small interactions with other human beings were taken away
19:01
from us. And, you know, at the very
19:03
beginning of covid-19, all really were like, kind of afraid
19:06
and staying home for the most part because nobody knew what
19:10
was happening. Opening.
19:11
I think we all realize we have all these little engagements
19:15
everyday, with dozens of different people whether they're
19:18
at the coffee shop or at the grocery store or wherever that
19:22
added to this social experience that we all have.
19:25
And I could be wrong, and I'm not a psychologist and, you
19:29
know, our therapist. But I think that really impacted
19:32
people more than they realized, you know, that little moment.
19:35
So so you being consistent and you being the person that people
19:39
see now, even As we're continuing through a new phase
19:42
of covid, is something that has value to people every day, even
19:47
more than just a cup of coffee. Absolutely.
19:50
The memory that pops out to me, the most, when I think about it
19:53
was the night that the governor shut down the state and was
19:57
like, everybody stay home unless you're essential and I was
20:02
talking to my partners on the phone and they were like,
20:04
alright, shut it down, send everybody home and I was just
20:09
had this voice. My head say, no and it was
20:13
mostly because my employees count on us for their paychecks
20:17
and I have an employee who has a small child and I'm like, how is
20:21
she going to put food on the table?
20:23
Like there was a lot of unknowns at that time.
20:25
So I had said like we are not going to know if we don't try
20:29
and Craig had the idea. We opened a drive-thru where our
20:33
customers just drove up. We took their orders from the
20:36
car. They didn't get out of the car.
20:38
So we could limit exposure. So, So we just did that even we
20:42
didn't shut down one day. And at the time I was like, we
20:46
are not essential like, what are we doing?
20:49
There was a lot of voices in my head, like, you're not
20:51
essential. What are you doing?
20:52
You know, but over time and looking back, especially, I'm
20:57
like, we are essential. We provide people, like
21:02
connection Smiles, like face-to-face interaction.
21:06
Get out of the house. Go.
21:07
See a face, a friendly face, you know.
21:10
And like you said, we didn't realize how badly we needed that
21:15
until it was kind of taken away from us.
21:18
You know, how did you transition so quickly into doing it in a
21:24
way that you felt was safe? Because you like, you just said,
21:28
you didn't even take one day. How did you come up with
21:31
procedures? Where you felt like I'm
21:32
protecting? Not only my customers but my
21:34
team who depend on us, and we don't want to lose them.
21:37
Obviously either put them at risk.
21:40
How what was Cuz I'm imagining and sort of I don't want to put
21:43
words in your mouth, but I'm thinking about it as a manager.
21:47
I would take on some of that weight of responsibility of
21:51
feeling like I need to protect them while also providing for
21:54
them and that's something unique to business owners and
21:57
entrepreneurs. Absolutely.
21:59
We so myself and my business partner Craig, we work the
22:04
drive-thru ourselves so we were the only ones interacting with
22:07
the customers we had face Shields man.
22:10
Ask sanitizer everywhere and the staff would just work in the
22:16
kitchen, like fulfilling orders, making coffee and sandwiches.
22:21
So they were really only interacting with each other.
22:24
We also had probably half of our staff quit because they didn't
22:29
feel comfortable, and that was fine too.
22:31
I didn't have hours for everybody.
22:33
It was kind of like the people who wanted to be there and
22:37
wanted to take on that risk. We provided an opportunity while
22:41
keeping them safe and kind of taking on like myself and Craig
22:46
interacted with the public the most.
22:48
And we were very careful to keep our distance from the customers
22:52
and the staff as much as we could because safety was
22:56
definitely our number one priority, it would have the
22:59
worst thing we could have done was exposed somebody and we were
23:02
very weird that yeah. Not only the exposure of it, but
23:06
there was so much unknown at the time.
23:08
You know, we didn't know what this thing was going to do and
23:11
so there was certainly some risk-taking going to rewind just
23:15
a little bit. And we've been talking a lot
23:18
about old California, but at some point you decide to start
23:22
roasting your own coffee. I'm assuming before that old,
23:25
California was purchasing, wholesale coffee from somewhere.
23:28
What was the Tipping Point where you thought?
23:30
You know what, I want to take this to the next level.
23:32
I don't want to I don't want to say just Continue to run the
23:35
cafe. That's the wrong choice of
23:36
words, but I want to take this experience and make it even more
23:39
personal than it already is. I've always had dreams of like,
23:45
multiple cafes like growing the business out into the world and
23:49
getting as far out there as I could to like my motto is to
23:53
spread caffeine and smiles. So how can I spread caffeine and
23:56
smiles? Even further and old California
23:59
is really married to the location being an old California
24:03
restaurant row, and And so it was kind of hard to push out of
24:06
that boundary that is on it and then I also just had dreams of
24:11
having my own project. So over the summer my
24:16
brother-in-law approached me and he he was like, what are you
24:21
doing? It's time like you need to get
24:23
out there. You need to do your thing.
24:24
You've learned so much. You you need to take that
24:27
experience and put it somewhere. So what do you want to do?
24:30
And he's looking at me. What do you want to do?
24:32
And I was like roast coffee. Like I'd always had it in my
24:36
head. I've always wanted to do it.
24:38
There was there's a lot to learn a lot of hurdles.
24:41
You got to get over to get there and my brother-in-law just gave
24:45
me a push in that moment like it's time, go do it, start
24:50
pursuing and I just started doing a lot of research started
24:54
knocking on doors and all the doors that I knocked on just
24:57
opened. It was I really felt like I was
25:00
being led in this direction and that it is a calling.
25:04
And I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be with roasting
25:07
coffee. I was super insecure at first
25:10
like a, my sourcing. Good beans?
25:14
Am I do I know what I'm doing when i'm roasting, am I messing
25:18
all of this up and just over time like I did mess up coffee.
25:22
I did throw away. A lot of coffee.
25:24
I did finally have moments where people were giving me really
25:28
awesome feedback and I knew that the stuff that I had learned in
25:32
the tweaks that I was making were working.
25:34
So I kind of kept it on the down low until I was really ready to
25:40
put a product out there that I was proud of.
25:42
So we launched end of November first week of December.
25:47
So it's still very new and I have to give you some kudos for
25:51
even finding us so early on. I'm so appreciative of this
25:56
opportunity because I wasn't ready to put the beans out there
26:01
until it was something. I was proud of and at this
26:03
point, it's out there. I'm I'm proud of it.
26:05
I want people to try it. I want people to know about it,
26:08
old cow coffee has our beans, so we have a dark roast espresso,
26:14
light roast espresso, let me stop you.
26:18
And when you say our beans, you're talking about Ascend to
26:20
Coffee rope Roasters. We haven't said that name.
26:22
And now if we've been saying old cow coffee, so I wanna make sure
26:24
people listening know, we're talking about a send Coffee
26:27
Roasters. And excuse me, continue, thank
26:31
you for that because the send is my new baby.
26:34
So yeah. Up old cow coffee, has a scent
26:37
Roasters coffee beans. We have a dark roast espresso,
26:41
light roast espresso. We have a Costa Rican House
26:45
Coffee. All of our coffees are now
26:47
organic and fair trade. I really try to Source the best
26:52
beans possible and I think you can taste it.
26:54
So you can buy bags of coffee from a scent Roasters, a told
26:58
Cal coffee or if you wanted to just get a cup of coffee with
27:02
that in it. That's that's what old cows.
27:04
Is now offering. So where did the name come from
27:08
Ascend? I think I found you because on
27:10
Instagram and I was drawn to the label which I think is great.
27:14
And I'm a mountain person and it has kind of this very visual
27:18
colorful draw to it. But what spoke to you about this
27:22
name? And why why I put it on this
27:24
thing that you just as you said is your baby.
27:26
You were going to be married to this name for some time.
27:29
I would imagine. Yeah, that was everything.
27:32
I came up with sounded stupid because I knew that I was going
27:36
to be married to it for forever. So I had a hard time, but at
27:42
that time my church was studying, the Psalms of
27:45
Ascension which are all about just becoming the best version
27:50
of you and ascending your problems and leaning on God and
27:56
all these things. And it was such a powerful
27:58
series that we were going through.
28:00
That was so positive and I just love things that encourage you
28:04
because Life gets hard sometimes I was going to church.
28:07
I was loving that name. The Psalms of Ascension there
28:10
was like something that spoke to me about it and I was like, you
28:14
know what, I think that's my name.
28:15
I think a scent, like a send the day, we all drink coffee in the
28:20
morning, to kind of, get our gears turning so that we can go
28:24
conquer all of our responsibilities and take care
28:28
of things and have the energy and the smile on her face.
28:31
So Ascend just kind of spoke to me.
28:34
I was trying Come up with artwork and I actually the logo
28:39
is a tattoo that I have that. I got like 10 years ago and I
28:44
was like, it fits perfectly. So at the stars, just kind of
28:47
aligned it's very neat. When I got the tattoo, I had no
28:51
intention of it ever being a logo in the future or part of my
28:55
brand. So that was something that came
28:57
together kind of perfectly to and was really cool.
29:00
Maybe you could go back and somehow taxed it out to that
29:03
logo, that To purchase, you know ten years of the future, that's
29:07
your new logo. I'm just trying I'm going
29:11
through taxes right now so it's I'm thinking oh, well, that's
29:13
interesting. No, it's a business.
29:16
The coffee that you shared with me, which thank you very much
29:19
for that. I mentioned is a single origin,
29:21
New Guinea dark roast. Why did you decide?
29:23
This was the coffee that you wanted to share with me, and
29:26
just for anyone listening, the tasting notes are dark
29:28
chocolate, brown sugar and walnut, but why did you say, you
29:32
know what? I'm this is the one for this
29:33
show that we're on. And we're new business.
29:35
Why share this one? That one's my favorite.
29:38
I like dark bold coffee. I also like light roast coffee.
29:43
I think I have a pallet for both but I grew up on dark roast
29:47
coffee. It's just a little bit more.
29:51
What I enjoy. So I like the sumatra's.
29:54
I like the Bold, but with this New Guinea coffee, it's bold,
29:58
but it's smooth in a way. That's a matras.
30:00
Not, and I just sip it and I'm like, yes, this is what I want
30:04
my coffee to taste like so I wanted to share that with you
30:06
and get just some feedback on what you thought of it.
30:10
And another exciting thing about that roast is were selling a ton
30:15
of it to a brewery in Texas and they're making a beer with it
30:18
right now though, that Launched in February, like we're going to
30:22
be in our first beer, the breweries called Martin house
30:26
Brewing. So if anyone in Texas is
30:28
familiar with them or around the country, they are the second
30:31
largest Brewery in Texas so they have a quite a reach.
30:35
So, very interesting, the re one of the reasons I was honestly
30:39
surprised that you gave me this coffee but Southern California,
30:43
really seems to associate with light roasts and big fruity
30:46
roasts. And so when you shared a dark
30:48
roast with me, that was unusual. In three seasons of this show is
30:52
the Four Season. No one has given me a dark roast
30:55
as their first coffee, the sample.
30:57
I thought it was a little bit more like ballsy of me for sure.
31:02
No, it's great. I love that, that it, you know,
31:04
you felt that confident about it and you did that.
31:07
And I have a friend named Jeff spanier, excuse me, and another
31:11
friend named Jeffrey Catelli, and they both host a show
31:14
called. I like beer the podcast and they
31:17
actually regularly make visits to Texas because I think there's
31:20
kids in College there and they are always asking me when are
31:23
people going to start making dark roasts again.
31:26
Because that's what they drink as well.
31:28
And so I'm, I'm going to share this with them.
31:30
I'm actually going to see them this afternoon.
31:32
Yeah. And see what they think is.
31:33
Well I want to ask you a little bit about.
31:37
There's a photo of a gentleman named Robert me know which I
31:40
believe is related to you. Is that your dad is he also work
31:44
with you? Yeah, so my dad retired years
31:48
ago and he was really The example to all of us kids about
31:53
working hard and making yourself a value.
31:55
So retirement hasn't come super easy for him.
31:58
He any time, something breaks at the coffee shop.
32:00
He's down there, fixing it for me.
32:02
He's just always looking for stuff to do.
32:04
He went to Hawaii years ago and two or two coffee Farm came home
32:09
bought like a popcorn roaster and was like ordering little
32:13
batches, a green beans from Sweet Maria's and he would like
32:17
invite me over like come see this.
32:19
Come look at this like watch my Technique.
32:21
So he became a home roaster years ago and it was something
32:25
we did together. Me owning the coffee shop.
32:28
I obviously had an interest. And so we started at home and
32:33
then when I decided like, coffee roasting is going to be my
32:37
thing. I want to do this, he was like,
32:39
can I come? So he's been.
32:43
He's been there for every step of the way from like the first
32:46
time I ever roasted on like a commercial machine, it was Go.
32:50
Small just did like 200 grams at a time.
32:54
We graduated up to doing one pound at a time.
32:56
Five pounds. Now, we're roasting 25 pounds at
32:59
a time. He's just been a part of every
33:02
step. He's willing to help me with
33:03
anything. He'll help me bag ship.
33:06
He'll help me with coffee. Delivery is if I'm tied up
33:09
somewhere, he'll go sign off for it.
33:12
Make sure it gets put in dry, safe places.
33:15
So, I can't believe how lucky I am.
33:18
Most people don't have a dad. That's It's like willing to help
33:22
them with all their entrepreneurial goals because
33:24
you know how it can go. You just get yanked in a million
33:27
different directions all the time and he's so flexible.
33:30
He's so helpful. My brother owns a winery up in
33:34
Paso Robles and he'll like, take weeks and drive up there and
33:39
stay and help my brother with Crush.
33:40
So he's just like proud of his kids doing this stuff and he
33:44
jumps in wherever we need help. And we're super lucky to have
33:47
that. That's so interesting that your
33:50
brother is Also an entrepreneur where your was your dad, an
33:53
entrepreneur of his own or your parents?
33:56
No, but my dad, always admired people who took on business
34:02
ownership, my grandpa ran a company.
34:05
So we always had his influence on us and my dad really
34:09
respected that. So I think we were all kind of
34:12
drawn to it is like, this is something good that we could do
34:15
in the world. And yeah, my my brother and his
34:19
Winery. Yeah, it's just been
34:21
inspirational to me, he launched in 2020 right before covid hit.
34:26
He's had his own struggles with the winery, but he's presser
34:29
beard. Is product is amazing.
34:31
So, he's really encouraged and inspired me that I could do it
34:35
too. And my joke is, I like, I get to
34:39
wake people up in the morning with my coffee, and he puts them
34:42
to bed with his wife feels like, there should be some sort of
34:46
trade going on on a regular basis there.
34:48
Oh, there is You mentioned. We've been talking a lot, I
34:53
shouldn't say, imagine, we've been talking a lot just about
34:55
covid. Generally speaking.
34:56
What have you learned? We, you said earlier, that there
34:59
feels like, there's been phases of it.
35:01
What where are you at now? As you're putting a new brand
35:05
out into the world and trying to get exposure for that.
35:07
You're still have the cafe. How do you feel covid?
35:11
Fits into that world today as opposed to two and a half years
35:15
ago or however long it's been 10 years ago.
35:17
I don't know. Yeah, it's something that just
35:21
always evolving to look back at the whole experience.
35:25
I would say the greatest blessing, I've gotten from it as
35:29
I've learned to trust my instincts.
35:31
I just kind of listen to my heart and making decisions
35:34
because like we said earlier, like it was just a moving Target
35:37
all the time. You never knew if you were doing
35:39
the right thing and at the end, you know, mistakes were made, of
35:44
course, like nothing went perfectly.
35:46
But I I do feel Feel like my intuition led me and led me in
35:51
the right direction. So that's kind of where I'm at
35:54
now. I have learned I used to kind of
35:56
be more of a control freak. I wanted to see everything that
36:00
was coming at me. Have a plan for each and every
36:03
step and just like do it my way and not deviate and covid taught
36:07
me. Like no just show up.
36:09
Pay attention to what's going on, do what's right for
36:13
everybody around you you're a leader.
36:15
They count on you to do that, you know?
36:17
So Just with it, ever-evolving always changing.
36:22
That's where I'm at right now. I don't necessarily have a game
36:26
plan. I just know what my principles
36:28
are. What my morals are, how I'm
36:30
going to apply them to whatever situation comes our way.
36:33
And I'm going to look out for the people that count on me to
36:37
do the right thing. When you started the roasting
36:41
process for yourself, you mentioned earlier that you had
36:45
gone online and you had started knocking on doors.
36:48
I'm Wondering, where did you start getting?
36:50
And you, and I should say, again, you mentioned organic
36:53
fair trade things that were important to you in the values
36:55
of your coffee. How did you develop that
36:58
philosophy? That that's what I wanted to do,
37:00
and that's how I wanted to source and roast.
37:02
And where did you turn to get that information?
37:05
Was it similar to when you first started in coffee, where you
37:08
went to YouTube or online tutorials?
37:10
Did you start asking around in the community?
37:12
What was your kind of your first step that led you to the next
37:15
step? One thing I'm saying and I
37:19
cannot wait to kind of travel the equator and see as many
37:23
coffee farms in the future. That's something that's
37:26
attractive to me about this industry.
37:28
As I do want to go to like Colombia and Costa Rica and
37:31
Ethiopia and like, see these coffee farms, and see the
37:36
process of what these farmers do to like get this product out of
37:41
the ground for us. So, when it comes to organic
37:45
fair trade, I just want to Spend my money.
37:49
Where it benefits people. The most from where I buy my
37:52
beans. It's a lot of coops.
37:55
So it's not just one single Farm.
37:57
It's Farmers working together in a region, in, like, Indonesia,
38:02
and that Co-op supports 1500 Farmers.
38:07
So, that's something that I find.
38:09
Very attractive when I'm sourcing beans is I like the
38:11
coops? I like that.
38:13
I can support more people with my purchase and You know,
38:18
they're getting organic certified, they're getting fair
38:22
trade certified and I've listened to your podcast, I've
38:25
learned a lot from people you've had on and like hearing them
38:29
talk about how that's changing the sugar trade because people
38:33
want to know it's organic, it's fairly sourced.
38:35
It's a good product and that we're going about getting it
38:39
ethically from different areas of the world.
38:42
So I feel really big calling and doing that.
38:46
I can't wait to get boots. On the ground in some of these
38:49
places and see it. Because I know when I see it
38:52
with my own eyes, I'm going to know exactly like.
38:54
Oh, that's how I can help. That's how I can make things
38:57
better. That's kind of what my goals
39:00
are. When I go out into to make
39:02
purchases of coffee, a lot of these Coffee Traders will give
39:06
you a lot of information about the beans and about the farms
39:10
and about the coops one Co-op. I buy from emphasize that they
39:15
support women, like, they have women farmers and Have women
39:19
managers of their Co-op which my team is all women working
39:25
together to roast coffee and so I find that attractive.
39:29
I like watching other areas of the world, provide opportunities
39:33
for women to make money and to support themselves.
39:35
So that's kind of how I go about it and you're very keen, I did
39:40
do a lot of online research to figure out, like who were the
39:43
right people, I made phone calls, kind of interview
39:47
different Raiders and saw where the right fit was and I'm very
39:52
happy with the companies that I'm working with.
39:54
You said a moment ago that you're trying to, I don't say
39:58
stay in the moment, but you're staying focused on what's in
40:00
front of you and working towards those goals every day.
40:03
So, this might be a terrible question to ask as an
40:06
interviewer, but I'm wondering kind of what is on Deck?
40:08
What's next for assigned Roasters?
40:11
And you know, how are you planning on sharing this coffee
40:15
with people? How can they get it besides
40:17
coming too? Old California coffee shop.
40:21
Thank you. It's a great question.
40:22
I like to have goals as much as I still have a little bit of a
40:25
control freak, you know, but that never goes away.
40:28
I can tell you as much as you want it to.
40:32
Yeah, I'm like we also have to have an idea where we're going.
40:35
So I love small business. I love my experience running one
40:40
and everything that I've learned it's just made me such a
40:44
well-rounded person. I'm not trying to like toot my
40:46
own horn but I've just Landed in ways that I never think I would
40:51
have without running a small business and taking on that
40:55
challenge. So, something that I would love
40:58
to do is support other small businesses in the area.
41:02
I'm hoping to create wholesale accounts with different
41:05
businesses, if coffees like an aspect of their business, but
41:09
it's not something that's making them money.
41:11
I want to help them figure out why and turn that around like
41:15
small business owners work so hard.
41:18
This is Thing that I've spent almost 11 years, learning the
41:22
ins and outs of learning how to make it work for you.
41:26
How to use your equipment properly, how to maintain your
41:29
equipment properly, how to get the most out of the beans, how
41:33
to price things, how to Market it.
41:37
I want to get out into the world and create wholesale accounts
41:40
where I can support other small business owners with what I've
41:43
learned about coffee. And I know I'll learn things
41:46
from them wherever their area of Of expertise is along the way
41:50
to, that's my goal. That's what I want to do.
41:53
We're also selling bags of beans and subscriptions on our website
41:58
Ascend roasters.com. So for home, use for people, I
42:02
want to continue to just make our artwork and our marketing
42:08
really positive and encouraging to people because like I said,
42:12
my mission is to spread caffeine and smiles.
42:15
Those are my current goals the It's fun to work with this
42:20
Brewery right now and making a beer.
42:22
I would love to see what other beverages we could come up with
42:25
with our amazing coffee. So, those are my dreams and
42:28
goals, it sounds like you need to have your own podcast.
42:31
I think is what we're we're figuring out here so you can
42:33
share all this information with everyone.
42:36
Yeah, that'd be cool. Have you found any sort of
42:39
struggle in balancing your responsibilities as an owner of
42:43
old California coffee and now Ascend roasters?
42:48
I'm at work. I don't want to say workaholic,
42:50
I'm a worker bee. I love being busy, it really
42:54
lights me up to work so it's come pretty easy for me so far.
43:01
I know there's going to be weeks that are harder.
43:03
I had covid three weeks ago and it like knocked me down and
43:10
forced me to slow down for the first time in years and to take
43:14
care of my body and really rest and on Ashley, I was kind of a
43:18
blessing because Like I hadn't slowed down in such a long time.
43:24
And now, I'm like incorporating more of that into my, my weekly
43:28
routine to. So it just all about balance and
43:31
I'm finding mine, but when I'm at the cafe, I'm only thinking
43:36
about the cafe and when I have dedicated hours for Ascend, I'm
43:41
only thinking about a sin. So I really just try to put 100%
43:45
of my energy into what I'm doing at that moment and that's kind
43:48
of how I manage it. Sure.
43:51
And that's a really impressive skill and a difficult one to
43:54
learn. It can be learned and practiced
43:56
but compartmentalizing so that you can achieve goals is always
44:00
difficult for me, certainly, and I think it's something that if
44:04
you take on a lot of challenges, you really have to work at
44:07
because it's easy to slip, I certainly know that.
44:10
If, if my plan is to work on this project all day and then at
44:14
the end of the day to work on this project, I might be a
44:16
little worn out. And if I take too much of a
44:18
break, I might slide in to a six-hour Netflix binge or
44:22
something. And that's why I have to keep it
44:25
moving and then the end of my day is my self-care time or when
44:29
I wake up in the morning to, but once I get going, I can't, I
44:34
don't take breaks until it's all done.
44:38
Is there anything that we didn't cover today?
44:40
That you'd like listeners to know about Ascend Roasters about
44:43
your business? At Old California Coffee about
44:46
you? Just that we are.
44:50
We're new, we just entered. This is such a great opportunity
44:53
that you've given us to get our name out there and to talk about
44:58
The Roaster. I just want to network and
45:02
connect with people. So if there's knowledge, you
45:06
want to share, like, if there's anyone out there, that's like,
45:08
she should see this article or learn about this Avenue that she
45:12
didn't cover, send it my way. I want all the information that
45:16
I can get, I want to connect with people.
45:18
'Well, I want them to connect with my product and let me know
45:22
what they think of it and help me.
45:24
As I as I grow in this, it takes a village and I have such an
45:29
incredible Village at my Cafe. That's helping me and supporting
45:33
me and encouraging me. Yeah, I just want to connect
45:37
with more people, and I want to get this coffee out there,
45:39
that's my goal. And, you know, at the end of the
45:42
day, I'll get outside, get some fresh air, take a walk, take
45:45
care of me, but this is such an exciting.
45:48
Thing that we're doing and I'm grateful for everyone who's been
45:51
a part of it so far. I always ask this to end a show
45:56
but I'm wondering if you ever have time to get out and get a
45:59
coffee somewhere else. But if you do, what is it that
46:03
you order? When you go to a coffee shop?
46:04
That is in your own. I always get an iced Americano.
46:09
I have just kind of converted into.
46:11
I want iced coffee all the time. I I like hot coffee, right?
46:15
When I wake up in the morning, just something soothing about
46:18
that. But yeah, I like iced coffee.
46:20
You can drink it faster. Get that caffeine.
46:22
And I want to taste People's espresso.
46:25
I want to see what flavors I'm tasting in it.
46:29
I enjoy black coffee, but if I'm really going to enjoy a cup of
46:33
coffee, I like a splash of milk in it.
46:35
Not half-and-half, not cream, just a little milk.
46:38
I think it brings out kind of the sweeter notes of the coffee.
46:42
So that's what I get when I'm trying a new coffee shop and I
46:46
want to see like what they're offering just iced Americano or
46:50
iced shots of espresso but just a little bit of milk in there.
46:54
I haven't been so amazed. You're you are the fourth
46:57
interview of season 4. And I think every single one so
47:01
far has said that when they get a coffee somewhere else, it's
47:04
iced. Some version of iced coffee.
47:07
I just think that's such a unique Trend that I'm seeing and
47:09
maybe coincidence, but Aaron thank you for spending time with
47:13
me this morning and congratulations on launching
47:15
this company. One of the reasons I was excited
47:18
to talk to you in particular was because you're at the very
47:21
beginning stages of this Roastery and And my hope is
47:25
that, you know, a year, down the road, two years down the road,
47:28
we have this conversation again and we talked about what you've
47:30
learned. That's the goal, I would love
47:32
that. That would be awesome.
47:33
If you fund a listen to this one.
47:35
Listen to that one like, yeah, I warned you listening to
47:39
yourself. Two years later can also be
47:42
humbling. Oh, because I listened to some
47:45
of those early shows. I recently recorded an audio
47:48
book and the book was written two years ago.
47:51
And I was as I was reading. I was going what?
47:54
Who wrote? This like this is terrible like
47:56
you need to go back and fix it and so then I spend a whole week
47:59
like changing things and it's like no just that was we where
48:03
you were at that point in your life?
48:04
I know we have to celebrate that to even though it's hard we do
48:08
that's how I feel you mentioned your logo came from a tattoo.
48:11
That's how I feel about some of the tattoos that I got when I
48:14
was 18 years old I found this yeah I might not get them again
48:19
but it reminds me of being an 18 year old kid who may be thought
48:23
it was a good idea. Idea to get a tattoo in
48:25
someone's kitchen. Right.
48:27
And I think that's that's the one thing that makes aging
48:30
beautiful is like I wouldn't want to be 21 again because of
48:36
all that I needed to learn and have learned since then to now.
48:39
So it makes me happy to be the age that I am, you know?
48:43
But you got enjoy those, those learning moments.
48:46
Those humbling moments, they make you who you are and
48:49
nothing's ever a waste of time or a mistake.
48:52
Like it's all part of the journey.
48:56
So Aaron, I am so sorry, but I forgot to share that dark.
49:01
Roast coffee with Jeff it disappeared into my coffee
49:05
grinder, and then into my French press and then into my mouth,
49:10
Jeff, I'm sorry that you were used as a prop in a podcast,
49:13
other than your own, and you didn't even get any coffee.
49:17
I hope I can make that up to you by just telling people to listen
49:20
to your podcast. The I like beer the podcast.
49:23
You can find It anywhere, you are listening to this show to
49:26
paraphrase, Aaron, whatever is in front of you, give it your
49:30
best effort and you'll be happy with where life takes you.
49:33
It's a pretty uplifting message, but one that goes a long way.
49:37
When you're at the beginning of an entrepreneurial Journey,
49:40
being able to look back and be proud of that work.
49:42
Regardless of the outcome is a pretty nice foundational reward.
49:47
Aaron talked, about learning coffee Basics as a young
49:49
Barista, by watching YouTube videos, it's pretty amazing that
49:53
if your Passionate about something.
49:55
There is a good chance. You can get a great education
49:57
online on the Fly often for free.
50:01
There's a ton of great coffee content on YouTube and I often
50:04
turn there when I need something for the show, especially when I
50:07
need to pretend that I'm more coffee smarter than I really am.
50:11
One entrepreneurial skill that came up during today's show that
50:14
doesn't get talked about enough is the ability to
50:17
compartmentalize when you're focused on multiple top
50:20
priorities. I thought that really shined
50:22
through and talking to Aaron. She's doing double duty as the
50:25
founder of Ascend Roasters and running old.
50:28
Cal coffee, both are challenges that require 100% commitment.
50:33
She's been able to compartmentalize and give that
50:35
full effort in the time that each requires.
50:37
I admire that trade because I really struggled to do the same.
50:41
I take on lots of projects on top of jobs, on top of side,
50:45
hustles in every now. And again, I find myself zoning
50:49
out of whatever is in front of me.
50:54
And turning my brain over to one of those other projects I'm
50:57
working on it. But if this show ever comes out
51:00
late, that's probably why. If you want to keep track of
51:03
errands, coffee Journey. Follow at Ascend Roasters on
51:07
Instagram and if you want to try some of her roasted coffee
51:10
beans, you can order them on a send Roasters.com or stop by old
51:15
Cal Coffee House, in San Marcos, California to pick up a bag.
51:19
Speaking of Journeys. I met this really interesting
51:21
guy named Hill at Camp Coffee Company on Saturday.
51:24
He is a design architect who had ridden his electric boosted,
51:27
skateboard to Oceanside all the way from San Marcos for a tea
51:31
and a croissant, he wasn't against having a coffee, but he
51:34
mentioned that he had a particular coffee routine that
51:37
he liked to stick to at home. So I asked him to share.
51:41
I remind you, we were sitting outside on a busy patio at Camp
51:45
coffee. Sir.
51:48
Yeah, my name is, he'll live in San Marcos.
51:52
And originally from Canada, originally from Canada and you
51:54
mentioned that you have kind of a very precise coffee regimen in
51:59
the morning. Some wonder, if you could talk
52:00
us through a. Yeah, my wife and I, we have an
52:02
old Starbucks machine. It's, you know, sort of make
52:07
yourself kind of an espresso type of deal.
52:09
It's an Italian machine. So what we like to do, you know,
52:13
because I don't drink milk. I've got almond milk and almond
52:17
One cream. So we do a half, you know, half
52:21
mix half-and-half. Keep it pretty small like a
52:24
little espresso kind of deal and then.
52:27
So we're really concerned about acid in our coffee, right?
52:31
So we did a lot of research, we found this company called
52:34
Olympia coffee and they have kind of a low acid coffee, which
52:38
is really nice. And, you know, they've got, it's
52:42
basically all organic coffee, they've got quite a few
52:46
different assortments, but Basically, what we like to do is
52:48
keep the acid level down and then, you know, that 50/50 mix
52:53
is really nice in the morning, and I'll tell you one thing that
52:56
I love about coffee, is it takes me from extremely stupid to
52:59
awake. So, my IQ pretty much comes out
53:03
of the 50s, maybe back to where I'm supposed to be.
53:06
And I often you and like, forget what I just did before the
53:10
coffee hits, right? So, you know, for my wife and I
53:13
coffee is like the thing, right? Like we just have to have it.
53:16
It's like you wake up. Cup got to have your coffee.
53:19
You just can't start the day without it, so, you know, and
53:23
it's interesting. We got our daughter who never
53:25
liked coffee before into coffee and of course she's, you know,
53:29
done a bunch of research because she's more vegan and and all
53:32
that stuff, she's into all natural and stuff.
53:34
So she's she basically said, you know, wow, read about coffee.
53:38
It's really good for you said, well, there you go.
53:41
We've been telling you for years, eventually, we listen,
53:45
that's kind of a. Yeah, just takes a while to get
53:47
there. Exactly.
53:48
So we're chatting at Camp, coffee company and mentioned it
53:51
from San Marcos. Yeah.
53:53
What makes you come from San Marcos?
53:55
Over here to have a tea this morning and a croissant?
53:59
Well, I was saying like, I miss Italy and go to Italy, you know,
54:04
once in a while my wife and I had just this whole idea of
54:07
sitting down and having a croissant and usually a coffee
54:10
over there, but I already had my coffee so I don't want to overdo
54:12
it. So I had a, you know, London Fog
54:16
which is nice but almond milk in there and they warmed up a nice
54:19
poisson for me. So I go electric skateboarding
54:22
every every weekend and it's either here or I'll go down and
54:26
sunita's so I do but maybe 18 20 miles on the board and it's
54:31
awesome. Just you know getting old so I
54:33
can't push anymore hurts my ankles but this is still keeps
54:37
the core going and I could hit about 28 miles an hour if I
54:42
wish. But I usually stick around 20
54:45
but it's really fun and I just get to enjoy the The ocean.
54:48
And yeah, very cool. We are at the coffee shop that
54:51
you like, and then see this. Yeah.
54:53
I really like lofty lofty is excellent.
54:55
They're kind of similar to these guys actually.
54:57
Yeah, so I picked it both of them, you know, lofting these
55:00
guys. So these guys for here and then
55:02
mafias and sunita's they have a nice Cassandra to just kind of
55:06
make me feel good and just chillax talk to nice folks.
55:09
Like yourself, there you go. Here at roast West Coast were
55:16
fans of lofty coffee as well. And when I talk to their
55:19
director of coffee, serious simran, Khalsa next week, I'm
55:22
going to ask her about low-acid coffees like the one Hill
55:25
mentioned, and I did reach out to Olympia coffee to see if they
55:29
would be interested in being gassed on a future pod.
55:31
Thanks to everyone who stopped by to say hi or grab a sticker
55:34
from me at Camp coffee. Especially Kim, it was great to
55:38
meet you. And I thank you for being such a
55:40
fan of this show for sharing your thoughts about what works.
55:43
And what doesn't Aunt and for appreciating good coffee and the
55:47
efforts of the people behind that coffee, I'll be set up with
55:51
the microphone again in a few weeks at industry Partners.
55:54
Zoom bar, coffee and tea in Cardiff.
55:56
Follow the at roast West Coast, Instagram for details on the
55:59
date and time. If you are out there listening
56:02
and you find yourself appreciating this show or just
56:05
appreciating your coffee experiences more because of it,
56:08
please tell a friend and subscribe to that, just mention
56:12
newsletter on roast westcoast.com.
56:15
That newsletter and this podcast are free, but there is a paid
56:19
option if you'd like to support the creation of this content and
56:22
future coffee content. If you don't want the
56:24
newsletter, that's okay to support the podcast, right
56:28
through the link, in this shows podcast notes, besides the
56:31
incredible fans of the show who helped keep us growing, we're
56:34
supported by great industry, Partners who provide the world
56:37
with some incredible coffee and coffee drinking experiences,
56:41
they include Cafe litter just this week.
56:44
Cafe latte or opened their second location in Encinitas,
56:47
California. I'm actually on my way over
56:50
there. This morning, I noticed been a
56:51
process to get all of the construction and permitting
56:54
done. So I'm proud of them for finally
56:56
reaching this Milestone. Other industry Partners include
56:59
most her Coffee Company, coffee cycle, roasting leap coffee,
57:03
zoom bar, coffee and tea, Maria coffee steady-state, roasting
57:07
Camp, Coffee Company, Cape Horn, coffee, importers, and first
57:11
light whiskey, you can find links to all of those companies.
57:14
Is and Ascend Coffee Roasters in this shows podcast notes.
57:18
But if for some unknown reason, you can't find them where you
57:21
are listening. You can also click into any
57:23
article on roast westcoast.com and they'll be there at the
57:27
bottom. If you are listening and looking
57:29
for a coffee job Camp coffee company and steady state,
57:32
roasting are currently hiring new team members and most our
57:36
coffee is looking for a full-time social media manager.
57:38
You can always check out the coffee jobs.
57:41
Thread on the newsletter, just click coffee jobs.
57:43
At the top of the Paige, thank you to everyone for listening
57:46
today, there is no coffee smarter episode this week, but
57:51
the show will be back next week with an interview with Hollis
57:54
Swan. He's the founder and head
57:56
roaster of declination Coffee Roasters in Soldotna Alaska.
58:00
He's also an artist a coffee roaster Builder, and a part-time
58:04
ceramicist who sometimes makes awesome coffee.
58:07
Drinking vessels. One of which is on my counter
58:09
right now this episode of the roast West Coast coffee podcast,
58:14
Is was and has been written produced and recorded by meet
58:19
Ryan Walt. I hope this show is found you
58:21
happy healthy and with at least enough sanity and coffee to make
58:26
it through the day. And please always tip your
58:29
Baristas and be sure to drink a coffee.
58:54
I like beer, it makes me a jolly.
58:59
Good fellow welcomed. I like beer the podcast where we
59:03
discuss great beers and the stories that go with them.
59:06
I'm your host Jeff and I am your host.
59:07
Jeff we are lucky enough to live in North County, San Diego, a
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beer Mecca, within a beer Mecca, where it's 72 degrees all year
59:14
long and there are over 160 breweries within minutes
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weather's. Nice, the water's warm, the beer
59:21
is cold and there are stories to be told and we believe beer is a
59:24
Drink for friends for sharing a laugh, telling a tale or two and
59:28
four contemplating life and how to live it.
59:30
We're not your ordinary beer pod.
59:31
So grab a beer, pull up a Barstool.
59:34
Join us for a few laughs. You can find us wherever you get
59:37
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59:40
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59:44
I like beer the podcast.com looking forward to having you
59:47
join us. Cheers.
59:49
As a matter of fact, Drink for friends for sharing a laugh,
59:27
telling a tale or two and four contemplating life and how to
59:29
live it. We're not your ordinary beer
59:31
pod. So grab a beer, pull up a
59:33
Barstool. Join us for a few laughs.
59:36
You can find us wherever you get your pods and also on Instagram
59:39
and Facebook at I like beer the podcast as well as on Twitter or
59:43
a website. I like beer the podcast.com
59:46
looking forward to having you join us.
59:48
Cheers. As a matter of fact,