As I sit here this morning sipping my freshly ground, french pressed Roasterie coffee (Kansas City blend: "an invitingly buttery aroma breaks into an acidity that is bright and electrifying.") I recalled a summer morning when my friend/cousin/barista Hannah and I toured The Roasterie's hub of operations.
We began in the cupping room where staff and owners taste coffee samples to determine whether a bean is up to Roasterie standards. Our tour guide, one of the founders of the company, gave us a brief history of coffee and explained the complex ritual of cupping (it's not as simple as it sounds). Before moving on to the warehouse (or as I call it, heaven on earth) and roasting room, he told us the story behind The Roasterie.
Danny O'Neill founded The Roasterie in his basement in 1993. He was driven by two great passions: traveling and coffee. An entrepreneur at heart, he decided the best way to combine these passions was to begin a company that not only roasted its own coffee, but that also traveled around the world to buy coffee directly from the farmers.
You will want to take the tour to hear the whole story, especially about how he uses the success of his business to invest back into the communities where he buys the coffee, but what has always remained with me is the idea of choosing a career, business opportunity, life direction, by living out one's greatest passions. It may be hard work, but the work is enjoyable and life-giving rather than wearying. Success is not based solely on monetary return, but instead on an increasing zest for life.
I think I need another cup of coffee.
3 comments:
Git your bean on! Where are you and your daughter in that picture?
That is at the place where we ate dinner on Christmas Eve. It was this lovely beach side restaurant in Florida, and we were seated in a Gazebo that faced the sunset.
The important question: What did you eat?
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