Brew City Roasting Company

While milling about the Pinnacle Peak Farmer's Market in North Glendale Saturday morning, I stumbled across an incredible find: Brew City Roasting Company, a start up coffee roaster based right here in Glendale. I was instantly drawn to Brew City's clever and inviting booth. It is truly an impressive mobile cafe under a pop up canopy. First, they carefully display their coffee offerings and house made syrups on crisp white linen covered tables accented with artfully placed burlap coffee sacks. Off to the right side of the booth are neatly stacked wooden shelves which feature merchandise such as 12 oz bags of their whole bean single origin coffee, an amazing selection of organic syrups (in unique flavors such as orange clover and honey lavender), and super soft green t shirts emblazoned with the company's sunny logo. Another thoughtful touch is the elevated dog feeder they keep stocked with biscuits and fresh water for canine companions roving the farmer's market.

While I was certainly charmed by their booth, I was absolutely enraptured by Brew City's story. Founder and CEO Cassandra Poirier, is passionate about ethically sourced delicious coffee. Poirier even goes an extra step by choosing to do business with Central and South American farms operated by women. Brew City procures its green coffee beans through International Coffee Trading of San Diego and Coffee Shrub of Oakland. Both companies are committed to transparency in their supply chains and sustainable production processes. The raw beans are hand roasted in small batches by Poirier's husband in a restored early 1980's Probat roaster. Poirier's husband takes great measures to make sure the beans are never over roasted in order to allow the coffee's natural flavors and unique characteristics to shine through. As he shared with me, "We are not snobby coffee people. We are just having fun and making coffee we like."

Brew City focuses primarily on their wholesale business providing roasted coffee to local establishments such as North Peoria's Well Coffee Company. However, Poirier's amazing coffee can be experienced at Brew City's booth at Pinnacle Peak Farmer's Market during the fall to early summer months. The site features a fully operational coffee bar with an Italian made Rancilio Espresso machine and a complete menu of superb coffee selections. Poirier unleashes her creative side with offerings such as the dirty tumeric latte, a heavenly drinking caramel, and the Brew City Signature. A festive peanut brittle latte was available this past holiday season. The booth also has a handy double pour over coffee stand that efficiently brews pour over coffee. Brew City is currently offering three pour over selections: the Helsar Magdalena Vega from Costa Rica with clean nut notes and restrained sweetness; the Finca San Francisco with notes of brown sugar, molasses cookie, and orange zest; and the Finca Johelyta from Honduras with notes of hazelnut, toasted walnut, and green apple. The Finca Johelyta selection showcases Poirer's commitment to the cause of women's livelihoods in South America. The Finca Johelyta farm was planted by Mirna Liceth Vasquez in order to improve her household's income and provide good educational opportunities to her children. This small farm produces only 60 bags of Vasquez's superior quality coffee each year. It is certainly a rare find and only available in the valley through Brew City Roasting Company.

I had the opportunity to try a hot latte at Brew City's booth Saturday morning. It was topped with perfectly frothed oat milk and a whimsical floating heart. I was pleased with the fresh, robust flavor of the brew. While at the booth, I met several of Brew City's repeat customers. One customer comes every Saturday for her growler of decaffeinated iced coffee. Another satisfied customer, Patty Shinault, stops by every Saturday for her coffee with oat milk, a combo she almost dreamily describes simply by saying, "this is really, (pointing to her cup)...it makes me so happy." Her husband, Mike, agrees. He loves Brew City's mocha coffee. "The first time I tried mocha coffee, it was from one of the national coffee places. Then I tried it in other spots and I never liked it. But then I tried it again here and I love it. I come every Saturday," he tells me. Which just goes to show, persistence pays off!

I took my latte back to my bright umbrella covered table to survey a couple of friends who had one of Bright City's paper cups sitting in front of them. Teacher Emily Ekstrom prefers her coffee with no milk and was wowed by the booth's vanilla syrup, which she noted had pieces of real vanilla bean it it. "This is one of the best iced coffees I've ever had," she shared with me. Fifth grade Imagine Bell Canyon teacher Keri Giaquinto was impressed with Brew City's outstanding customer service and excited about the chocolate samples they had specially prepared for Valentine's weekend. "I'm not really a big coffee person, but this is good," she remarked.

Brew City Roasting Company can be found at Pinnacle Peak Farmer's Market at 4243 W. Pinnacle Peak Road on Saturdays from 8 am to 1 pm. Located in the parking lot of Hurricane Harbor, the market is open between the months of September to May and features booths from several local vendors such as Doctor Hummus, Arizona Bread Company, and artisanal bakers Flavors of France. I also have to give a personal shout out to Carol's Delectables, an Arizona producer of homemade jams, jellies, and marmalades. They make their jams with fruits from their own orchards in Northern Arizona. I bought some peach jam from their booth and it is so incredibly delicious. http://www.carolsdelectables.com/ The Pinnacle Peak Farmer's Market occasionally features live music for shoppers to enjoy. To find out when local talent is playing go to their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/pinnaclepeakfarmersmarket

To learn more about Brew City Roasting Company and their wholesale offerings, go to https://brewcityroastingcompany.com/