Meet the Maker: Almanac Coffee

Since it's January & perhaps, our favorite time of year to curl up indoors with a warm cup of joe, it seems only fitting to highlight one of our favorite roasters in town: Almanac Coffee.

Local Duluthians can experience these delightful blends at Dovetail Marketplace, but you can also find Almanac Coffee in our bestselling brunch box and in a variety of our ready-to-ship boxes (it's a year-round staple)!

Keep reading for our full Q&A with Russell of Almanac Coffee!

1. Tell us a little bit about your story! How did you get started?

I fell in love with coffee while managing an awesome market/cafe in northern Arizona where the owner and lead barista were also beginning to geek out about coffee. At the time we were revamping a lot of the business operations in order to increase quality and we started to source green coffee from importers while working with a local roaster for the processing (roasting) of the coffee. Fast forward through a handful of years and I had learned a lot about cafe management and coffee roasting/brewing. I moved to Duluth with our family, launched a super small batch coffee company (mostly focused on farmers' markets and pop ups) out of our house, and in October 2018 opened our new production roastery inside the Duluth Folk School to serve the Dovetail Cafe, other local businesses, and folks throughout the midwest.

2. What do you love about the medium you work in?

Coffee to me presents an endless opportunity to learn since so many variables impact the flavors found in the final cup. From the growing regions/conditions and processing (drying) techniques to how we roast and brew/serve a specific coffee, there are so many interesting aspects that make up the story of every cup and handful of beans. Because of this diversity, I love that I have the opportunity to explore many different coffees as a roaster while getting to share that experience with all you!

3. If you could offer any advice to other creatives who are just starting out, what would you say?

My advice to other independent creatives is to start small, work smart and focus on what you really want to be doing.  Keep things simple, quality driven and expressive (in terms of coffee this looks like various roasts and brew methods we use to highlight flavors and other attributes.)

Follow along with Russell right over here:

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