For us coffee drinkers life would be simply unbearable without that morning cup of Joe. Coffee not only perks us up in the morning, it helps take off the chill of a long Upper Peninsula winter. One business which is supplying fresh roasted coffee to Yoopers and visitors alike is the
Superior Coffee Roasting Company in Sault Ste. Marie. Open since November, Superior Coffee is supplying coffee aficionados with fresh roasted coffee from faraway places, including Brazil, Columbia and Ethiopia.
I spoke with proprietor and coffee roaster extraordinaire Ron Kurnik when he first opened last winter, and then again recently to see how he is faring with his new venture. It appears there is more than the aroma of fresh roasted coffee in the air at Superior Coffee. There's a ching ching at the ol' cash register that has allowed the 30-something Kurnik to not only experience success in this new venture, but also take on some extra help. Kurnik says his new protégés are helping him brew up fresh coffee, which is giving him time to drum up more business. And that is exactly what he's done.
"Our biggest level of growth is the trafficking to our wholesale markets, Glen's Market, SuperValu (Soo SuperValu Foods) and some of the local cafés and restaurants," says Kurnik. In fact,
Karl's Cuisine Cafe & Winery, a purveyor of good grub that faces the Soo Locks on Portage Avenue, is now serving fresh roasted coffee from Superior Coffee.
He says one of the biggest surprises came right after he opened, when he was able to seal a deal with
Lake Superior State University and the caffeine-starved, up-all-night-because-I-have-an-exam-in-the-morning college students. His coffee is now being served in several locations at the college.
In addition, he told me that the walk- n traffic to buy the 12-ounce bags of fresh ground coffee has grown "exponentially," resulting in some recognizable faces coming into the place each day. He says he is also in talks with some of the large retail stores across the bridge in Sault Ste. Marie, Canada and they occasionally sell java via his website.
And although he has thoughts of distributing coffee outside the area and perhaps even sell brewing equipment, he says he is in no hurry to expand the operation.
"We want to make sure our local market is well taken care of with fresh roasted coffee," says Kurnik.
Kurnik and his staff don aprons each morning to roast up some different coffee flavors to treat discerning coffee drinkers, including two new tasty offerings since we last talked, Sailor's Sunrise and Friendly Neighbors Espresso blend.
Kurnik explained the delicate process of coffee roasting and also instructed me on how to brew a good cup of Joe.
The process actually starts in the coffee fields in Central America and other distant continents. Climate, soil and cultivation all affect the process of growing a flavorful coffee. Within these countries or regions there are several different farmers growing a slightly different product. Kurnik has distributors, like the one he uses in Minnesota, to narrow down the choices for him. The beans he chooses don't come down to price alone, how it is grown plays a big part in the decision. Before placing an order for coffee Kurnik will "cup it," coffee parlance for taste testing. Kurnik does this in the morning before his taste buds become biased with other food and drink.
The Superior Coffee Roasting Company currently offers nine different choices of coffee. Kurnik says he keeps his offerings at a minimum so he can concentrate on roasting the beans to perfection in his Dietrich roaster that sits off to one side of his 1,000-square-foot building.
The roasting process itself is much like making wine or beer, explains Kurnik, and perhaps even more sophisticated. His roaster can roast up to 25 pounds of coffee beans, but the coffee connoisseur says he prefers to run about 20 pounds through at a time, sufficient for a start up operation, plus the quantity fits nicely into the storage bins that line the back wall.
Kurnik fires up his gas-powered roaster in the morning before he officially opens the door for retail customers (he doesn't actually serve coffee, but would probably share a cup with you if you stopped by). He heats the machine up to 400 degrees and then starts dumping the aromatic beans into the top of the roaster. This is a heavenly smell for anyone who loves coffee. The whole process only takes nine to 13 minutes, but it has to be monitored carefully. The different length of time will determine if a roast will be light, medium or dark. Airflow also is closely monitored since the beans need to roast evenly in the convection roaster. Kurnik takes notes during the process using his trained eye and nose to judge if he's got it right.
"When you find that perfect roast, you try to duplicate it," he says.
Once it is roasted to Kurnik's satisfaction, he hits the button that quickly spills the beans into a round hopper. The hopper will take the beans for a quick ride to cool off, a process that is crucial if you want the beans to achieve the desired outcome; light, medium or dark.
"People like medium blends the most," he explained. "They can taste the flavor characteristic of the bean." I can speak from experience that this is particularly true of his medium roast Mexican blend…
Once the beans are roasted they go into the appropriate storage bin. Kurnik will then bag and seal the roasted beans in 12-ounce bags and get them ready to sell to individual customers, to restaurants, or to ship out. Walk-in customers can buy fresh roasted beans from the shelves in the front of the store and have them ground to their specification.
To really enjoy fresh roasted coffee, you need good coffee brewing equipment, explains Kurnik. It should be clean; that is, not gummed up with old coffee or minerals from the tap. A decalcifier, which can be purchased in a grocery store or online, will remove anything that stands in the way of the full flavor of fresh roasted coffee.
A French press is Kurnik's favorite way to brew a cup of coffee. Not only can you watch the process through the glass of the press, the press is also very easy to keep clean, unlike traditional coffee pots. Coffee is ground a little coarser for a French press, finer for an espresso machine. Kurnik can grind it for you while you wait or you can take it home and grind it as you use it, which is the preferred method for maximum taste.
A really good tasting cup of coffee shouldn't be taken for granted. Farmers struggle in some parts of the world to make a profit. To this end, Kurnik donates some of the proceeds of each bag to keeping the process sustainable in
struggling countries.
Superior Coffee Roasting Company is located at 2611 Ashmun Street in Sault Ste. Marie.
Neil Moran is a copywriter living in Sault Ste. Marie.