Who we are
It all began sitting in an airplane seat.
Greg was getting back from another trip to the west coast. Culture shocked. Californicated. Happy to get a small reprieve from the humidity. Then again, that fan above the airplane seat is the size of a loonie so…refreshing cool air wasn’t exactly the luxurious reprieve he’d been hoping for.
From as far as greg remembers, he was always curious about coffee. Like the vast majority of adults his age, he started drinking the “bean juice” as a student. Mid-terms, breakups, all-nighters, LESS FUN all-nighters, finals…the alarm clock at 5:50AM. That sweet brown elixir keeps the kids in school, y’know!
He took a sip of that rotten black water that airline called coffee & quickly lost the urge to have a coffee. That one sip a stark reminder that most people use coffee in a uniquely utilitarian way. Energy.
For many years, despite not knowing a damn thing about coffee, Greg was at least curious. Curious about where it was all coming from, asking questions to the baristas all over Canada & “murrrika", reading a little about it here and there…but didn’t really know where to go. What the next step was to get WOKE.
These trips on the west coast, and the friends who made coffee such a big important part of their lives, planted a seed. It was the beginning of that journey. The awakening. In that plane, he realized he needed to explore, taste, brew, & experience more coffee than ever before.
The credit card bills piled up with online coffee orders & the sensory & info overload blew his mind. Every question lead to an answer that lead to another question.
At that time, Gregs career was well established; sales & development director at a major media company. Great right? But was it enough though?
The best part of his mornings was walking around the Old Port of Montreal to go get his morning coffee before work. The sun rising above the water, the buildings, & the city is a powerful thing. It’s a tiny window in 24 hours of a day where you can quietly harness some mojo from the planet…all while sipping that sweet bean juice.
He would walk 10 minutes to get to a cortado from a dishevelled hipster doofus who was directing service & whipping out drinks behind a matte black linea. Twice a day, that’s a 40 minute investment for a couple of coffees. The experience though, being in that space drinking great coffee & always getting a “Hey man, how’s your day going?” & some small talk before getting that glossy finished cortado from the stone hand-off bar was a game changer. Finally “where to go?” seemed miles away from where Greg was standing. It solidified an idea of what the ideal caffeine experience could and should be. what elements were still missing. Maybe even WHO was missing.
Little did Greg know that wine guzzling sleep deprived guy slinging his drinks, known then as “notorious barista”, had a few thoughts on coffee as well & a notebook with roastery plans from years before. That story? The “notorious” story? We’ll leave that book shut. For now.
That said, it was kismet. Almost. 2 complete opposites still managed to connect through the most simple, yet still one of the most complicated and volatile drinks in the world. That connection sparked a fire, that sparked a tiny explosion in the universe that gave birth to what is now a lifelong endeavour to discover & democratize season after season of coffees that they believe to be among the best. A simple delicate golden honey processed Costa Rican or a furiously funky, explosive anaerobic processed Ethiopian. It should all be drunk & enjoyed with excitement & thanks to the coffee gods. (Amen!)
Whether they’re throwing it into their batch brewer they got at xmas from mom, slamming an aeropress outside their tent on mount Seymour, or pulling a sweet thick spro at work before the rush…the people are part of the evolution & REVOLUTION of this great & grande thing. From farm to filter, there is so much work to do & so much road to travel. It’s full throttle from here on out.
Put your brain bucket on & join the crew.
Varietals.
Processes.
(R)evolution.
-The PITCREW