Why do I continue to be surprised when I stumble across cool new vendors in this town? You’d think that as the curator of a database full of remarkable LOCAL businesses that I’d be used to this but as my usual bike ride took me through the heart of the downtown core in Kelowna on Father’s Day morning I just happened to arrive at the first opening of the satellite location of the Kelowna Farmers and Crafters Market in Kerry Park. Not one to miss out on an opportunity to sample some wares and take stock of who’s who in the zoo this season, I walked my bike through the bustling pop up market and had a gander at the businesses peddling their wares at this venue. The main market that takes place at the corner of Dilworth and Springfield is always a diverse community of everything from farm wares (obviously) to food stands, local artists and increasingly, small batch craft coffee roasters, and the smaller summer satellite location was just as representative.
After scouring the net in search of the online presence of Okanagan based roasters to add to the list HERE, I was surprised to see no less than three that I had not yet heard of or encountered in my travels. Determined to remedy this, I resolved to bomb back up the rail trail as fast as I could in order to enlist the help of a few deputies in the OKL crew to accompany me back downtown and see what these newcomers had to offer. Bonus encounter: I tumbled upon a mobile kombucha fermentist, Rochelle of Motherlove Kombucha who had set up shop right by the Apple on the Rail Trail near Clement and Spall. Note to self to swing by later and take a closer look.
Wood Roasted Coffee Co.
https://www.facebook.com/woodroastedcoffee/
First stop was at Wood Roasted Coffee Co. and as the name implies, Austin is one of a very few roasters in North America utilizing wood as opposed to gas to roast his beans and even built his own wood fire roaster. In fact Austin will tell you that he was the first roaster in Canada to apply the technique. The result is a smooth, low acidity brew with subtle smoky notes in the flavor profile. Using LOCALLY salvaged cherry and pine wood, the roasting process takes about half the time and the beans come out with a less oily texture and more of a matte look to them. Austin roasts just enough so he can sell out each week so his product available at the stand is always fresh
Anarchy Coffee Roasters
anarchycoffeeroasters.com
Next we wandered over to Anarchy Coffee Roasters to check out their new stand made from a converted tent trailer and sample some of their offering. Again with the weekly fresh roast, it’s clear that fine tuning and experimenting with different kinds of roasters, trying to achieve the best tasting coffee is a passion for Bailey and Jesse. I love listening to passionate roasters geek out on techniques and experimenting with the process. You can tell when someone is emotionally invested in their craft and enthusiasm is reflected in the quality of their the product. Plus I love the punk theme.
Tenebris Coffee
https://www.tenebriscoffee.com/
Finally I had to take my little entourage to meet Danny at Tenebris and try his creative take on Nitro cold brew. In his first year on the scene, Danny brings his wine maker’s sensibilities to the coffee realm by concocting a very unique coffee experience. He makes a fermented oat milk stout and blends it with his nitro infused coffee for an completely unique taste which was both surprising and delicious. I had to grab a four pack of cans to take home. They even come with a QR code on the lid with specific serving and pouring instructions so you can enjoy it in the most optimal way.
I am pleased to see how the peer group of LOCAL coffee artisans all seem to recognize that much like the wineries, and more recently, breweries and cideries in the Valley before them, the coming together of like minded, passionate craftspeople can serve to give rise to a scene that benefits not only the vendors and consumers alike, but contributes to the formation of a destination that will draw the attention of those who seek to discover that finer cup of coffee and enjoy the talents of community of gifted brewers
Lucky us…