And now...the REST of the story.

Coffee roasting soon passed the hobby stage, skipped the business stage entirely and entered directly into the obsession stage. My wife (and reluctant business partner) and I drove to Washington, DC to attend CoffeeFest, a coffee trade show. We attended classes, drank lots of coffee and rubbed elbows with professionals and fellow coffee geeks. And we got lost in DC looking for a place to eat, but hey, that’s another story.

While in DC, I decided to test my barista knowledge and skills by challenging the International Association of Specialty Coffees barista certification exam. This exam tests the sweetness of your barista skills by requiring you to calibrate an espresso machine and to make three drinks to perfection. There is also a written test that asks questions on the history of coffee, questions on the preparation and quality control questions. Well, I passed the skills lab, but didn’t even come close to the written exam.

Uncertified but full of caffeine, and loaded down with industry contacts, we left DC with a strong desire to open our own coffee house. Timing would be an issue, though, as at the time, I was a full time graduate student as well as a full time member of the work force. That didn’t stop us from dreaming and planning. I started doing some preliminary research and wrote an initial business plan. Tempting fate we looked at empty businesses and asked “what if” questions. We spoke with realtors, small business administration counselors and with friends and family. We started thinking seriously about a place in downtown Potsdam, and when it fell through, we decided that maybe the timing wasn’t right. On a whim, we stopped at one more place, a tiny, odd shaped business which had been empty for a while. It had never been an establishment that served food, but it had potential.

We spoke with the landlord who immediately saw the potential. His excitement fueled our own, and I started crunching numbers and drawing floor plans. We brought our ideas and numbers to the bank, and found a receptive ear. Within a few weeks, we were in more debt than we had ever been in before, but on our way to owning our own coffee house.

Soon we were deep in dust and debris. We had a lot of work to do to get the building up to code. Lots of hours, lots of late nights and lots of help from friends finally transformed this place into what it is today… the only specialty coffee house in Potsdam that roasts its own coffee. We have lots of machines with knobs that turn and tubes that hiss, and we have the monstrosity in the front that belches smoke scares little children, but makes wonderful coffee.


We opened our doors on a cold, nondescript December day. Since then, we have been serving coffee and making friends. Stop in and say “hi”, and let us serve you the best coffee you have ever had.

We love coffee. You probably got that from the beginning. But coffee isn’t our only passion. We also love people. For us, coffee is a means to an end. You may not know this, but most coffee farmers make less than 20 cents for every pound of coffee they produce. 20 CENTS! That’s not a lot, and we are aware of that. Let’s be honest…we are in this business to make money. But we can’t ignore the fact that the people whose labor allows us the opportunity to make a decent profit are poor. In recognition of this, we look for opportunities to help individuals in coffee producing countries but donating to them a portion of our profits. It’s a lot, but it’s a start.

We are also passionate about community. We want Jernabi to be a “Third Place”- a place that isn’t home or work, but a place where you can come and be yourself. Traditionally coffee houses have been places to meet and discuss current events. That’s what we want to become…so if you visit, feel free to join a conversation or be prepared to have someone join yours. And don’t be alarmed when our 3 year old comes up and asks what you are doing.

So that’s our journey, at least that’s the beginning. Hopefully, our journey will be a long one. I hope we see you along the path.