33 1/3 COFFEE ROASTERS

Eric Galbraith wanted to open a record store. The Regina native is way into vinyl, so he was thinking about opening a funky record shop, and he thought that also serving coffee would help with the viability of his business. Eric was also way into coffee, and he couldn’t find a local roast that satisfied his needs. So he started pursuing fresh-roasted local coffee and found out that he had to do it for himself.

Eric was a student and is still an Air Canada station attendant-the guy you see waving the flashlights when your flight is parking at the airport. But his love of coffee has led him to learn about coffee roasting and to start importing and roasting his own beans. Today that passion has become 33 1/3 Coffee Roasters.

Eric learned that fresh, high quality beans have a superior taste. He is sourcing fresh coffee beans as fast as he can get them to Regina from exotic locales like Ethiopia, Congo, Indonesia, Brazil, and Costa Rica. That’s a matter of a few months after harvest, compared to commercial coffee beans that might sit in a warehouse for up to two years before they reach you!

33 1/3 offers a variety of seasonal coffees in half pound and one pound bags for consumers. They also sell their coffee to restaurants and coffee shops in larger quantities.

Eric is now a graduate teacher, but says he doesn’t have time to teach. He started out just wanting to roast enough coffee for himself, family, and friends. But now he’s roasting about one hundred pounds per week, he’s purchased a commercial roasting machine, and he sees continuing growth ahead.

He still isn’t ready to open that record store, but Eric’s very special coffee is now available to Local & Fresh subscribers.