Guest: Caroline Manimtim
Company: Cozy Canine Coffee
Role: Founder/Head Roaster • Based: San Diego, CA
Online: www.cozycaninecoffee.com • @cozycaninecoffee
What they drink (if not coffee): Homemade Strawberry Lemonade or a Gin & Tonic
Caroline brings the joy back into coffee. Joy is something we shouldn't take for granted. We're all battling against the negativity that seems to surround the social construct: politics, climate, pandemic, and even the rise of the mosquito! When I can find that lightning bolt of joy, I'm hanging on like hell. I encourage you to do the same.
Two things have recently brought me notable joy. The first is the chaos that my dog, Va-Quito Whiskey Lemon Thundernuts Woldt-Hankes IV (or Quito, for short), brings into our lives every single day. The goofy look on his face, his unwillingness to accept that we're done playing with a ball, and the way he curls up next to me on the couch while I drink my coffee each morning are some of the best moments of the day. The latter, in particular, is a moment of calm where he's zonked out under the blanket, his chin pressed against my hip, and me with a pourover.* In fairness, he also causes me great anxiety when he throws himself off the ottoman or digs up something gross at the beach.
The other was chatting with Caroline. She imbues happiness into our conversation, and I catch myself laughing and smiling more than normal. It is easy to forget I'm working and not just having a chat with a friend.
Two years into her business, Caroline seems more confident—not just in her skills, but in her ability to learn the coffees she is choosing to roast, to develop their flavor, and to put out an excellent coffee. I think a key difference between confidence and arrogance is the willingness to grow. She now has the foundational experience but is still seeking opportunities to improve as a roaster. Listen to our first conversation (link below), and you'll hear uncertainty at times. She believes but still has something to prove, perhaps to herself, if not anyone else. During this pop-in, I never sensed that I was chatting with someone who wasn't prepared to go the distance to create the positive coffee experience they were seeking.
I'm taking more time to add a bit of joyful intention to my coffee this morning because of the time I was able to spend chatting with Caroline. I hope while you're listening to our podcast chat, you do too.
*Today it was the Cozy Canine Coffee Sidekick Single Origin Honduras in a v60 at 15:1. The current single origin is the Mexico El Jaguar, but it appears to be sold out! This is why you should subscribe to the monthly coffee drop.
KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THE PODCAST
When you’re a young business, every milestone is big, but two years is the one that gets you past the commonly chatted about failure rates of small businesses. It means you’ve survived a few hiccups most likely, and been able to pivot.
In a crowded marketplace…is there room for you? I’ve heard opinions both ways. Some roasters believe coffee is such a big market that there is always space for one more, but I’ve also heard from cafe owners that fear going out of business because of the continued openings siphoning just a few sales away each day for each new place adds up.
In my mind, the issue isn’t the number of roasters or coffee shops, it is how they seem to be drawn to the same powerful coffee vortexes. In a three block radius of downtown Oceanside, CA you can go to at least 7 places for coffee, several of whom, are really good, and a few who are just functional. I can walk to six coffee roasters, not even just cafes, but roasters from my apartment!
All of them depend on the same people to come through the doors to spend their money-either local community members or tourists. The locals will find their spot and likely return, but tourists will find their temporary coffee home on Google Maps or by wandering past a convenient location between their hotel or Airbnb and the beach.
For each new roaster, the odds of there being another coffee shop between you and their destination seem only to be growing. How many coffee shops can a community support before it reaches saturation?Cozy Canine Coffee has begun to find their people, the ones who are passionate about pets (dogs), coffee, and creating a community.
Coffee is about community. Caroline, Rhys, and Dennis have been finding theirs with Cozy Canine Coffee. Photo from ©@CozyCanineCoffee. Running a coffee business is a balancing act between your passion and preference, and what the customer wants.
The donation program helps stoke Caroline’s motivation to keep working through the grind. Supporting your community doesn’t need only to be financial. It can also be time and enthusiasm. Caroline’s impact goes far beyond the donations she sends out to include generating support outside of her own through adopt events or walkathon teams, and beyond.
IMPORTANT LINKS
Check out our very first Espresso Round!
As of August 10th, Caroline has donated $5,742.24 to the following charities:
San Diego Humane Society - Ways To Give - Adoptable Animals
Passion For Pitties - Donate
Helen Woodward Animal Center Donate - Pet Adoptions
You can support these animal charities simply by purchasing Cozy Canine Coffee! With each coffee purchase, Cozy Canine Coffee will donate $1 per 12 oz bag to a specific local San Diego animal rescue depending on which bag you decide on.
Help keep this show on point by buying us a cup of coffee. Thanks for all your support.
I’ll be serving up coffee to mtb’ers and campers at the San Diego Mountain Biking Association Trailfest in October. Details & Get Tickets!
ROAST! INDUSTRY PARTNERS
A huge, on-going thank you to all of this show’s industry partners.
Roastar • Zumbar Coffee & Tea • Coffee Cycle • Camp Coffee Company • Ignite Coffee Company • Ascend Coffee Roasters • Marea Coffee • Cape Horn Green Coffee • Hacea Coffee Source • Crossings Coffee • Sivitz Roasting Machines • Craft 42 Roasters • Me and My Uncle Coffee Roasters • Cozy Canine Coffee
WHAT WE ARE LISTENING TO WITH OUR COFFEE
BRANDS WE USE & HAVE PARTNERED WITH*
Please use these links. You’ll be getting a great gear AND supporting Roast! West Coast.
*These links enable us to generate some affiliate revenue. As always, we don’t partner with brands we don’t use, or recommend.
A Coffee People Pop-in: Caroline Manimtim, Cozy Canine Coffee