Ten Years of Brewing Against the Machine—Year 1 / 2016

Ten Years of Brewing Against the Machine—One Year at a Time
To celebrate a decade of Mad Priest we’re looking back—one year, one roast, one glorious mess at a time. This is the story of our evolution: through chaos and clarity, hustle and heresy, growth and grind. And maybe, just maybe, how we found a little balance in the brew. Each year we’ll reflect with a word that we feel encompassed who we were and what we were doing.

Let us reflect on the first year: the year of 2016 | FIRE

The spark that lit the match. The kind that refines, destroys, and awakens. Year one wasn’t polished—it was ablaze.

Where do I even begin? 10 years ago I naively embarked on a journey that I had essentially zero understanding of. However you slice it, it was insane. Blinded by my passion and drive to create something (with a dash of arrogance) – Mad Priest began.

Cherita and I launched our idea with a Kickstarter because of course we didn’t have any money, and we definitely weren’t going to get a traditional bank loan. I don’t even think we had a real business plan. What is even more wild, looking back, we based our entire campaign off of mocking Trump. He had just gotten the nomination at the end of May, and even my republican friends were rolling their eyes. So we figured we’d brand our first two coffees we’d ever carry to make note of the silly mess we were seeing in politics: The Wall (Mexico) and Ban Wagon (Indonesian). Welp, that aged real well…

But somehow, we succeeded. Many people don’t know this, but originally we were only planning to launch as a wholesaler and I was going to roast in my basement. Only at the last minute was I introduced by a good mutual friend with the owner at Koch’s Bakery. There was a tiny 400 sq ft space available to launch our dream. Little did I know it would be the home that enabled us to get to where we are today. 

Throughout this process, I was convinced I was going to save the world. My untamed zeal, a core reason why I chose the word FIRE, wanted to create a socially conscious business that hired and served refugees. Why refugees? Because while Cherita and I were living in India working in coffee, my customers were primarily refugees from Syria, Iraq and Iran. Frankly, that ignorant zeal that burned lots of things in the process was also arguably the very thing that got us to where we are today. One of those life mindfuck paradoxes I suppose.

Through our relationship with Bridge Refugee Services, a passion to see hope realized, and a successful kickster, Mad Priest Coffee was officially born. And just a couple months before we opened on Broad St., I hired my first employee, Tarig.

I remember meeting Tarig at the Bridge Refugee office to discuss the details. We needed a translator as he had only been in the states a couple months. I handed him a piece of paper with an address and told him to show up the next day at 9am, knowing that if he could navigate public transit and arrive on time, he’d be a dependable person that clearly has drive. And the next morning, at 8:45am, Tarig showed up.

And just a few weeks ago, I sat in a court room and watched him receive his citizenship. How’s that for a motherfucking story? Friends, we have no idea where things will lead, or how life will unfold, but if we just stay the course, pay attention to synchronicities, and pursue love and light, some really neat shit can happen.

So as I reflected on what word I felt encompassed our genesis, fire just made sense.

It’s the necessary spark that ignites vision and movement. Without it, nothing starts, and certainly no roasting. But fire uncontained? That’s destruction. It consumes without discretion. In Year One, we learned that fire is sacred—but only when honored. It must be stoked, tended, given boundaries. Otherwise, it doesn’t build—it burns everything in its path. Our journey started in flame, but even then we had a voice to make: would we let it light the way—or scorch it? And for a few years I would argue the only contained fire was the one inside the roaster, and I would have to learn what it meant to speak to, and guide the fire inside.

On December 5th, 2016, we opened our humble little roastery and shop at 1900 Broad Street. I recently discovered that Alexandre Dumas died December 5th,  and traditionally in the Catholic Church is the day someone would be canonized. Since our entire brand was built on the foundation of The Count of Monte Cristo by Dumas, I found that to be just another one of those weird and fun synchronicities. So we just went ahead and canonized him ourselves!

There is so much more to say because I am so grateful for the opportunity to reflect on our beginnings. Looking back, I smile seeing all the serendipitous moments that led us to today, even though we didn’t identify them at the time. As I reflect I want this to be an encouragement for us all to just pay attention. Be present. Trust your intuition, your body, and just always strive to do your damn best. Don’t look at the runners racing beside you, or even ahead of you… look at yourself and your goals – and just run. 

I’ll be back next week to share more about Year TWO: Idealism.

+Michael

P.S. And you thought you were just buying coffee