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Farmers Market Spotlight: Big Iron Coffee Co.

Owners Bowen Rodkey and wife, Nina Mundy Rodkey, moved to Steamboat Springs from Portland, Oregon, to start the new roastery Big Iron Coffee Co. which can also be found at the Farmers Market on Saturdays.
Courtesy photo

STEAMBOAT SPRINGS — Get acquainted with the local flavor at the Steamboat Farmers Market.

Each week 150 vendors both regional and local will bring their bounty for the market featuring a vast selections of fresh produce, meats, cheeses, baked goods, canned and prepared foods, handcrafted art, lotions, soaps, jewelry, furniture, clothing and more.

The Main Street Steamboat Farmers Market is held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. each Saturday in the summer at the corner of Yampa and Seventh streets.

Don’t know where to start with this many vendors to choose from?

Meet Big Iron Coffee Co., this week’s Steamboat Farmer’s Market Vendor Spotlight.

Years at the Market: First year

Their love story of coffee: For owners Bowen Rodkey and wife, Nina Mundy Rodkey, their love for coffee and each other started three years ago in Portland, Oregon.

No longer interested in living in a large city, the couple wanted to be in a place where there was a stronger sense of community and outdoor activities were possible virtually every day of the year.

“The big problem with specialty coffee, like wine, is that people take it too seriously and become elitist about their knowledge of coffee,”said Bowen. “We wanted to start a coffee company that is totally geeky and committed to quality but welcoming and fun at the same time. Especially in a town like Steamboat, there’s no room for being snooty, especially about coffee.”

Specialty: They offer a few unique items, but the main draw to the Big Iron Coffee Co. tent is the nitro cold brew – cold-brewed coffee dispensed with 100 percent nitrogen gas.

“It’s a very strong but smooth and refreshing coffee,” Rodkey said. “We’re also working on other fun cold beverages like a nitro mocha, which will be coming soon.”

Give this a try: Their sparkling, dry-hopped lemonade, which is quickly gaining attention.

Factoid: Cowboy legends and outlaws like Buffalo Bill and Tom Horn are a fascination and source of inspiration for this couple’s new coffee venture. The name, Big Iron Coffee Co., comes from an old cowboy gunfighting song by Marty Robbins.

“We want to do our part to keep the West western, which is why the illustrations on our packaging are directly inspired by scenes from the film, ‘Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,'” Bowen said.

Be on the lookout: The 150-year-old skeleton named “Jacques,” which is the Big Iron Coffee Co. mascot, is known to make appearances at the Farmers Market.

The Big Iron Coffee Co.’s café, at 2835 Downhill Plaza, #604, is open 7 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. In addition to cash and credit cards, the company also accepts Bitcoin, a form of electronic cash.

Their coffee can be found at Natural Grocers, Creekside Cafe, MountainBrew, Cloverdale and the Colorado Bagel Co.

To reach Audrey Dwyer, call 970-871-4229, email adwyer@SteamboatToday.com or follow her on Twitter @Audrey_Dwyer1.


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