For a lot of folks, coffee is best enjoyed with family, whether that is the family we are born to or the family we choose along the way. For Fred (aka “Thor,” a USMC veteran) and his wife, Chanell Dedrick, co-founders of Iron Bean Coffee Company, family is the guiding principle behind their business approach.
The Story
Five years ago, the Dedricks started roasting beans at home in their garage. In 2019, they began a move to their current location at 25561 Fort Meigs Road, Suite E, in Perrysburg. But the family-owned business has many pages in their full story.
For more than twenty years, Fred and Chanell dreamed of owning a coffee shop. Because of kids and Fred’s job with the railroad, that dream was put on hold. But the Iron Bean Nation (a group of friends and like-minded strangers that began with a hashtag and has since evolved into an all-inclusive community of coffee lovers) did not let that dream die.
Visiting the Perrysburg shop, arriving on a busy Monday morning, Chanell Dedrick made us feel welcomed, relating a story about a place she remembers fondly from her childhood, a small café. While that cafe did not roast their own coffee, it undoubtedly left a lasting impression. The owners always made her feel welcome, like she was part of the family. That sense of a home away from home stuck, and led the Dedrick’s to cultivate the same experience through their ever-growing online community and their local brick and mortar shop.
While the dream has evolved over the years, their ultimate purpose—owning a shop that fosters a welcoming, family-like environment—has remained at the core.
The Coffee
Iron Bean Coffee Company is a premium small-batch, roast-to-order, veteran-owned coffee company. They import high-quality coffee beans directly from Colombia, Brazil, Uganda, Honduras, Peru, Ethiopia, Indonesia & other far-off lands and then roast every one of their coffee offerings. With more than a dozen varieties, such as butter pecan, vanilla hazelnut, and white chocolate peppermint, along with some exotic and collaborative options, Iron Bean offers a bean for everyone, with most of their flavor options suggested by friends and family over the years.
Testing the butter pecan roast with family was met with two thumbs up, even from our token coffee purest, who only drinks coffee black because extra flavors ruin the integrity of the drinking experience.
The folks at Iron Bean Coffee Company roast beans for an aromatic, easy-drinking brew that is best shared with loved ones. It can be ordered by the bag (whole bean or drip ground) from their website ironbeancoffee.com, and they offer subscription services for members of #IronBeanNation. They also have a coffee truck you might catch around town (it is an all-terrain vehicle and quite hard to miss).
