They searched the entire Lower Mainland for the right location to establish their full-scale coffee roasting venture, Pacific Coffee Roasters.

Now Reza and Lisa Ghaffari are inviting Chilliwack coffee aficionados to come in visit their warehouse behind the Stream parking lot and taste their fresh-brewed specialty coffee.

“We always wanted to get into coffee, but we never found a spot that was right for us,” explains Lisa, who runs the sales and marketing arm of the business.

The relatively low cost of industrial land and the friendly approach from the city and CEPCO made it an exceptionally easy choice for their young family to settle in Chilliwack, she says.

“We’re happy to be able to realize our dream here, and the fact that we didn’t have to start small. We were able to go to full-scale roasting right away,” she says.

Lisa’s husband, Reza Ghaffari, is the master roaster of the operation.

“Each bean has its own special characteristics which we try to bring out,” she says.

They use two roasters at the local warehouse — one larger one that is computerized, and another for samples.

Reza is passionate about coffee, following the lead from his father, who excelled in the tea and coffee business in Iran.

“I was surrounded by the smell of tea and coffee,” he says.

Reza obtained degrees in Nutrition and Economy from the University of Vienna. He continued studying in Canada and eventually earned dual certification in roasting and cupping.

“Cupping is a technique used to evaluate the coffee’s aroma and flavour,” he says. Before opening his own roastery in Chilliwack, Reza worked at a high-end organic roastery in Vancouver.

Most of Lisa’s marketing efforts so far have been on getting the product into retail stores as fast as possible. It’s available in Chilliwack, Abbotsford and Langley, as well as Vancouver and Kitslano. Customers can find it locally at Hofstede’s, The Docks, and Close to Home.

There are no fancy, cute names on the labels of their certified organic coffees, “just the straight facts, to connect people to the root of origin,” Lisa points out.

A window on the coffee world is opened with the info they include on the labels, such as the characteristics of the bean, as well as the region, so the consumer gets the background on the product.

The local company has become a member of Specialty Coffee Association of America, a registered licensee of TransFair Canada and a licensed vendor for Swiss Water Process decaffeinated coffee.

“Through fair prices, farmers can support their families and create a better environment for their community,” Lisa says. “The fair trade practise benefits the consumer as well, by receiving superior product farmed without compromising the environment.”

As aromatic incentive to come visit their warehouse and roastery, they’re offering one-pound bags of their beans at warehouse prices, along with a cup of coffee and a free sample bag, for just $12.99. The roastery is also open every day to serve fresh coffee, along with some light snacks as well.

“People can come in and just purchase their cup of coffee to go, which is brewed fresh,” she says.

Pacific Coffee Roasters, #105-44981 Commercial Court, Chilliwack, 604-701-6887. 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. www.pacificcoffeeroasters.com