Page 19 - Food&Drink magazine Feb-Mar 2023

doing shelf stable products as opposed to refrigerated products, and understanding those challenges was quite important for us.”
“They also connected us to an ingredient supplier to source the products we needed; like caramel, yuzu and coconut nectar,” says Brodian.
MAKING THE MACHINE
“When we started talking about this project, we realised there was nothing off the shelf that you can buy that makes that much cold drip coffee. You can’t just find the equipment you need and where to buy it; so we had to build it ourselves.”
Brodian says her husband’s experienceasasoftware
engineer came in handy during the 12-month build of the brewing system.
“We leveraged some information from the beer brewing industry, which is
Embracing opportunity: Dark City Foundry founder Anita Brodian.
“We had a very specific flavour profile in mind that we wanted to achieve for the bottled version, so we spent a lot of time trying to make this flavour consistent,” says Brodian.
After devoting time to achieving the desired flavour of the Dark City Foundry’s cold drip coffee, Brodian says she wanted a new product that didn’t hide the distinct flavour.
“We spent a lot of time perfecting it, and we didn’t want to hide that behind dairy or oat milk. The sparkling water addition is fun and tasty, but most importantly you’re still getting the flavour of our coffee coming through,” says Brodian.
For 2023, the sparkling coffee will be the focus for the company, with plans to expand the team and operations, as well as scaling up business locally, with a long term goal of seeking out international markets in Asia and the US.
“A few years ago, canned coffee wasn’t commonplace, but now we have can have everything canned including water, and that’s going to open up a lot more opportunities.”
Reflecting on her own experience growing up with Armenian heritage, Brodian says she embraced difference, and applied this ethos to the company, never wanting to be the type of brand that was like everyone else.
“I was the kid at school who ate falafels and tahini when no one knew what they were – and now everyone eats it. It’s one of those things that I know makes it good to be different.”
“Slowly over time we’ve really developed our identity. We want to be seen as being different but also tasty at the same time,” saysBrodian. ✷
“ There’s different challenges when you’re doing shelf stable products as opposed to refrigerated products, and understanding those challenges was quite important for us.”
probably the closest industry in terms of equipment
to what we needed. My husband then did a lot of research and development, and created the software torunthesystemaswell.
SPARKLING HORIZONS
November last year saw the addition of a bubbly new product to the Dark City Foundry range: sparkling coffee in a can, one infused with yuzu, andtheotherwithcaramel.
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www.foodanddrinkbusiness.com.au | February/March 2023 | Food&Drink business | 19
RISING STAR
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