Coffee Geeks - A Day In the Life of a Head Roaster

By Skylar Fuser

I walk into Cirque Coffee Roasters, a bustling coffee shop in Tulsa, OK, on one of its renowned “roasting days.” I am greeted by a vibrant 25-year-old man named John Pierce, who has been happily roasting coffee beans by hand all morning. So young, yet an owner of this new, popular shop in Tulsa. 

He quickly picks out a “quaker,” a bean that is discolored and can give the coffee a rancid taste. I quietly watch as the experienced hands sort through the entire batch and listen as he tells me his story.

After gaining experience in roasting from a master in Kansas City, MO, John moved back to Tulsa. It was here that he encountered an old high school friend, Garrett O’Dell, and decided to pursue a shop of their own.

“We both quit our jobs,” John said excitedly.

What sets Cirque apart from the rest of the shops in Tulsa, and maybe in the entire state, is the amount of time and thought put into each drink.

“I know a lot about coffee, so it would be a disservice to my customers if I didn’t go through all the steps,” John said.

Each barista goes through six weeks of intensive training. Morgan Steele, who has worked at Cirque for around eight months, said she had “never felt more prepared for a job.”

All signature drinks are invented by the baristas. Morgan shared with me about her Chai, which she co-created with John. She worked to spice a house-made syrup for the drink, a very unique process that sets its flavor apart from all others.

One frequent customer, Louie Carreno, shared with me about his favorite drink at the time. Louie’s favorite drink was the “Ode to Arnold,” an interesting take on a classic Arnold Palmer.

“The flavors of the drink were sublime,” Carreno said of one of Cirque’s first signature drinks.

John also gave a glimpse as to the future of Cirque, which is about to experience a few renovations.

They have recently leased the unit next door to make space for training new team members and larger areas for roasting.  This will also allow the shop to expand customer seating and keep up with the ever-growing clientele.

If you would like more information about Cirque, or to shop its exclusive, specially-chosen coffees, visit http://www.cirquecoffee.com/.

Clean Hands clothing store: bringing creative culture to Tulsa

By Kathryn Keenan

Clean Hands storefront.

.

Clean Hands clothing store, located in the heart of Tulsa’s Pearl District, offers customers original print designs on a variety of apparel and posters.

TU student Natalie Crise paid $.50
and got an original Clean Hands pin
from the gum-ball machine.

Tulsa natives and co-founders, Aaron Wisner and Justin Baney, originally opened their Pearl District site solely as an art studio to create designs.  Since 2008, their company has been setting up temporary print locations to showcase Clean Hand’s work.

Screen printing became an online adventure when they launched www.cleanhandsarmy.com to take online art orders.  Customers could stop apparel and design their own print from a selection of original artwork.  

In 2013, the pair built a store at the front of the studio to house their full line of apparel and posters.  The storefront has since grown to include spray pain, markers, printing items, fine art records, and books.

All of the Clean Hand’s prints are hand pulled and uniquely produced by a team of artists.

This Clean Hands shirt
can be ordered online.

Mural found in Tulsa's Pearl 
District.

You can find additional Clean Hand’s artwork throughout the streets of Tulsa on murals.  The “This Land it Our Land Mural” was one of several murals designed with a purpose of was to developing the public artist movement in Tulsa.  Their goal was to enhance and bring life to areas with paint.

In the future, Clean Hand’s hopes to widen Tulsa’s creative culture by influencing the next generation of kids to become interested in printing and graffiti.

 www.cleanhandsarmy.com