Quality coffee, Ojibwe language and a little magic are brewing on Fond du Lac Band’s reservation
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In a small blue shed, Jackson Ripley and his 12-year-old daughter Jagger weave around each other as an espresso machine starts brewing. They’re preparing a lavender mocha, a maple mocha and an americano.
An espresso machine is grinding, cars are lining up at the window and music by Ripley’s son, Xander, plays on a speaker.
On the south side of Big Lake Road stands MiigWitches Brew, the only coffee shop on the Fond du Lac reservation. The drive-thru kiosk opened on June 7 on the land in front of the family home.
It is one of only a handful of Native-owned coffee shops in Minnesota. Ripley’s hope is to continue building community through high quality coffee on the reservation.
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In 2021, co-owner and Ripley’s spouse, Lyz Jaakola, was scrolling Facebook Marketplace and saw it: a cornflower blue shed — a former coffee kiosk that came with all the fixings. They had it delivered shortly after.
Jaakola was eager and ready to take on her latest endeavor with Ripley, but they decided to take it slow. They wanted to provide a resource the reservation could use for years to come, so they had to learn how to become coffee shop owners.
Ripley dove in. He learned how to be a barista and can even top off your latte with a heart.
“When it got here, we were like, ‘It’s happening, oh my gosh.’ We’ve been talking about some way to serve the community for a long time, in a small way,” Jaakola said. “Wherever you go, you’re going to find coffee. So, finding that place and bringing it to the best people and building a community on it — that’s where MiigWitches Brew came from.”
Jaakola and Ripley said there aren’t a lot of places to get coffee on the reservation. If people do not want to make their drinks at home, they could get gas station coffee or head 10 minutes east to Cloquet.
But for those living on the reservation and far from town, the convenience of MiigWitches Brew is hard to deny.
And they want the coffee to taste good too. Ripley said there can be an imbalance of quality offerings, and he wants people on the reservation to get gourmet coffee nearby.
“I really want people here to experience it rather than going to the gas station — I want them to be able to say, ‘Wow, that coffee is amazing.’ And then they keep coming back.”
In the Ojibwe language, coffee is Makade-mashkikiwaaboo, which means “black medicine water.” MiigWitches Brew is hoping to incorporate more of the language into signage and traditional drinks as they move forward. And the wordplay in their name refers to Miigwich, “thank you” in Ojibwe.
While there is a nod to witchcraft with the name and the cauldron in the logo — there is no current magic at play.
“We wanted to make sure everyone was using Ojibwe language somehow and you know, our cultural practices are a bit magical,” Jaakola said.
Their signature drink is a maple latte, made with maple syrup from a business on the reservation, Spirit Lake. Other menu items include chai lattes, americanos, mochas and multiple flavors to choose from like lavender, caramel or vanilla. Their beans come from Dream Cloud Coffee Roasters in Two Harbors.
Ripley has been using Facebook to keep followers updated on the shop. Every morning, he starts his video the same: he walks to the shop with tall trees behind him and birds chirping in the background.
And the videos have been working. People go out of their way to exit Interstate 35 and head to the reservation. Ripley has heard that people from Canada, Wisconsin and other parts of Minnesota have detoured to try MiigWitches Brew
Philip Defoe works with the tribe’s resource management division, on the invasive species team. He drove through the line and ordered multiple drinks for his co-workers.
Defoe wasn’t sure if he should admit how often he comes to the coffee shop.
“I don’t know if I should say… I come here every day. We work six days a week at this point. I love it here and it’s on the reservation. It’s better than anything else in town,” said Defoe.
As the summer continues, Ripley has his mind on winter. He’s a bit concerned about the pipes freezing, but he welcomes the challenge to continue to serve the reservation.
“It’s on our land, this ain’t going anywhere. We are going to be serving coffee now — this is the family business,” he said. “We’re trying to show them that you can be a Native-owned business and you can succeed. It’s always about giving back.”
MiigWitches Brew is open daily from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 1810 Big Lake Road, Cloquet, Minn.