Our Coffee & Tea Roots

     In the beginning, April of 2003, Muggswigz opened its doors and downtown Canton had it's only coffeeshop. Alex Haas had just graduated College in Rochester, NY,  and returned home to Canton, OH. Having fueled college with coffee and tea, he wanted his home town to have a place to find a good cup. Both for the sake of his hometown and for coffee and tea! Going off of a suggestion from a friend to start his own coffee shop business, and in pursuit of revitalizing downtown Canton, he did just that. Using his background in science and honing his culinary skills, Alex created Muggswigz (like taking a swig from a mug)  Coffee and Tea Company.

     Remodeling the space on Walnut and 2nd st. took a village, or in this case, helpful family and friends. What used to be an office suit is now a full coffee and tea bar as well as a performing stage for open mic nights. When the company first opened, Alex couldn't even afford an ice machine and had just started roasting coffee on a popcorn popper from the thrift store.

     Fast forward fifteen years and you have a 3rd Best Coffee House in America, USA Today's top ten pick of coffeehouses in America, etc. You have a company that roasts all of it's coffee, competition grade baristas, directly imports tea, a thriving wholesale department, baked goods and syrups made in house, and, of course, an ice machine.

     Muggswigz has educated the area in coffee and tea and has proudly seen many of the staff it introduced to coffee make coffee their career. The training the staff receives is second to none. Some of the staff Muggswigz has inspired go on in the industry to make waves at other companies or even start their own! Our positive impact on the industry spreads through all those Muggswigz Baristas as well as though the coffee and tea farmers we are fortunate enough to work with. Many other coffeeshops and boutiques have popped up since our doors have opened. A brewery has been built. People are finding more reasons to make Downtown Canton their destination, and they should. We are proud to call downtown Canton our home!

 

Muggswigz Team Makes Generous Donation

            This year the team at Muggswigz Coffee & Tea co. have generously chosen to donate about $3,000 to the National Parents Organization.

             Last year, Muggswigz donated to the National Inventors Hall of Fame: Project Invention, which encourages the use of S.T.E.M for kids in Middle School . This year’s organization is the National Parents Organization, or NPO. The NPO strives to bring about Family Law Reform and encourages the normalization of shared parenting in every state of the U.S. The organization seeks to allow children to have equal access to both parents after a divorce or separation.

https://nationalparentsorganization.networkforgood.com

 

Charleston Tea Plantation

This past November, 2018, Alex, Morgan, and Bristsin Haas traveled to Charleston, S.C., to visit the Charleston Tea Plantation. The 127 acre property is currently growing 93 acres of tea. On site, you can visit a gift shop before going on a factory tour. There, you can see the withering beds where the freshly harvested tea leaves are dried to a desired percentage. There is an oxidation bed where the leaves turn color. You can also take a trolley around the plantation with a tour guide. There was a large, man-operated harvesting machine currently at work; driving though the tea plantation's perfectly manicured rows of tea plants. There is a green house on site where trimmings of the current tea plants are kept to grow until they are mature enough to be planted out in the fields.

Celebrating Ghandi

On October 2nd, all three Muggswigz locations will be celebrating Ghandi's 149th birthday.  Mohandas Ghandi's nonviolent demonstrations to bring about social change and his visions for justified civil rights is worth celebrating. The stores will be serving our limited time, Curry Chai, a unique take on our classic Masala Chai tea latte. You can buy the Curry Chai on retail or purchase the Curry Chai Tea Latte from our baristas at the bar. When asked why Muggswigz would seek to celebrate Ghandi, Alexander Haas, Muggswigz Founder and President said, " because he is a popular, outstanding role model in how to create change peacefully and appealing to the good in people." Remembering and honoring good people can bring about good change and hopefully the Curry Chai brings a positive change change to the Masala chai.

Muggswigz Barista Qualifies for United States Barista Competitions

   Sean Hreha, from Muggswigz Coffee and Tea Company, has qualified for the Qualifying United States Barista Championship located in Nashville, TN occurring January 12-13, 2019. Having competed in the recent Preliminary Barista Competition held at the downtown Canton Muggswigz earlier this month, Sean, who works as a Skilled barista at the Portage Lakes location, made it through to the top 6 barista competitors who move on to the next level of competitions. The end goal for these competitors is to be crowned the World Barista Champion at the World Barista Championships in Boston, MA, in 2019.

   Sean has been a barista since 2015 and has proven to be a knowledgeable and highly skilled barista for the company. He began his career at the downtown Canton Muggswigz, working both as a barista and a saucier. He then moved to the Portage Lakes location when it opened in February of 2017. No matter which store he has worked at, he helped to make guests’ experience a delicious and happy one. Over the years, Muggswigz has produced many award winning competition baristas. They don’t just train baristas for competitions, but for everyday work behind the coffee and tea bar.