BOWLING GREEN, Ohio — A pair of BGSU grads decided to move back to Northwest Ohio and set up shop in downtown Bowling Green to help with your morning jolt and happy hour hankering.
Zach and Christina Tracy are both BGSU grads and have been raising their family in the Cleveland area.
But since 2012, Zach has had a passion for brewing beer.
So when the couple decided to open their own brewery about a year and a half ago, Bowling Green was one of the only places where they wanted to settled down.
Now, in the former Panera Bread location on Main Street, Juniper Brewing Company offers something for everyone.
"And I really wanted to make sure that whether you were a college student, a young professional, a community member, you would walk in and feel welcome, comfortable and it would be inviting," said Christina.
As Zach puts in the finishing touches on his brewing stills, Juniper is already up and running as a coffee shop.
Juniper currently offers coffee, locally sourced baked goods and products from the Cleveland area, along with a café style menu of sandwiches and salads.
Zach says surprisingly, the idea of beer and coffee going together works better than you'd think.
"Often times the coffee drinker and the beer drinker are the same person. They're super passionate about what is it that they're drinking. They're looking for a typically higher-end craft kind of product," said Zach
And while Juniper Brewing Company is getting settled into their new space in downtown Bowling Green with their coffee shop opened, they're getting ready to get their brewing operations up and running by mid-February.
Christina says their business model is in essence three shops in one: a coffee shop, a café and a brewery.
They will be slowly incorporating a larger restaurant menu as their beer options go on tap, all while continuing to manage the ups and downs of opening a business during a pandemic.
"We want to make sure that we're capable of managing the space during this unusual time with COVID and we want to make sure that everyone feels safe as possible," said Christina.
Right now, Juniper Brewing Company is open seven days a week from 7 a.m. - 5 p.m. with plans to extend hours when beer joins the menu.
