Photo by Ben Slowey
James Zajackowski - Dimension Seven Coffee
James Zajackowski - Dimension Seven Coffee
Dimension Seven Coffee is a DIY business run by James Zajackowski, who roasts and jars a variety of organic coffees right out of his home. In addition to coffee beans, Zajackowski offers fresh cold brew and produce from his garden as part of his spread. Dimension Seven Coffee vends at community events and markets across Milwaukee while offering home delivery as well.
James Zajackowski began roasting green coffee in his garage while he was still living in Chicago. “It started with an air popper,” he recalls. “I was roasting for some friends here and there at first and it took off from there. I’ve since upgraded to a one kilo electric roaster.”
Beginning in 2022, Zajackowski began vending his coffee as Dimension Seven Coffee. The business is named after a Wipers song. Zajackowski sources most of his coffee beans from Royal Coffee Company, which has a warehouse in Fort Atkinson; he selects only organics for Dimension Seven Coffee.
Zajackowski appreciates Royal Coffee Company for its fair trade ethic. “The nice thing is that they’ll tell you a little bit about the farm,” he shares. “There’s all kinds of labor issues in the coffee world and navigating it is really tricky, especially when you don’t have a direct relationship with the farmers and you just have to trust the importers. Ideally, I look for farms that are ecologically low-impact or are run as cooperatives.”
Dimension Seven Coffee sells a range of light, medium and dark roasts. Zajackowski tries to incorporate different flavors throughout the year, taking seasonality into account. “At the market, you get all kinds of people who are looking for different things,” Zajackowski notes. “I was doing a lot of brighter, acidic roasts last year, but I’ve come to appreciate the nuttier and bittersweet chocolate sides of coffee too.”
No Plastic
Zajackowski hopes to get Dimension Seven Coffee to a point where it expands into more of a cafe setup. He uses no plastic with the business and has a supply of reusable aluminum cups available for the cold brew.
In terms of produce, Zajackowski sells a variety of tomatoes, onions, carrots, cucumbers, peppers, microgreens and more. Dimension Seven Coffee often vends alongside Zelda RayGun’s Doom Town & Country, an emporium of handcrafted and homegrown goods.
“The coffee takes up such little space, plus people only buy a pound or so of coffee a week, so you can only sell so much coffee at once,” Zajackowski explains about his spread. “To supplement that, I decided to fill that room with what I grow in my garden.”
Dimension Seven Coffee is at the Riverwest Farmers Market every Sunday from 10 a.m.-3 p.m., the Brown Deer Farmers Market every Wednesday from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. and Zocalo Food Park every Thursday evening from 5-8 p.m.
Follow Dimension Seven Coffee on Instagram @dimensionsevencoffee for updates or to get in touch.
