Will and Coral Frischkorn of Cured in Boulder, Colorado, talk cycling, romance, and the small-business dream that took them from Spain to the Rocky Mountain West.
“We actually met through my brother who was also a professional cyclist and happened to be Will’s best friend,” says Coral Frischkorn, of her husband Will Frischkorn, owners of cheese and charcuterie shop Cured in Boulder, Colorado. “While our paths had crossed briefly before, we really connected during a Christmas break down at my family’s house in Mexico when Will decided to visit his best friend. It pretty quickly accelerated. I remember my brother commenting, ‘I’m happy for you two, as long as you’re realistic and don’t run off to Asia together.’ About three months later we spent two months traveling around Bali and Thailand.”
Thus began a whirlwind romance that after six months led to Coral joining her future husband in Spain, where Will was racing bikes for UCI ProTour team Garmin-Slipstream in Spain. “I had recently graduated from college, and Will told me he needed to live in Spain full time for his racing and asked if I would consider moving with him. Maybe it was youth, maybe it was excitement, maybe I knew there was something real between us, but I decided why not! The worst that can happen is it explodes, and I move home,” Coral says.
While Will rode professionally, the couple lived in the Old Town section of Girona, Spain, in at the base of this massive 550-year-old cathedral in a tiny apartment that looked out over terracotta roofs and where the reverberating clang of the bell from the cathedral reminded you of the passing of time every hour on the hour.
Because the Frischkorns lived in the old part of the walled city, all the shops were tiny, historic, and authentic. They were unable to their apartment because the streets were so small, so they rarely made big grocery runs. Rather, Will and Coral frequented the little mom-and-pop run shops on a daily basis. They knew that on Tuesday and Friday, the fishmongers set up on the street. On Wednesday, Remy would be outside with her local honey and the best vegetables in the area. Just down the street was the Rigo, a tiny cheese shop that specialized in jamón Ibérico, where they quickly came to know their names and would help coach the Frischkorns through ordering in their pigeon Catalan.
“When we had finished our shopping, we would stop on the Ramblas and find a tiny table tucked under a stone archway and eat patas bravas and drinking a Damm beer before going home for siesta,” Coral says. It wasn’t one particular day, but rather almost two years of living, eating, drinking, and existing in that life, that had them falling in love not just with each other but with life and food.
Their return to Colorado was deliberate. The Frischkorns knew Boulder could sustain a shop like the one they envisioned, one that specialized in cured meats, cheeses, wines, and more from across the American West, all the elements of a mom-and-pop store. Indeed, the couple’s two sons help keep the Frischkorns grounded and remind them of what Cured and life is all about.
C&I recently got to chat with Will and Coral Frischkorn about life, love, and the pleasures of owning a mom-and-pop store. They also shared a couple of recipes, which you can find here.
C&I: Did you hesitate about operating a business together?
Coral: Actually no. In fact, it was almost the opposite where the business was born from our desire to do something together. Some of the best advice we were given was to find where our respective strengths lay and avoid overlapping where possible so as to not micro-manage the other. Sometimes we’ll finish a day of working side-by-side, get home, and have no sense of how the others day was because we were both in our respective worlds and roles so fully.
C&I: What do you love owning Cured together and working together?
Coral: Starting and running a small business, especially a retail business, is entirely overwhelming, exciting, and consuming. Doing it together allows us to not only remain connected but to propel ourselves off of each other’s energy, constantly giving ourselves the ability to brainstorm, dream, scheme, and problem solve without isolating ourselves from the other. It’s pretty incredible to do what you love with the person you love.
C&I: How do you go about choosing the products you stock?
Will: We’re incredibly lucky to have more and more interesting producers popping up all over the American West right now. While Wisconsin and Vermont for the longest time were some of the places that people thought of first for American cheese and charcuterie, now California, Oregon, and Washington are pulling the center of gravity to the West. Even Colorado now has a handful of standout cheese and charcuterie producers we are proud to champion. From well-known creameries like Cowgirl Creamery in California to the tiny production of Rivers Edge Chevre in Oregon. From Colorado, we love sharing the cheeses of James Ranch in Durango and Elevation Meats in Denver — both small operations at the top of their game.
Coral: As running a business and the ins and outs of daily life has kept us more grounded in Boulder, we are lucky that Cured has developed a reputation where new producers are introducing themselves and sharing their product with us constantly.
C&I: What are some of your favorites?
Will: We currently can’t get enough of the Grove 45 Olive Oil made in Pope Valley, California, Letterpress Chocolates from L.A., Cochon Volant BBQ sauce from Sonoma County, Bjorns Honeys from Colorado, and Preserves from June Taylor in San Francisco. We also have a small wine shop and have been smitten by the chardonnays and pinot noirs from Scar of the Sea as well as the playful, quirky, and truly intellectual bottlings from Drake Whitcraft — both from the Central Coast of California.
C&I: If someone wanted to create a Valentine’s Day picnic (outdoor or living room) using products from your shop, what would you recommend?
Coral: Valentine’s Day is the perfect day for a picnic at home as you have the chance to connect with your loved one without being out at a restaurant and battling the constant distraction. It’s hard to pass up a bottle of champagne when you’re celebrating and we’re currently in love with the wines of Frederic Savart. Champagne just begs to be enjoyed with a luscious soft cheese and the Savart tends to pair perfectly. Add a fresh baguette, a little prosciutto, a fresh green salad, and a box of Chocolate Makers Studio truffles!
C&I: Do you have a special Valentine’s Day tradition?
Coral: This may sound embarrassing but by the time we've reached the end of the day on Valentine’s Day, we are so tired that we love to order sushi take-out, pop open a good bottle of champagne, and eat dinner on the floor in front of the fire!
Cured, 1825 Pearl St., Ste B, Boulder, CO 80302, 720.389.8096, curedboulder.com. Photography: Courtesy Will and Coral Frischkorn.
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