The Sprudge Report - Italy's Oldest Barista
Plus a confusing but ultimately fruitful week in tariffs
Italy’s oldest barista just turned 101
Anna Possi has been a barista for over 80 years. She’s the owner of Bar Centrale in the northern Italian town of Nebbiuno, which she opened with her husband in 1958 and has run all her own since his passing in 1974. Possi turned 101 recently, and she has no intention of retiring any time soon.
This week in tariffs
Lot of movement on the tariff front over the last week. First it was announced that all the “Liberation Day” tariffs no longer applied to coffee. Which was great, if short lived. News came out soon after that the tariff only partially applied to Brazil. The 10% reciprocal tariff originally applied had been exempted, but the 40% added on in August was still in effect. That is, until Thursday, when the administration finally removed those as well.
A guide to Buenos Aires
This week in our rollicking guides of cafes around the world, we’re heading to Buenos Aires, Argentina. Things have changed quite a bit over the past few years, thanks to a new wave of baristas, chefs, and bartenders raising the bar on food and beverage in the city. So we’re taking a look at coffee shops new and old that are transforming Buenos Aires into a coffee destination.
An interview with a legend
If you’ve spent any amount of time in specialty coffee, then you know the name George Howell. He’s spent over 50 years in coffee, the last two as part of the eponymous George Howell Coffee in Boston. Howell is a living legend in the coffee world and we’re lucky enough to count him as part of the 2025 class of the Sprudge Twenty. Which means we also got the chance to interview Howell, and that interview ran earlier this week.
List your coffee shop on Sprudge Maps
Here in 2025 we’d like to invite you to take part in Sprudge Maps, a searchable global compendium of coffee bars. Now with well over 1,200 registrations worldwide, the goal of Sprudge Maps is two-pronged: for consumers, this is a discovery tool for great cafes in your area, and for coffee businesses, it’s an easy way to be listed on a directly updatable global resource. And it’s free. That’s why we’re sending out the call for anyone who hasn’t done so yet to take a minute and list their cafe in our ever-growing interactive map.
The Red Cup Rebellion
Over 1,000 workers at Starbucks have gone on an open-ended strike in a move to force the company to return to the bargaining table and ratify a union contract. The strikes are taking place in over 40 cities, and Starbucks Workers United states that it will expand until Starbucks bargains in good faith. Currently, no union contract has been ratified for Starbucks workers.
Blend us your ears!
It’s that time again. It’s time to get blending. Last year we did something fun on a holiday edition of the Coffee Sprudgecast, where we cupped 17 (!!!) different holiday blends. This year we want to do even more, and we need your help. Send us your blends, holiday-themed or non-denominational, and we’re going to cup them on a very special, and very caffeinated, episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast.
Justice for Signore Beanbeak
A parrot has been apprehended in South Korea for *allegedly* stealing coffee. The bird, believed to be a Yellow-crowned Amazon parrot, has been accused of taking coffee from customers of a coffee shop in the Yangpyeong neighborhood in Seoul’s Yeongdeungpo district. Who narced on my boy? Let the bird have a little coffee. Mind your own business. If you saw a parrot taking a little nip of coffee in Seoul, no you didn’t.
Press releases
This week on press releases, we learned about Mr. Espresso, who is joining forces with Tetra Hotel in Sunnyvale, California to run their new Nexus Cafe.
The Sprudgie noms continue
Nominations are going strong for the 17th Annual Sprudgie Awards, presented by Pacific Barista Series. An annual tradition here on Sprudge since all the way back in 2009, The Sprudgie Awards has returned to honor leadership and excellence across the world of coffee. This year’s nominations process is now open! Following the open nominations process, we’ll whittle down to a final list of finalists, and open that up again to a popular vote. Open nominations close Friday, December 5th at 11:59 PM PST. Finalists will be announced shortly thereafter.
Roaster’s Village
We’re highlighting outstanding coffees from some of our favorite roasting partners each week here in the newsletter. This week’s selection of tasty coffees are…
Heartwood Coffee – Colombia Yessica & Diego Parra Thermal Shock Natural Bourbon Sidra
Phil & Sebastian x Onyx Coffee Lab x La Cabra – Project III – Finca La Negrita
Partners Coffee – Guatemala Relampago
Equator Coffees – Colombia Las Flores Thermal Shock
Verve Coffee – Holiday Blend
Stumptown Coffee Roasters – Costa Rica Sumava La Ladera
PERC – Holiday Recruitment Lot
Blueprint Coffee – Ethiopia Raro Nansebo
Caffe Umbria – Stella di Natale Holiday Blend
Onyx Coffee Lab – Ethiopia Hambela Alaka Natural
Portland Coffee Roasters – Holiday Roast
La Barba – Colombia Diego Bermudez Castillo Y-05
Mr. Espresso – Kenya Rung’eto Kii, Washed Process
Madcap Coffee – Ethiopia Tamrat Alemayew
Night Swim Coffee – Costa Rica La Hacienda F1
Klatch Coffee – Espresso Lover Trio Gift Set
Presta Coffee Roasters – Colombia Juicy Strawberry Co-ferment
Olympia Coffee – El Salvador Las Tres Estaciones – 1st Place Competition Lot
Coffee Gear!
A bi-weekly selection of coffee gear from some of the best manufacturers in the industry, both big and small. This week’s selection is…
MiiR 360 Traveler — Travel Tumbler
Ceado Hoop Brewer — Coffee Brewer
Slow Pour Supply Apax Lab — Water Minerals
Flair Espresso Flair 58 Plus 2 — Manual Espresso Machine
DiFluid OmniFlux — Roast Tracker
Acaia Umbra Lunar – Digital Scale
Dwell Dripper by Verve Coffee — Coffee Brewer
La Marzocco Home Linea Micra — Home Espresso Machine
New job listings from Sprudge Jobs
Minor Figures - Territory Sales Rep, NorCal + Rockies - San Francisco, CA or Denver, CO
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