The Sprudge Report - It's Been A Wild Week
Tons of coffee, a little bit of science, and a whole lot of fun
Measuring the emotional response to coffee
Researchers from Italy have found a way to use wearable technology to measure a person’s physiological response to coffee consumption. With it, they hope to remove any implicit bias in the oft-difficult task of assessing a coffee’s flavor. But, the real use for this technology is on the Barista Championship stage. Let’s find out what the judges really think about that experimental lot espresso.
Hands for Songwa
Back in 2007, La Marzocco, Hemro, and Probat collaborated on Songwa Estates, a 59-acre farm in Tanzania. Now, La Marzocco and Hemro are continuing the mission started 15 years ago with the Hands for Songwa Foundation. As a fully autonomous organization based in Dar es Salaam, the new foundation will be better suited to continue their advocacy for the communities surrounding Songwa Estates.
Paso Paso - Farmer Owned Coffee
The lifecycle of a coffee generally goes from farmer to importer/exporter to roaster to consumer. But a new roaster in Germany cuts out a few of those steps. Paso Paso is a collective of five producers from four different countries who have come together to bring their coffees directly to consumers.
A Red Eye by any other name
Whether it’s called a Shot in the Dark, a Depth Charge, an Eye Opener, a Sludge Cup, a Hammerhead, a Foglifter, a Devil’s Crowbar, or even an Oil Spill, the Red Eye is an iconic old-school favorite. A black coffee with a shot of espresso added in for good measure, the legendary drink has lost a bit of favor with the emergence of specialty coffee, but it still holds a place in our hearts. Associate Editor Liz Clayton takes a deep dive on the history of the Red Eye.
A biomarker for coffee research
Most research done on coffee consumption has the same fatal flaw: it requires participants to self report how much they drink, which can be unreliable. But researchers have now found an easily-detectable biomarker that takes all the guesswork out of collecting data on coffee’s healthfulness. N-methylpyridinium only appears when a person drinks coffee, regular or decaf, and can be picked up in blood, urine, or plasma panels.
Infinitely recyclable coffee cans
On this week’s installation of Coffee Design, we are checking out the coffee cans of the United Kingdom’s West Berkshire Roastery. Made of aluminum (or aluminium, as the Brits say), the new cans are easily recyclable and themselves are made primarily of recycled material. Brew and reuse.
A new, smaller Bellwether
Bellwether, the maker of fully-automated, all-electric roasting solutions, has announced the release of their latest roaster, the Shop Roaster. It fits on a countertop and is only a quarter the cost of Bellwether’s Series 2 roaster, "less than the cost of an espresso machine.” Find out more here.
SCA Membership rethink
The Specialty Coffee Association announced a complete overhaul of their membership model. Releasing later this year, the plans have been simplified and now even include a free option.
In other news
This week, Hemro Group took home two design awards for the Mahlkönig EK Omnia, winning an iF Design Award and the Gold Award of UX Design Awards. Elsewhere, in honor of Women’s History Month, Klatch Coffee released a limited edition blend, Mujeres de Café, featuring coffees produced by Lucia Ortiz on El Salvador’s Finca Las Mercedes.
A coffee guide to Bellingham
Bellingham, Washington may not be the first Pacific Northwest city you’d think to take a coffee tour of, but don’t sleep on the Bellinghamsters. With cafes like Camber, Narrative, and Makeworth, the coffee scene in Bellingham has earned their place as one of best coffee cities in the PNW. We go on a tour of what’s exciting in Bellingham coffee here in 2024.
A twinkie tiramisu?!
On this episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast, host Zachary Carlsen makes a rather bold claim: that, in a pinch, he could make tiramisu using twinkies. But when Carlsen whips up a quick twinkie tiramisu, the results are… shocking.
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…
Amavida Coffee Roasters: Honey Comsa —This medium roast Honduran coffee from COMSA Cooperative has a mild, berry-like acidity and a full body. It features pronounced dried fruit notes in the aroma followed by prominent flavors of raisin, fig, and molasses. Certified Organic & Fair Trade Coffee.
Cxffeeblack : Congo Free—Guji Mane Diaspora Collection // CONGO FREE: CONGO WASHED PROCESS /// a mighty peace junt- A portion of the proceeds goes to support Congolese liberation and the farmers who produce this African fruit.
Equator Coffees: Colombia Finca La Guaca Ají—Produced by wife and husband team Marina Ansasoy and Jose Benavides, the couple named this coffee variety Ají, or chili pepper, after the spicy aroma they noticed when harvesting the coffee cherries.
Complimented by notes of tamarind & guava, this coffee’s subtle chili pepper-like qualities create a one-of-a-kind flavor experience.
Greater Goods Roasting: Santa Gema —Last year, we had the privilege of visiting some incredible farms in Nicaragua, including Santa Gema. At Santa Gema, Mario Vilchez produces a remarkable maracaturra coffee with flavor notes of cherry cordial, tea rose, and tamarind. We’re proud to say that this coffee qualified for Nationals at the US Brewer’s Cup competition, a testament to its exceptional quality.
Joe Coffee: The Village — Currently, The Village comes from the Rubí sisters’ farm Finca Ruland 2, in Las Vegas, Honduras. Andrea and her sisters’ skill and diligence shine through this lot of washed and natural coffees. Expect a complex balance of layered acidity and structured sweetness. Beginning with notes of deep citrus and stone fruit, flavors arc towards ripe cherry as the coffee cools, leaving us with a final, soft note of spice and caramel.
Madcap Coffee Company: Kanda—Amos Ndatakiura, the producer of this coffee, runs an estate in Kirinyaga, Kenya. His home and coffee sit in the middle of the five-acre estate surrounded by SL-28 coffee trees where he and his family grow and process the coffee themselves. The Ndatakiura family has over 50 years of experience working in coffee, which shines through in this juicy, sweet coffee with notes of peach, raspberry, and milk chocolate.
Monogram Coffee: Vistacion Munoz —The Parainema variety is a super interesting variety, and one of the most unique flavour profiles that we have ever tried. Genetically, it is a Sarchimor, which means that it has Timor heritage, which has roots with Robusta species. The benefit of this variety is its disease resistance, but people have started to discover that Parainema also have sought after flavour profiles which adds a lot of value to this variety in the specialty market for roasters and cafes like us.
Night Swim Coffee: Aquiares – Red Honey—Aquiares is an example of innovation and perseverance whose benefits extend beyond the farm and workers and serve as a model for sustainable, equitable production for the broader coffee industry. Centroamericano H1 is an F1 hybrid variety generated by crossing the Sarchimor T-5296 and a wild Rume Sudan variety.
Olympia Coffee: Peru, Lito Cubas Olivera Gesha —Lito Cubas has his roots in legacy, coming from a family of coffee producers in Cutervo, Peru. This world-exclusive lot features his prized Gesha, one of the most covetable varietals in production. Flavors of lemon, floral, and Earl Grey.
Onyx Coffee Lab : Doyenne—One 10oz Box of the World’s Best Female-Produced Coffee Once a Month + Roasted and shipped the first Wednesday of every month. Doyenne seeks to identify and amplify the stories of woman achieving incredible marks in coffee. The selections are curated by Andrea Allen, co-founder of Onyx Coffee Lab and 2020 US Barista Champion. The heart is for women to collaborate and to boost each other’s work and achievement through stories.
Partners Coffee: Zulieth Sancho Masabuel – Colombia—Zulieth is the daughter of Luz Mila Masabuel, another eminent coffee farmer from Inzá, Cauca, in southwestern Colombia. Following in her mother’s path, Zulieth cultivates a two hectare plot of mostly castillo and delivers her coffee to Pergamino’s collection point nearby. This is a lovely expression of Cauca’s classic washed profile, pairing crisp red apple with warm cherry, caramel, milk chocolate, and subtle citrus.
PERC: El Salvador Delagua Pacamara—We knew we had to bring it in as soon as we tasted this coffee. It reminds us of freshly picked strawberries, oranges, and maple syrup. Pacamaras are giant beans that yield big, juicy flavors with lots of sweetness, and Delagua delivers on that reputation in spades. Now, we can fit these beans in the dang bag.
Portland Coffee Roasters: Bridge Blend—This Limited Release is a blend of coffees from Guatemala and Peru. The Guatemala is from Maya Ixil, and the Peru is from the Pueblo Libre and Mamahuaca communities. When we cup this coffee it is floral and herbal, with hints of sugar cane and chocolate.
Stumptown Coffee Roasters: Colombia Huayku—A beloved coffee at Stumptown since 2013, Huayku is grown and produced by the Federación Abades—a group of over 200 smallholder coffee producers—in the mountainous region of Nariño. This year’s lot is a complex cup layered with tropical fruit, orange zest, and creamy milk chocolate.
Verve Coffee Roasters: Colombia Gabriel Castaño Pink Bourbon Single Origin Espresso—Decadent notes of fudge and molasses melt throughout Gabriel Castaño’s anaerobic-washed Colombia Pink Bourbon, rounded out by hints of strawberry as a sweet treat.
New job listings from Sprudge Jobs
La Colombe - Cafe Manager - Washington, DC
La Colombe - Sales Representative - Boston, MA
La Marzocco USA - Project Coordinator - Seattle, WA
La Marzocco USA - Demand Generation Specialist - Ft. Wayne, IN/Seattle, WA
Coffee by Design - Specialty Coffee Sales Representative - Portland, ME
Corvus Coffee Roasters - Production Assistant - Denver, CO
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