A wild weekend in Rancho
The first half of the 2023 US Coffee Championships took place last weekend in Rancho Cucamonga, crowning new national champs for Barista, Brewers Cup, and Cup Tasters. And we were there for all three days covering all the action. Memli Coffee’s Mehmet Sogan won Cup Tasters on the last cup. BlendIn Coffee’s Weihong Zhang won the Brewers Cup with a decaf. And Frank La, on his second try after a nine-year hiatus, won the Barista Championship just 40 miles from his doorstep.
De-escalation for coffee shops course
We want coffee shops to be idyllic places. But for better AND worse, they are often full of humans, and where there are humans, there is often conflict. A new course by Laila Ghambari and Eric J. Grimm seeks to help equip cafe workers with the de-escalation skills and tactics necessary for some of the most common coffee shop situations that occur.
Keurig goes kompostable
After many years of folks complaining about the waste they produce, Keurig announced they will finally be released a compostable pod. Called K-Rounds, the new single-serve coffee is plant-based and plastic- and aluminum-free. They’re currently only compatible with the new Alta machine, which is still in the works.
Get down with The Bussdown
The Caffe by Mr. Espresso in Oakland has a limited edition tasty little treat for those looking for one last taste of fall flavors. The Bussdown is a toasted marshmallow candied yam latte, created in collaboration with Chef Michael Woods. Today is the last day it will be available at The Caffee, so you better act now.
Spent coffee grounds >>> herbicides
It’s at this point I think we should all drink more coffee just so scientists can find more cool uses for the spent grounds. This week we learned that used coffee grounds can be repurposed to remove bentazone, an herbicide that can be “highly neurotoxic” to humans in high doses, from aqueous solutions, like a city’s supply of drinking water.
Eat your coffee
Everyone knows that coffee is a beverage, but what this confection pre-supposes is: maybe it isn’t? Hawaii’s Big Island Coffee Roasters has put out an all-new edible coffee bar. We learn more about them and their rather elegant packaging in our latest installation of Coffee Design.
Starbucks and Workers United to sit down for contract talks
It’s been over two years since a Buffalo, New York Starbucks was the first US-based company-owned location to vote in favor of unionization. And over 400 union locations covering 10,000+ workers later, zero contacts have been ratified. But that may be changing soon, as Starbucks is scheduled to meet with representatives from Workers Unite to begin hammering out the framework for union contracts nationwide.
Hey man, nice coffee
From this week’s Press Release hub, we learned about Hayman Coffee, a London-based roaster and retailer of high-end, exotic coffees. With 15 different varieties, coffees from Hayman come in all formats, including whole bean, ground, pods/capsules, and even green coffee.
The power of chai
New to Sprudge’s Special Project desk this week, contributor Navdeep Kaur gives us a brief history of chai as well as a touching personal tale of the drink’s power to connect with home an ocean away.
Do robot baristas dream of electric tips?
Jarvis is an AI-powered robot barista. They’ll make you an espresso-based drink in a few minutes, and when you pay, you can tip. Tipping is the lifeblood for many hospitality workers, but should the fraught practice extend to robots?
Speaking of Barista Championships…
There’s a lot to be gleaned about specialty coffee from the stage of the Barista Championship. What happens there inevitably trickles out to the rest of the specialty coffee world. So to learn what is going to be hot in coffee a year or two from now, we crunched the numbers from the 2024 USBC, and some surprising trends emerged.
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: Thailand Hua Chang Anaerobic Natural—Our second Thai offering of the year is a truly unique coffee from the Chiang Rai region— anaerobic-natural processed! These freshly harvested coffee cherries were fermented in sealed tanks with no oxygen for five days before being moved to raised drying beds. The result is a distinctly fruit-forward flavor profile that we adore, with flavors of plum, fruit compote, and pistachio butter.
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: Irvin Izaguirre—Upon visiting longtime partner Juan Angel’s farms in Honduras in 2022, we learned that he passed along his highest elevation property, La Montaña, to his son Irvin to care for. Madcap has partnered with Juan’s family since 2014, and we’ve watched his sons become more involved with the coffee growing process. This coffee is marked with soft notes of red berries like raspberry, as well as cane sugar and rose.
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: Guiben – Natural—The first container of specialty coffee left Yunnan, China for Australia in late 2015. Over the last nine years, Yunnan’s specialty coffee production has increased in leaps and bounds in both quantity and quality. We’re typically not familiar with specialty grade Asian coffees, but the truth is that these coffees can pass quality tests with flying colors. Tasting notes include pink lemonade, strawberry candy, and chocolate malt.
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: Rwanda Huye Mountain—Rwanda Huye Mountain is a combination of top-scoring lots selected through Huye David Rubanzangabo’s meticulous quality control process. The result is a coffee—and a partnership—that’s been keeping us coming back for more since 2012. One taste will envelop you in all the grace and elegance of what an exceptional coffee tastes like—with notes of ripe pear, tart citrus, and fragrant vanilla.
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
Driftaway Coffee - Wholesale Sales Representative - New York City, NY
Counter Culture - Regional Technical Services - New York, NY
Minor Figures - Area Sales Representative - Washington, DC-based, remote
Balzac Brothers - Company Accountant - Charleston, SC
La Marzocco - Technical Support - Seattle, WA
La Marzocco - Sales Representative - Los Angeles, CA
Greater Goods Coffee Co - Wholesale Account Manager - Austin, TX
New cafes on Sprudge Maps
Here are new cafes discoverable on our global cafe portal Sprudge Maps. Register your cafe for free—thanks to the support of La Marzocco and Pacific Barista Series.
Origin Coffee - Lake Placid, NY
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