Attitude

[Redswing]

Thoughts after spending about a year addicted to this forum:

I ran across this article last night Metonymy Media | AHA! Moments with Roasted Beans and found myself resonating with the roaster being interviewed. I loved his approach to specialty coffee.

I'm the kind of guy who in all things can respect pretty much anybody for saying pretty much anything as long as they aren't saying it with the kind of certainty that gets irked if the audience doesn't take it as truth. People need to buy-in to your certainty on their own after experiencing what it is you believe in. Some people like to be told what to do while other people bristle. I tend to bristle. To me, it's a matter of being an effective communicator. You say something with certainty when somebody else doesn't understand (yet), you lose them.

The guys attitude was classy in my book, a good example of what I'm trying to say. Here's a part that especially caught my eye:

the interviewer: I have to be candid. This is the point in most conversations about food or drink
when I begin to lose trust. You can get lost in the noise of artisans and
gourmands touting their association names, making promises of freshness, of
being local or organic or quality or better than the rest. So I asked,
pretty pointedly, what the roaster thought about the chains. Why is what he is
doing better? Why will people care?
“Starbucks is doing great stuff,” he said. “They’re introducing people to a
wide world of coffee, and I don’t want to say that my coffee is the right way to
do coffee. That’s not the point. The point is to introduce people to something
they’ve never seen before.”

He smiled as he spoke, and he was also very serious.

I'd include more, because there is more context, but without risking too long a ramble...
What do you guys think of this idea?

 

[PinkRose]

That was a very nice article. Thanks for finding and sharing it with us.

It was written in February of this year. I guess the roaster being interviewed still wants to remain anonymous. It would be great if he'd join this Coffee Forum!

In the past, many of the long-time members of this Forum have shared that they believe that Starbucks deserves credit for introducing people to a new experience in coffee. Those who appreciate what they did for the world of coffee, give Starbucks credit for getting the ball rolling. However, it appears that a lot of new members don't seem to realize how the coffee experience has evolved, and they make a lot of noise about how their choice of coffee, roasting, or method of preparation is the only "right" way to do it.

I agree that the whole point is to introduce people to something they've never experienced before. There are kinder and gentler ways to do it. No one needs to spout out Association names, certifications, and how wonderful they are. The proof is in the cup.

Rose

 

[ensoluna]

thanks for the posting from Redswing and also I completely agree with what PinkRose was saying.

it has been bit over 2 month since I joined this forum and i have communicated (& even traveled) with a lot of people here. that was an eye-opening and also interesting experience.

Person like Watventu who was brave and adventurous enough to trust me immediately and travel with me deep into Guatemala (only after couple of emails and meeting once before travel) for two weeks and open to new ideas and new types of coffees. (he actually spent more time in my factory & laboratory than I did :+) On the other hand, I also communicated with some people who only believes in their own ways "roasting methods" or "selling only Roasted coffee", "Only Organic" "No ground coffee for sales", ...etc

Honestly to say, few times, I catch myself being closed minded. However, I try very hard to be open to everything because I believe that coffee is an acquired taste that ONLY improves with new experiences and adventures. So, I guess Coffee experience is like Life experience.

For the argument over Starbucks, yes, absolutely they got the ball rolling around the world, over 10K stores in USA and over 8K and counting. Amazing what they did in such a short time. Some wise person said that when there is no "bad", there is no "good" either..... because without the comparison, it is very hard to measure what is good or great.
I guess we have to thank Starbucks for that... having us realize what is good and what could be better.

I am learning something about people and coffee everyday here and I appreciate being in this forum.

 

[JumpinJakJava]

I too, enjoyed the article! Thanks for sharing!

"The point is to introduce people to something
they’ve never seen before.”

"I agree that the whole point is to introduce people to something they've never experienced before."

I can attest to the fact that I have been introduced to the coffee experience via Starbuck's Gold Coast blend. The year was 1995.
After years of stale, restaurant/cafe ground and packaged coffee(who knows when?), I had some very dark roasted coffee.
Smokey, burnt taste, but definitely different then what I ever experienced before. I have now acclimated to Full City to plus as my personal
roast preferences.

From the same article:
“Can you believe that the chemicals inside of roasted coffee beans start to go bad within 30 days? Ground coffee can start to go stale in as little as 30 minutes. And the way big companies combat this is to over roast their beans. Then you hear people saying that they love dark roasts, love a really dark coffee. But when you do that, you’re roasting those essential oils out of the beans that give them their flavor. We never over roast here, because we believe that when people taste coffee that has been roasted correctly and served fresh, they’ll taste things they’ve never tasted before.”

As a roaster myself, I concur wholeheartedly. But if someone wants a dark roast, I will roast it for them.
I like my steak medium/rare, some like it well done. Enough said.

 

[Redswing]

I think what I'm getting at is not so much lowering your standards, but more the attitude in which you present them. You've got to take a stance on how you approach coffee. I think it's great to say "we don't pre-grind" or "we only serve organic" or "we don't over roast our beans" or whatever.

I resonated with his personal pursuit of quality that was secure enough to not thumb his nose at what he doesn't agree with. You know...the person who talks the loudest is usually trying to prove something (perhaps to himself)? I bring it up because it's one of the issues in specialty coffee that has stuck out to me, this business of being right.

 

[NEWMAN]

That was an excellent article; thanks for sharing it. I wish Mile Square all the best as they move forward.

Giving people the opportunity to experience coffee in new and different ways is a big part of what we do as specialty coffee roasters.