For a long time the coffee you could get at home was limited in quality because the average home user, while able to purchase gear and coffee, was not able to match the commercial water quality of their favorite cafe. All that changed when ThIrd Wave Water democratized ideal water for coffee and helped unlock the potential for innumerable coffee lovers world wide.
Taylor Minor is Co-Founder of Third Wave Water. With a passion for technology and having owned and ran his own roastery, Taylor eventually applied this experience to customizing his own water then, along with business partner Charles Nick, developed Third Wave Water. 3W Water was featured on Shark Tank and has been had a global impact on how people view and can access ideal water for the various coffees they brew.
In our conversation wee discuss the genesis of 3W Water, the evolution of the industry, how they have grown along with it, the science behind the products, and Taylor's views on specialty coffee.
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Part 2 of 2023 Coffee Fest Live Louisville, KY interviews!
In these interviews I sit down with stellar presenters and lecturers to dig deep into a range of relevant and important topics that will help make you and your coffee business better.
For this part 2 we get to talk with Lauren Lathrop and Rob Arnold!
Next we chat with Rob Arnold of Pre-Game Coffee
Rob is the founder, owner, roaster, and creative at Pre-Game Coffee here in Louisville, KY. For 4 years now Pre-Game has been the premier sports, coffee, and cocktail venue in Louisville and focuses on providing what is likely one of the most unique hospitality experiences in the city. Cocktails and signature drinks have been a focus since day one and Rob was able to talk with the attendees at Coffee Fest about the secrets to success with these beverages. I sat down to chat with Rob about that very thing so you too can benefit from his field tested approach to cafe cocktails and sig drinks!
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Part 1 of 2023 Coffee Fest Live Louisville, KY interviews!
In these interviews I sit down with stellar presenters and lecturers to dig deep into a range of relevant and important topics that will help make you and your coffee business better.
To start us off on part 1 we are going to talk with Jackie Nguyen of Cafe Caphe!
Next we chat with Sean Roberson of West Lou Coffee!
Sean Roberson is the founder and roaster at West Lou Coffee in Louisville, KY. A West Louisville native Sean fell in love with coffee roasting after a career in finance and has been running an growing West Lou coffee as a business based in West Louisville and with an aim to enrich and inspire locals in West Louisville and other overlooked and under resourced areas of cities world-wide. Today we chat with Sean about his journey in starting West Lou Coffee, the challenges, importance of his work, and advice to other who live in marginalized areas to start and build something for their communities as he has.
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If we work with people long enough, we are going to face frustrations and challenges. Too often these normal relational issues go unresolved and solidify into something called resentment.
Today on Shift break we will be talking about how boss and barista alike can fall into this trap and what to do to avoid the toxicity that results by leaving it unaddressed.
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As an industry, our flavor preferences turn into what we market, which turn communicates a message about quality and what people should care about when it comes to "the best" coffees. Too often we are content to let the our message be incredibly narrow regarding flavors and preferences. Without context this leaves a lot of great coffee that may be more enjoyable for the consumer, at a disadvantage.
On this Rate of Rise episode we will be talking about tools to bridge the flavor preference gap with coffee legend, Phil Beattie of Dillanos Coffee Roasters!
Phillip Beattie is the Director of Coffee for Dillanos Coffee Roasters. He is an experienced coffee industry leader with over 20 years in roasting, sourcing and quality control. Known for his contagious energy and passionate leadership. He served as chair the Roasters Guild, been on international cupping juries, and has been a certified Q Grader. He had the privilege of roasting for two United States Barista Champions, once in 2015 and again in 2019. Phillip feels fortunate and blessed to work in the world of coffee.
In our conversation Phil gives us wonderful insights on the state of roasting, how we market, and what tools or system changes are needed to correct the current imbalance that favors our own tastes vs that of the consumer.
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Growing you coffee shop is about more than just adding locations. Growth has to do with developing internal resilience, culture, and practices that are life giving to those who work in the business and to you as the owner. Ultimately the path for sustainable growth is a people-first path and today we are talking with someone who has a lot of experience charting that path. I am thrilled to welcome back to the show, Mike McFall of Biggby Coffee!
BIGGBY is a fast-growing coffee franchise with over 350+ locations across the U.S. Within the company, Mike has worked every position, from minimum-wage barista to his current role of Co-CEO.
Grow, the second book in Mike’s three-book series, picks up where Grind leaves off–when an entrepreneur is in the midst of the bootstrapping entrepreneurial phase and asking, “what’s next?” The book offers a strategic blueprint for entrepreneurs trying to reach the promised land of stability and sustainability in their businesses.
Filled with real-life examples from Mike’s 26 years of experience, Grow plants the seeds to help readers recreate themselves as the leaders their organizations need them to be and take their business from chaos to calm.
In this conversation we dive into some of the most critical element outlined in his book that, if applied and practiced, will definitely help you grow your business the right way.
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All of us have had the conflicted emotions of having baristas that are simply amazing but then also knowing that those baristas will eventually leave the coffee shop. Try as we may, most staff will not be long term and this can either cause you to feel defeated, or you can embrace it and the opportunity these exemplary employees bring.
Today on Shift break we will be talking about how we can lean on the examples of our best staff to essential bottle that magic and allow our systems and structures to be shaped by their example and the ideas their work brings to the business.
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Learning how to listen is the cornerstone of effective and transformative communication. In the hustle and fast paced daily activities of the coffee shop, it is easy to forget about listening and truly understanding what is being said beyond the words we hear. Add to this that emotions are often high, listening deeply and well can seem daunting.
Thankfully we have a guest on the show today who is a listening expert and has built incredible resources to help show use exactly how to listen!
Oscar Trimboli is an author, host of the Apple award-winning podcast Deep Listening and a sought-after keynote speaker.
His third book is how to listen – discover the hidden key to better communication – the most comprehensive book about listening in the workplace. Along with the Deep Listening Ambassador Community, he is on a quest to create 100 million deep listeners in the workplace.
Through his work with chairs, boards of directors, and executive teams, Oscar has experienced first-hand the transformational impact leaders can have when they listen beyond words.
In this conversation we dig deep into the principles of listening, especially when emotions cloud our mind. Through deeply personal examples, role playing scenarios, and impactful insight, Oscar lays out a master class in listening here on his second appearance on KTTS. Enjoy!
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Especially important for the younger generation is access to the wisdom and experience of those who have gone before. Older coffee professionals can also benefit from the drive and perspectives of the younger. Problem is that we tend to only converse with and stick to your own age group and the benefit of cross generational communication is lost.
On today's Shift Break we will be talking about mentorship and the importance of seeking these intergenerational relationships and the benefit it brings not only to our own development as individuals, but to the industry as a whole.
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The barrier of entry for getting a coffee shop open is lower than ever. Many have the idea that if they can get the shop open, then they have succeeded. But the test is not only about whether you can open a shop, or even if you can keep it open, but how do you make something that is truly great and successful?
On today's episode we will be talking about a few ingredients that must be present in the mix of a coffee shop from the beginning in order for all the components we assemble in the race to open, to work together and create something truly greater than the sum of its parts.
These things are not readily apparent but are necessary nonetheless, and are what separates the average coffee shop from one that is long lasting and impactful.
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I mean, I like variety as much as the next person, but overly complex menus are overwhelming and create confusion for customers who rely on us to curate our offerings that meets their needs in a way that delivers quality over quantity.
On today's Shift Break we will be talking about how the pursuit of a simplified menu can be a powerful tool for hospitality and, in the end, creates a more memorable experience that customers are excited to share with others.
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In order to train people in coffee and barista skills you have to not only be a student of your subject, but also a student of your students and their unique context. In recent years we have seen an incredible explosion of coffee eduction in producing countries where the landscape of learning is among the most unique given their deep relationship with coffee. Today we will be talking with an educator whose commitment to learning and bringing understanding to this context is making great impact. I am excited to be chatting with Fabiola Solano of sOY barista in Costa Rica!
As a certified with the Coffee Diploma and Authorized SCA Trainer (AST) in 2018, Fabiola began her preparation as a barista in 2013. She also has a bachelor's degree in business administration, a degree in marketing, and a specialization in hotel operations management. She is currently studying for the Certificate of Advanced Studies in Coffee Excellence at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences.
She has dedicated herself to content creation since 2015 for her blog Soy Barista, always focusing on updated and relevant data for the Spanish-speaking community
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Setting up and maintaining a roaster for functionality, safety, and quality output is perhaps the biggest challenge of roasting. There are many variables and trades that go into it and it is easy to skip some steps, be less than detailed, and rush the project. I don't need to tell you, that is s a recipe for disaster. Perhaps nobody in roasting tech knows this more than the man who gets called to both set up roasters, and swoop in and deal with all sorts of emergency situations and repairs. Today on RoR we are talking with the legend, Doug Graf of Vintage Coffee.
Doug Graf has been rooted in the roasting, and roasting tech, repair and installation world for over three decades. From running his own family business for twenty years- to full time instal, repair, and consulting work for roasters over ten years, Doug Graf has maybe literally seen and worked on it all. Through his consulting company, Vintage Coffee, he provides consulting, training, repair and maintenance, plant design, and start up for coffee roasters of every size. Vintage is also a service representative for Canada for Loring Smart Roasters.
As you might guess, he is also a very active member of the roaster guild where he generously shares his hard earned wisdom and runs the roasters tent at the guild retreats.
In our conversation we talk with Doug about his career and focus on his advice and insights on how we should approach setting up and caring for our roasters and roasting spaces, and what the most common mistakes are related to maintenance to help us avoid needless troubles in the roastery.
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It's Founder Friday! Partnerships in coffee bars can be tricky things. You really have to make sure you have complimentary character traits as well as a unified s12et of values to help guide you through the ups and downs of business in a the cafe and roastery. Today we are talking with a couple of guys who have combined forces and have shown what is possible when these things are in place and you have a passion to serve and advance both people and coffee. We are talking with Kyle Ramage and Lem Butler of Black and White Coffee Roasters!
Kyle and Lem are industry legends in their own rights. Each of their carerers has spanned the decades and has been punctuated with competition success. Lem and U.S. Barista Champion in 2016, and Kyle as U.S. Barista Champion in 2017. Along their careers they have been deeply involved in retail, roasting, and have been integral members of the global coffee community through their work and examples.
The founding of their cafe and roastery in 2017 was the combination their individual talents to create something new, powerful, and needed in the coffee space. They have been making waves in the industry since them striking a balance between accessible coffees, more extreme coffees, serving their staff and customers, and continuing to invest in competitions and the professional development of competitors.
This conversation is a look at their history, the development of Black and White, their own growth as owners, and the how of their approach to running one of the most respected brands in coffee.
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There is a shortcut for everything these days. Automation, templates, and other tools would give you the impression that you can automate of be hands off with your leadership and that your aim is to continually seek more ways to remove yourself.
On today's Shift Break we will be talking about how this idea, while appropriate in some aspects of the business, is a recipe for disaster in others.
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Opportunities for specialty coffee still abound in certain areas of the American South. With those opportunities comes challenges of communicating coffee in a way that both meets people where they are, and helps open them up to new experiences that expand their enjoyment. Today we are talking with someone who has not only been communicating to his customers through the coffee he roasts, but also through a podcast designed to be an entertaining AND educational. We are chatting with Kenneth Thomas of Umble Coffee!
Kenneth Thomas is host of the very popular Coffee 101 podcast and interviews coffee experts weekly from around the world. He is owner and head roaster at Umble Coffee Co, an online and wholesale coffee company. Kenneth and Umble Coffee have been ranked as one of the top specialty coffee roasters in the United States consistently for the last several years. He is also a physician and chemical engineer - both of which lend expertise to Umble’s mission of sourcing and roasting the best coffees from around the world in a way that optimizes for taste quality and health.
In my conversation with Kenneth we will cover how his own curiosity sparked his obsession and business, how he crafts customer service through roasting excellent coffee in an approachable way, and the importance of always learning and providing opportunities to learn for himself, his customers, and listeners.
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The foundation of the building determines the stability of what is built on it. When it comes to building a coffee shop business your growth cannot out pace the degree to which you invest in the relationships and the culture at the heart of it.
On today's Shift Break we will be talking about the need to increase engagement, resourcing, communication, and meaningful connection as you get business and the business develops in size and scope.
This is a very important topic and one that I hope you take to heart and put into practice.
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Tenacity, humility, and curiosity. Whether you are working as a barista, competing, opening your own shop and roastery, these are character traits that are essential for success. Today we are talking with someone whose long career in coffee has been characterized by these values. We are chatting with the new U.S. Barista Champion, Isaiah Sheese!
Isaiah Sheese is the Owner of Archetype Coffee located in Omaha, Nebraska. He has been working in the coffee industry for almost 20 years in various roles from barista, to QC cupper, green buyer, janitor, and now owner. He has competed in the US Barista Championships for 9 years, judged for 2 years, and placed top 6 in 8 of the 9 qualifiers. He finished 5th in 2020 and is now the 2023 US Barista Champion.
In my conversation with Isaiah we get to talk about his beginnings in coffee, the early experiences of competition, starting and running Archetype, and the pursuit of hospitality while also pushing coffee forward.
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It is not so much the fear of change that keeps us from moving forward in the areas we know are necessary. It is the fear of what will happen when we implement the change. The fall out, we imagine, is too much to handle and so we stay where we are.
On today's Shift Break we will be talking about why you need to embrace the fallout related to needed change and how doing so in a people-first way will, in spite of the inconveniences, lead to a better outcome.
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One of the hardest things to make consistent in the coffee shop is your espresso. There are so many variables that contribute to the final product, not to mention the number of different baristas tasked with making coffee daily. can be very overwhelming and inevitably we throw in the towel and end up with a let than optimal product. Well good news! Today we get to dive into the science of optimizing your espresso with coffee scientist Samo Smrke!
Samo Smrke is a scientific associate at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) in the group of prof. Yeretzian. He is involved in coffee research projects in collaboration with industry partners and in fundamental research on various topics of coffee chemistry and coffee science. He is leading a module of the Coffee Excellence continuing education course at ZHAW, and various other educational programs with partners of ZHAW.
Samo is actively participating at coffee conferences, is one of the co-authors of the SCA Freshness Handbook and Water Handbook and has contributed to scientific papers and book chapters about coffee.
In this episode we discuss several major factors that need to be considered and optimized in order to always have the consistent and excellent espresso you want to serve on your coffee bar.
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Like you, I have been to and conducted my fair share of cafe meetings. And also like you, I have seriously questioned the effectiveness of these get togethers. In fact, in many cases meetings can hurt more than help. How do we avoid this?
On today's Shift Break I will be taking you through a few big mistakes that contribute to bad or ineffective meetings, and what to do instead to make sure your gatherings are assets to the business and not liabilities to culture.
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The world of coffee is saturated with suppliers of tools and equipment. Most are seeking the transaction and chasing the opportunity the current market has afforded them. Precious few suppliers are truly passionate about their customers in a meaningful way that results in the love and respect of the barista community. Slow Pour Supply is one such company, because Anita Tam is one such person.
Anita Tam is the owner and founder of Slow Pour Supply Co., a socially driven coffeetools company that is dedicated to serving coffee people and small businesses around the world.
Prior to coffee Anita spent decades in the world of professional music as both a professional classical musician, instructor, and conductor. She discovered a passion and fascination for the craft and science of coffee that set her on a course to not only work in coffee but to establish Slow Pour as a platform to foster the same discovery for baristas globally through quality tools.
Anita is a long time certified AST with the SCA and you can find her and her team at almost any coffee event or competition spreading joy and positivity and serving the community.
Today we are going to be getting to know a bit about Anita's entry into coffee, the passionate and philosophies that drive her, and how she approaches business and relationships in coffee with wholistic generosity.
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On this Rate of Rise episode I am thrilled to get to have a conversation with the new U.S. roasting Champion, Andrew Coe of Elevator Coffee in Portland, OR
Andrew Coe is the owner and roaster at Elevator Coffee in Portland, OR, founded in 2016. Andrew launched his professional roasting career by winning the first Cascadia Cup roasting competition at Buckman Coffee Factory, a co-roasting facility across the street from his cafe, using a Behmor 1600. He currently operates out of another co-roasting facility in NE Portland called Roast, which is home to a fully customized 1938 12kg Probat (probably one of the cooler machines in town). Andrew also private label roasts for Two Stroke Coffee. He has a masters degree in Mathematics from Oregon State University, and worked as a Transportation Planner prior to coffee.
In our conversation we chat about Andrew's entry into coffee, competition, and insights learned over his career
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It's Founder Friday! I just learned of the news that the original sidewalk bar for Espresso Vivace is going to be closing permanently. This is very sad news given the rich history of that cafe and the impact it's had on so many. So today I thought it would be a great idea to re-air a conversation I had with David Schomer back in Feb of 2019!
Since its founding in 1988 Espresso Vivace has been home to David's groundbreaking and paradigm shifting experiments with espresso coffee and drink presentation. His work has been foundational and formative in the lives of countless professionals around the world. In this interview I get to talk with
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There is a lot to take away and be inspired by here. Enjoy!
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Today we have an incredible number of options to increase efficiency and outsource everything we do, including the things that people would normally assume come from you as a creator. This presents a problem that I believe is based either upholding or violating a common trust between the consumer and the provider.
Today on Shift Break we will be talking about the use of A.I., white label coffee, authenticity, and what I believe is the necessity for us to fight for the integrity of our communication.
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