The Great Coffee Overload at ACF 2015

Friday started extra early for me. I had set my alarm clock for 7.30 the night before, but had beat the annoying jingle to the morning.

A familiar feeling crept up on me. It felt like I was 9 again and my dad was about to take me to an amusement park. With that same childish giddiness I rushed to catch my train. No thrill rides and sugar rushes for me, but a weekend of caffeine and awesome inspirational people awaited! I simply couldn’t wait until I passed the doors of the Amsterdam Coffee Festival 2015 and after two long… very looooong hours I finally did.

Like last year, the ACF was hosted at the NDSM-dock in Amsterdam. It was such an awesome location for a festival like this.

Walking in, one of the first things that stood out was the La Marzocco stand. The public was greeted by three covered machines. Eagle-eyed coffee fanatics already knew this was about the unveiling of the new La Marzocco Linea Mini. A shiny new machine, yet inspired by a true classic, for the very enthusiastic home baristas among us

On to the festival itself. Fortunately it was my second time ’round. I learned the hard way I had to pace my coffee intake. So, naturally, I ran to the first stand I wanted to visit for an espresso.

The remainder of the day I spent running around, tasting awesome coffee at the hands of White Label, Single Estate, Stooker Roasting Co. and Berlin’s Five Elephant.

I also got to listen to an enticing talk by Jeffrey Young, as he laid out a full coffee market report. A presentation about today’s coffee scene. He talked about how he has been saying “branded chains are on the rise” for years now, and how that still holds true. Next to that, he also mentioned the blossoming artisan coffee culture. He even went as far as calling Amsterdam one of the most exciting coffee places of Europe. He also explained how we’re starting to see a lot of specialty coffee pop up in combination with other ventures (coffee and ‘vintage’ anyone? ;))

What I took away from Friday is how unbelievably passionate and sharing the people at the ACF were.

Fortunately for me this was day one of two I got to run around a caffeinated fool in Amsterdam!
In the next part I’ll discuss my runnings about on the Sunday… And what finally decided to take home with me from the ACF 😉

See you at the next shot!

Amsterdam Coffee Festival 2015

A small impression of ACF 2015. Met so many cool people 🙂 Expect a full update, later this week!

Something’s brewing

So, two years ago I started this blog. I didn’t really know which direction I wanted to go in, so one day I just decided to start off. Unfortunately, I found out it took a lot more time than I anticipated. And so it turned awfully quiet around here.

However, I never stopped being around coffee. I volunteered for SCAE at the Dutch Latte Art Championship in Amsterdam, for instance. It was fascinating meeting all these professionals and seeing the contestants at work. I got to meet a lot of new and very interesting people!

Enter the Amsterdam Coffee Festival. As you can read, I got the opportunity to blog for them. It made me fall in love with writing all over again. Moreover, it made me connect with more coffee lovers and bloggers alike!

Finally I know which direction I want to go in and boy, it’s exciting! With the Amsterdam Coffee Festival right around the corner, I’ve got some awesome ideas lined up, working with equally awesome people.

I won’t tell you exactly what you can expect, but you can expect a lot of stories. No reviews, rankings or ratings, but I’ll be sitting down with different people to talk coffee, whether they be professionals, amateurs, or complete strangers to specialty coffee. Basically it’s an excuse to meet people and drink coffee 😉 I mostly want people to tell their story and bridge the gap between the connoisseur and the average Joe.

Well, that’s the major update for me for now. Thank you for reading and you’ll hear/read from me soon!

Much love and coffee,

Tahn.

The incredible journey of coffee

I can’t believe another month’s gone by and it’s time share some exciting  coffee videos again!

For most of us, the only thing we get to see when we order a coffee, is the final product. A nice fresh brew sitting on the table top in front of us, to be enjoyed, relished, analysed or simply just consumed. We all know that the contents of that very cup has an origin, but where does it start?

This month, I’ve tried to find videos that take you further back, over the counter, to the roaster and onto the farm.

Disclaimer: as always, none of the videos are actually owned by me. Give the creators a like, to show and share the coffee love!

Specialty Coffee: The Pursuit of Deliciousness (by Thrash Lab)

A great video that depicts the arts of roasting and cupping. Two of many processes key to serving the best quality coffee to the customer. What I particularly love about the video, is the amount of passion shown by these professionals.

Tim Wendelboe: Developing  Green Coffee Quality (by Nordic Barista)

 I set out to find a video about the people who actually import green coffee. Having founded his own company Nordic  Approach, the ever inspiring Tim Wendelboe ranks among the best. He talks about his perspective on developing green coffee quality. At 51 minutes, it’s quite a lengthy talk, but definitely worthwhile!

SPREAD Rwanda Specialty Coffee: Brewing Fresh Oppurtunity (by GLP Films)