CoffeeCon 2014 San Francisco
I am honored to once again attend Kevin Sinnott's CoffeeCon show, this year in San Francisco, attending as one of the event's Official Media Bloggers.There are all kinds of coffee shows for the industry, where people in the coffee business get together. CoffeeCon however is the first, and as far as I know, only show for the coffee drinker. It's for you and I. If you love coffee, there is no shortage of great information, vendors, and demonstrations at CoffeeCon.Check out: Official CoffeeCon home pageRead: Trip Report - CoffeeCON 2013
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The biggest challenge of all is how to see everything that I want to see. To add to the challenge, we're attending a sporting event in San Jose that late afternoon, so I won't even have the luxury of the whole day.
10 AM: This is the time of day where I wish I could be in four places at once. George Howell is the keynote speaker, and his cupping/tasting workshop last year was a highlight of the show. However, since I attended the whole workshop last year and also interviewed George afterwards, I may forego his workshop this year, or sneak in before it ends.
Read: What is Direct Trade coffee? (George Howell interview)Read: How A Coffee Professional Makes Good Coffee (George Howell interview)
This narrows my options to the AeroPress workshop led by AeroPress inventor Alan Adler, Cacao Tasting (I am a dark chocolate fiend!), and How to Review Coffee with Kenneth Davids, founder of Coffee Review.
There's no easy choice here, but I have to go with How to Review Coffee. I own three books that Davids has written, and I follow his Coffee Review evaluations so that I can try the coffees that he reviews that are local to me. I also plan to interview him later that day, and would be embarrassed if I didn't attend his presentation.
11 AM: Here, I'm torn between the Chemex lab, and Helen Russell's presentation on Coffee Social Responsibility. I am a proponent of responsible coffee buying - thinking about where coffee comes from and conditions in those parts of the world. However, I attended a similar presentation last year and it was at the expense of a formal presentation on proper use of the Chemex as a way to brew coffee. I have to go with the Chemex lab.
12 PM: Hands down, I have to go with the Science of Coffee at this time. I am by no means the science type, but I think a basic presentation on the science of coffee would be very cool and informative.
1 PM: It has to be the Aeropress lab, led by its inventor Alan Adler. I'm upset to miss Scott Merle's presentation on Coffee Sustainability, but as you can see, there is just way too much I want to see at each time slot. I love my Aeropress and use it often at home to brew coffee.
At 2 PM, we bust a move to catch live UFC in San Jose at the SAP Center! Fellow fight fans, Ruthless Robbie Lawler vs. Matt the Immortal Brown!! Yes, I said earlier that coffee takes precedence, but as you can see above, I've outlined four solid hours of coffee education before I'm on my way. It will be another great experience, and one that makes me appreciate coffee all the more.