Highlights from a mind-boggling informative and educational afternoon at the SCAA Symposium. Whoa!
Kim Elena Bullock, Counter Culture Coffee Green Buyer:
“Does quality equal sustainability? What happens when people demand certification?” And what exactly happened at those good ol’ Good Food Awards a few months back? Kim weighs in with some heavy opinions on what happens when suppliers, green buyers, roasters and baristas are allowed to make excuses for unsustainable practices. (Hint: she thinks the end result is something close to fraud.)
“As an industry, we’ve proven ourselves willing to invest in quality – every time we have a dollar to spend, we spend it on quality.”
Does this mean we’re throwing sustainability down the proverbial rabbit hole? A thought provoking ten minutes from Kim.
Dr. Shawn Steiman, Scientist and Consultant at Coffea
In a rapid-fire staccato performance, Dr. Steiman more or less de-balls the standard cupping forms and evaluation terminology used to grade coffees. He calls the current model “inflexible” and “subjective”, and goes on to suggest the coffee community ought to get rid of the 100 point system all together and rate everything instead on acidity, body and sweetness. “Who is the arbiter of quality?” – who indeed?
Dr. Tim Schilling (Redux)
Round two of Dr. Tim, in which he challenges the status quo, calls out your taste descriptors (“Key lime! Cherry coke!”), and makes a case for marrying sensory and scientific methods for accurately defining quality. “Every point in the value chain needs to agree on a set of qualifications”.
Peter Giuliano, SCAA President and Counter Culture Coffee Co-Owner
Peter G makes a compelling statement on the fundamental specialness of coffee’s place in human culture, by walking us through the Ethiopian coffee ceremony, coffee consumption in the palaces of Vienna, and the fast food-ification of coffee service in America. As always, his is an engaging, immensely knowledgeable presence, and watching him address a group of 400 is a pleasure indeed.
A Round-Up Round-Up:
Brazil’s Dr. Flavio Borem makes a bold vote for genetic modification. (“There is a chasm that separates quality and sustainability, and technology can bridge that gap.”) Arturo Aguierre, the maestro of El Injerto, cuts a dashing figure on stage while talking about terroir, education and investment on his family’s farm. Price Peterson longs for a world where “there will be those who prefer Pacamara, those who delight in Geisha, and those who insist on nothing but Kenya SL-28”, Jose Francisco Pereira presents a number of videos from origin, including hulling, screening and cupping, and Christie Thorns brings it on home the hard way in a lengthy producer panel discussion.
We’ll be back fresh and frisky tomorrow morning to bring you more EXCLUSIVE coverage of the SCAA Symposium!
