On a November 10th, our class took a field trip to Olympia Coffee Roasting Company’s newly renovated storefront and roastery in downtown Olympia for a tour and a coffee cupping (tasting).
Photo by Christopher DiNottia of Olympia Coffee Roasting Company. Found at http://www.olympiacoffee.com/blogs/blog/53426052-hq-expansion-in-downtown-olympia
During the course of answering all the questions asked of them by our classmates, OCR owners Sam Schroeder and Oliver Stormshak spoke about what they think terroir means in regards to coffee.
An audio clip recorded by Emily Dunn-Wilder on November 10th, 2015 at Olympia Coffee Roasting Company. Two separate quotes spliced together using Audacity Audio Editor and Recorder.
When asked by Sophie if they see terroir as primarily the place, soil, and climate where the coffee is grown, Sam and Oliver replied:
“I think it’s very specific to the place. This farm, on this hillside, that gets this kind of weather, at this elevation, that’s what we see as terroir. Elevation, we know, has a huge impact. The most important thing, the reason Olympia Coffee tastes the way it does, is the roasting process. The roasting process, actually, is the most important thing.”