After the Tasting

Posted on by in Terroir +.

photo courtesy of Tess Macsiz

What is it that we taste when we sip our coffee? Is it the soil or environmental factors of an area? The varietal? Is it the wash/fermentation process? Or the hand of the roaster? From our field study work it would seem that many people in the coffee roasting industry would like you to think that it is the roasters who are imbuing these beans with magical flavors. And to a certain extent that would be true. Just as a wine maker or chocolatier plays an integral role in terroirs ultimate role in a product, so to does a roaster. As a result of everything we have learned throughout this quarter, I can say with assurance that yes I can taste the differences in the terroir of different coffees. I take my sip and say “hmm this coffee smells & tastes great, the coffee roaster sure brought out some wonderful flavor and aromatic profiles.” And for me its important to recognize and emphasize BROUGHT OUT, for the coffee roaster didn’t create the flavors, they simply gave the coffee bean a nudge in the right direction.

by, GT

” The Pale Yellow Glove” insight

Posted on by in Field Study.

The coffee itself at both of the field study sites were rather favorable. In “The Pale Yellow Glove” in The Culture Reader by Escher, it reads, “it is, I am sure, as much a matter of spirit as of body. Everything is right; nothing jars. There is a kind of harmony, with every sensation and emotion melted into one chord of well-being” (325). That quote had been running through my mind constantly throughout the entirety of both of the tasting. I personally am not a coffee drinker and I did not know what to expect honestly. I found myself in a similar situation when doing the wine tastings: not having much experience. I was trying to find what I enjoyed in both cases. For coffee, I had somewhat an idea of the kind of coffee I enjoyed. But come to my surprise, the tastings lacked the very things I enjoyed (the sugar, cream and drizzle of chocolate on top).

It was really interesting to taste the different regions of the world. Although during the tasting at Olympia Coffee Roasters, they believe that the terroir came from the different fermentation processes that each region uses. As there are only a handful of varieties grown, and a narrow selection of environments they are able to be grown in. Along with that, the reason why different regions do different things is due to historical content and different environments in which they have to deal with. All of those factors never left my mind and forever changed my perception of terroir. To think that it is not the taste of the origin, but rather the taste of how it traveled.

Cultural Studies

Posted on by in Permaculture and Coffee.

Despite the rejection of mind altering substances in the mainstream culture it is apparent that every culture in the world has foods and products that walk the line of drug/stimulant/depressant, and if not walking the line then down right trampling over it. In the U.S. the arbitrary laws that rule dictate what substances citizens may ingest without breaking the law and suffering at the hands of our (un)justice system. Alcohol, tobacco and coffee are three products that immediately come to mind but coffee is the one that stands out as different. It was popularized in association with the enlightening of a culture  and has been used to stimulate and caffeinate many generations of blue collar and elite professionals. Out of the three substances I mentioned coffee is the most food like substance and also the most medicinal and promising for humans.

The formation of coffee culture dates Back to 14th century in Turkey but has spread across the world at a great pace and has become the second most traded item in the world (behind petroleum). Coffee houses have been a common spaces for artists, intellectuals, socialites for centuries and present day coffee houses vend hot cups of motivation and tradition that many people don’t consider beyond a pick-me-up or daily ritual. The caffeine in coffee may present risk for addiction but there is mounting evidence that shows it and (and possibly other properties) significantly reduced risks of Alzheimer and dementia in old age. With the incredible amount of social and economic attention on coffee it is important to consider the irony in the sickness of our two largest industries. The truth is the processes essential for the coffee industry have been consistently unfair to the tropical and subtropical natives who farm the plants and the processes themselves threaten the industry. The energy it takes to process one pound of coffee requires over 8,000 calories
of fossil-fuel energy while delivering very few calories. This huge caloric input output disparity is troubling but the coffee industry by nature of being global prevalent antagonists itself in the creation and transportation and consumption of the product.