For those who have decided to leave the nuances of coffee to the rest of the world, and are sticking with the thin stuff of truck stops, coffee roasting won’t have too much appeal. But for anyone whose ears start to perk up whenever there’s a nearby conversation where people are debating whether or not a macchiato should have whipped cream, the subtleties of roasting are terribly interesting. In the Chicago area, everything is pretty spectacular, with a very discerning population from all over the planet. It’s not just that there’s a threat that someone will know how things are supposed to taste, but that there are thousands of people who know, and they’re happy to share opinions.
For the record, no whipped cream, just a splash of hot milk.
And like anyone in Chicago, the people who know the art of coffee are terribly interesting. David Meyers , the force behind Resistance Coffee, is a guy with a vision, and he’s not afraid to share it. He does like to keep it all on the downlow, however, and there are plenty of reasons for that.
He always had a thing for coffee, but when he started becoming aware of the Zapatistas in Chiapas, and the struggle for land, along with their very savvy uses of the internet, coffee connections started to pop, like beans in the Bean Boss.
Because growers need to find people to buy their product.
And there are means of getting the product out that don’t have to follow the usual codes, and in the coffee industry, this is moving to a new level. Jesse Diaz, and Star Lounge , follow a similar approach. Fair Trade Coffee was something relatively unknown ten years ago, but now it’s a symbol that’s recognized by most coffee consumers.
Perhaps indie roasters is the next wave, and if so, Chicago is on it, and with hotel reservations, Chicago can open up all kinds of coffee worlds, along with many other wonderful things.
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