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Filter Stories Love coffee? Love podcasts? Filter Stories is a documentary podcast revealing the untold stories hidden in your cup of coffee.
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Does coffee always have to be freshly ground to taste its best? I have always believed this, so I wanted to prove it, an...
06/07/2024

Does coffee always have to be freshly ground to taste its best? I have always believed this, so I wanted to prove it, and I ran a test. The results were shocking.

Join me for this experience as we challenge this dogma through a blind test performed with highly skilled coffee professionals from .Coffee.

Follow the link in my Bio and listen the last episode of my Filter Stories podcast to learn what science has to say about keeping coffee super fresh.

I need your taste buds at World of Coffee! I’m recording a coffee cupping with  and  on Saturday at 2pm, and I need a fe...
22/06/2024

I need your taste buds at World of Coffee!

I’m recording a coffee cupping with and on Saturday at 2pm, and I need a few more peeps.

Are you a professional cupper? DM me!

Coffee fines are the secret behind a delicious espresso.Fines are the especially tiny particles of coffee created during...
11/06/2024

Coffee fines are the secret behind a delicious espresso.

Fines are the especially tiny particles of coffee created during grinding. Contrary to popular belief, they're not just small balls but weirdly shaped chunks of coffee that massively influence the flavour of your espresso.

For a deeper dive, check out my latest podcast episode (link in bio) where I explore the optimal particle size distribution for great espresso and filter coffees. I go behind-the-scenes into ’s R&D lab and discover why tiny changes make a huge difference in flavour!

This is me before I got into coffee! I recently had the pleasure of telling the story of how I went from working at Bank...
23/05/2024

This is me before I got into coffee!

I recently had the pleasure of telling the story of how I went from working at Bank of England to embracing the crazy idea of trying to make a living creating narrative podcasts about coffee 😂

You can hear this interview on a recent episode of the Coffee People podcast from . Link in bio!

You get to hear the ridiculous things I did after quitting finance, including motorcycling across India, cycling up and down the Himalayas, and then trying to land a job in Melbourne as a barista (and nobody wanting to hire me 😅)

Have you seen part 2 of  and my Q&A with ? We got the great question: how did the cowboys drink their coffee? IMO, it’s ...
16/05/2024

Have you seen part 2 of and my Q&A with ?

We got the great question: how did the cowboys drink their coffee? IMO, it’s a very poetic way of enjoying a caffeinated on the open plains

You can learn more about America’s love affair with coffee by listening to episode 3 of A History of Coffee: Coffee Catches Fire.

Check out the other questions we got from BH listeners over at the Q&A (link in bio).

The final episode of my science series has dropped!For your coffee to taste its best, it’s crucial you buy fresh roasts ...
07/05/2024

The final episode of my science series has dropped!

For your coffee to taste its best, it’s crucial you buy fresh roasts and grind fresh.….
….Or maybe not.

When I began creating this episode, I was convinced that ‘fresh is best’. But, after delving into the science of coffee freshness, I don’t believe that anymore.

This episode goes deep into how diffusion and oxidation changes a coffee’s flavours.

You’ll learn what it takes to store your coffee grounds unbelievably well. So well, that if you do it right, you will struggle to taste the difference between two month old coffee compared to those same beans freshly ground!

But here’s the weirdest thing: Maybe, just maybe, you will prefer old coffee more than the fresh stuff.

And then in part 2, I take you into the Mahlkönig R&D lab where I discover that tiny changes in your grinder leads to huge differences in flavour. We zoom into the millions of particles that make up your coffee powder and how their different sizes affect the flavour of espresso and filter coffee.

Listen now by following the link in bio!

I need your help :)I'm creating a media pack for future sponsors who aren't familiar with Filter Stories. And one of the...
29/04/2024

I need your help :)

I'm creating a media pack for future sponsors who aren't familiar with Filter Stories. And one of the most frequent questions I get is: who are your listeners?

Please shoot me a DM or write in the comments below what you do in coffee. Are you a barista trainer? Cafe manager? QC for an importer? Producer? Home coffee lover? Tea drinker?

Your response will help me keep Filter Stories going and, most importantly, free to listen!

Dear Instagram, I present you Lio the Cat! This marvellous feline caused havoc in the kitchen while I tried to do a filt...
25/04/2024

Dear Instagram, I present you Lio the Cat!

This marvellous feline caused havoc in the kitchen while I tried to do a filter paper brewing experiments with my partner Sophie.

Fun facts: she sometimes enjoys walks outside, she’s got a naughty taste for oat milk Vietnamese coffees, and she’s EXTREMELY vocal. If she ain’t happy, you’ll know about it.

Listen to the my episode “How to think like a scientist” to hear her loud meows and the many ways she tried to derail my experiments. Link in bio!

Are you coming to the SCA Expo? Don't miss my talk with : Cheap Coffee: A History!For lasting solutions to today's susta...
06/04/2024

Are you coming to the SCA Expo?
Don't miss my talk with : Cheap Coffee: A History!

For lasting solutions to today's sustainability crises, it's crucial to understand the historical factors that continue to keep prices low.

Date: Saturday, April 13, 2024
Time: 10:15am - 11:15am
Room Number: S401ABC

I'd love to meet you in person and hear your questions.

Should you rinse your filter paper before making a filter coffee? Almost everybody in coffee internet says you should. B...
29/03/2024

Should you rinse your filter paper before making a filter coffee? Almost everybody in coffee internet says you should.

But what if most of coffee internet was wrong?

In the latest episode of The Science of Coffee (link in bio), I go on a journey to learn how to brew coffee like a professional sensory scientist would.

And I realise that, no! In fact rinsing my filter paper doesn’t change the flavour of my brews.

Thinking like a scientist saved me from wasting many days of my life wetting filter paper that didn’t need to be wet.

But why stop there? In Part 2, I go even deeper to learn how to think like a scientist. What does good evidence look like? What do I do if I can’t find good evidence? And how can I resist the allure of a compelling (but perhaps incorrect) theory?

Listen to “What Is Good Science?” wherever you get your podcasts, or follow link in bio.

In the latest episode of The Science of Coffee, I dive into the challenges and opportunities of organic coffee farming.D...
18/03/2024

In the latest episode of The Science of Coffee, I dive into the challenges and opportunities of organic coffee farming.

Discover the hidden struggles of coffee trees on conventional farms and the transformative power of organic practices through the insights of Lalo Perez Varona and Don Rufino. This episode sheds light on the critical role of soil diversity, the deceptive appearance of chemically-fed coffee plants, and the urgent need for organic farming methods to revive the land and nurture stronger, healthier coffee trees.

Listen to Part I and II of the Organic Coffee episode at the link in bio. And join in on the conversation around paths toward a more sustainable future for coffee farming – I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Our Q&A with Barista Hustle is live!  reached out to  and I () to get answers to some weird and wonderful questions abou...
04/03/2024

Our Q&A with Barista Hustle is live! reached out to and I () to get answers to some weird and wonderful questions about the history of coffee.

This is just one of the excellent questions we got:
"You guys did a lot of myth busting in Season 1 of A History of Coffee. But what about the Sun King, Louis the 14th. Was he really given a coffee plant by the mayor of Amsterdam and is there any proof that DeClieu actually used it to seed the plantations in Martinique and beyond?"

For a deeper dive into this question and a couple of other excellent ones, check out Part 1 of the Q&A! (Link in bio). We also talk about the Oregon Trail in the 1800s and the origins of the term “Penny University.”

Listen to our podcast, A History of Coffee, to learn more!

The world’s farming soils are deteriorating quickly. At current rates of degradation, the UN’s  predicts we won’t be abl...
27/02/2024

The world’s farming soils are deteriorating quickly. At current rates of degradation, the UN’s predicts we won’t be able to feed the world by 2050.

Conventional farming where plants are grown using agrochemicals enabled us to reap huge harvests these last 70 years, but it’s been at the expense of soil health.

In the coffee sector, we are now seeing conventional coffee farms who were reliant on agrochemicals losing productivity due to poor soil health. We’re witnessing the breakdown of the business model for conventional coffee farms.

In the latest episode of The Science of Coffee series, I travel to Honduras to explore a potential solution: organic coffee farming.

At Sustainable Harvest’s Let’s Talk Coffee, I meet Lalo Perez Varona of Biofilia who tells me the story of helping a large Guatemalan coffee farmer realize that his farm had very poor soil health. The plants looked green and healthy, but their roots were barren of essential fungi.

I then travel south to Marcala to meet with Don Ferufino Dominguez of , one of the region’s leading organic farmers. He shows me how he nurtures the soil around his coffee trees. I’m fascinated to learn how he uses mountain microorganisms, a huge diversity of shade trees, attentive tree pruning, and he manages to repel insects with a very funky batch of homemade bug spray.

The results speak for themselves: when we pick up a handful of his soil, it is moist, dense and writhing with life. Could these cultivation techniques be the answer to the coffee world’s declining soil health?

Listen to “Organic Coffee, Part 1: The magic of soil” at the link in bio.

And join me for Part 2 in two weeks, where I ask the question: Why aren't we seeing more organic coffee farms?

Roasting coffee can be maddening. Just 4° Celsius is enough to make the same green beans taste distinctly different! And...
19/02/2024

Roasting coffee can be maddening. Just 4° Celsius is enough to make the same green beans taste distinctly different! And there are so many things roasters can play around with: temperature, time, fan speed, drum speed, types of probes…the list goes on and on.

So, if you want to start roasting yourself, where do you start!?

In the first half of the latest episode of The Science of Coffee, I interview , one of the world's leading roasting teachers. He takes me through his published academic research in partnership with the that reveals what aspect of coffee roasting is responsible for 80% of a coffee’s flavour. And no, the Rate of Rise doesn’t feature once!

His framework makes coffee roasting very simple. It’s a simple formula: colour affects 80% of a coffee’s flavour, the development time affects 15%, and time to first crack the final 5%.

I hope you find this framework helpful as you embark on your roasting journey!

Listen to Part 1 and II at the link in bio.

Making Filter Stories can be very difficult sometimes. The episode on Smell & Taste was actually one of the most tortuou...
09/02/2024

Making Filter Stories can be very difficult sometimes. The episode on Smell & Taste was actually one of the most tortuous episodes I’ve ever made.

Everything that could have gone wrong, went wrong! One of my test listeners fell asleep on me. I also spent weeks making an entire episode that I eventually decided to delete.

I’ve written about it all in my latest newsletter on Substack (link in bio). I plan to write more behind-the-scenes stories in the future too! Subscribe to my Substack newsletter so you don’t miss them.

I'll be heading to Guatemala soon for the Producer Roaster Forum on 7-8 March! 🇬🇹☕ This forum brings together hundreds o...
05/02/2024

I'll be heading to Guatemala soon for the Producer Roaster Forum on 7-8 March! 🇬🇹☕

This forum brings together hundreds of passionate coffee producers and roasters from around the globe. It's an incredible opportunity for us to connect, chat, and dive into the world of coffee business.

Together with Prof. Jonathan Morris, co-creator of "A History of Coffee," we'll be presenting our exploration of the fascinating origins of cheap coffee. We'll compress the essence of our first podcast season into a synthesis that aims to shed light on the forces that have historically influenced coffee pricing. From the days of slave and indentured labor to the advent of mechanization, we'll explore how the neglect of labour costs has shaped the industry. This journey through time reveals why traditional production methods no longer suffice for specialty coffee.

We're hoping this talk will serve as an opportunity to be part of a larger conversation around equity, sustainability, and the future of coffee. Can't wait to meet many of you there and engage in discussions that could reshape the future of coffee trade, making it more equitable for everyone involved.

Will you be attending? DM me!

The second episode of "The Science of Coffee" Series 2 is all about how heat transforms grassy green coffee seeds into o...
29/01/2024

The second episode of "The Science of Coffee" Series 2 is all about how heat transforms grassy green coffee seeds into our favourite drink.

I take you into the physics and chemistry, and you can decide for yourself how roasted you like your coffee. We hear from many wonderful, smart roasting scientists and educators: Anja Rahn, Mark Al-Shemmeri , Samo Smrke and Ildi Revi .

In Part II, I show you a simple framework that allows anybody to roast coffee quite decently courtesy of from .

And then with of I open up their P3000 prototype roaster to discover the extraordinary technologies that are revolutionizing the roasting process. I finish by peering into my crystal ball to predict how these technologies will revolutionize the coffee industry.

Whether you're a coffee enthusiast or just getting into roasting, this episode will give you insights into how the perfect roast is achieved.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on it! Link in bio.

With some specialty coffees, it's mystifying how black filter beans can taste sweet with no milk or sugar added. Why is ...
22/01/2024

With some specialty coffees, it's mystifying how black filter beans can taste sweet with no milk or sugar added.

Why is this? Are there artificial sweetener-type molecules interacting with our sweet taste receptors? Is it the brain hallucinating sweetness because coffee should normally be bitter?

Listen to Part I and II of the Taste and Smell episode as I explore the science behind what really happens on our taste buds when drinking delicious specialty coffee.

Tune in at the links in bio!

The new season of The Science of Coffee has dropped!My goal in the first episode is to help you become a better coffee t...
09/01/2024

The new season of The Science of Coffee has dropped!

My goal in the first episode is to help you become a better coffee taster 😋

I shrink us down microscopically to show you how our taste buds work.

And let's talk about the mucus up in our noses – yes, it's a bit disgusting, but it's key to being able to smell well.

Neuroscientist Fabiana Carvalho then explains why it’s so difficult to pinpoint coffee flavours (hint: it’s to do with our internal prediction models).

Joining us is tasting expert and author Mandy Naglich who shares easy ways to train yourself to identify coffee flavours without leaving the comfort of your kitchen.

We then get metaphysical in Part Two, where I explore the question: when you and me drink the same coffee, are we tasting the same flavours?

Tune in at the link in bio!

The trailer has dropped!First episode of The Science of Coffee is out in just a week’s time 🎉🎉🎉(This vintage espresso ma...
02/01/2024

The trailer has dropped!

First episode of The Science of Coffee is out in just a week’s time 🎉🎉🎉

(This vintage espresso machine happened to be sitting around at a hotel I am staying at in Colombia. I really wanted to power it up and pull a shot of espresso but I didn’t want to risk an explosion 🫣)

The first episode of the new Science of Coffee drops on Monday, 8 January! I've spent the last 12 months speaking to sci...
08/12/2023

The first episode of the new Science of Coffee drops on Monday, 8 January!

I've spent the last 12 months speaking to scientists and coffee experts from Guatamala to Athens to uncover more of coffee's hidden microscopic secrets!

Get ready for ten new episodes on five big themes: our sense of smell and taste, coffee roasting, growing organic coffee, grinding and coffee freshness, and scientific methodology.

China, my goodness me!I had my mind blown over and over again. Here are some quick highlights! It was a blast finally me...
26/10/2023

China, my goodness me!

I had my mind blown over and over again. Here are some quick highlights!

It was a blast finally meeting Mickey of fame in real life!

The coffee scene in Shanghai is wild. From $1 lattes from coffee through to $8 craft drinks. I actually stood in line for 20 minutes to be served a very carefully crafted cold brew concoction from a tiny little cafe with a huge local reputation :O. P.S. I wish I could link them on Instagram, but in China every website from abroad is blocked by the government.

Presenting onstage at the Lujiazui Coffee Forum was a blast, but the AI subtitles translating my speech in real time took some getting used to!

I discovered specialty Chinese tea in a popular and beautiful store.

I had a fun dinner and shots of local liquor Baijiu with a former client of mine, John Pasden of fame! He’s one of the world's leading Chinese teachers and he helped me finally pronounce “thank you” in Chinese after a week of screwing it up…

It was great to share a coffee with a writer for Coffee T&I and discovering she’s full time with The Economist magazine. The geopolitical insights were fascinating ;)

I discovered some coffee at .coffee’s stand! Aquaries is a coffee farm I made a story about back in the early years of Filter Stories. It felt surreal to find this coffee in a Shanghai coffee festival priced at €16 for 100g.

I even managed to get out of Shanghai to China’s revered Yellow Mountains. More on that story and some other highlights coming soon ;)

I'm in Shanghai! I'll be around for a whole week, most of which I will spend at Lujiazui International Coffee Forum, "th...
13/10/2023

I'm in Shanghai!

I'll be around for a whole week, most of which I will spend at Lujiazui International Coffee Forum, "the bridge between the world's coffee and China's coffee, connecting coffee origins and consumers."

Hit me up in the DMs if you’d like to meet for a chat!

I've written a little Substack newsletter about the backstory to the second series of A History of Coffee! (Link in bio)...
09/10/2023

I've written a little Substack newsletter about the backstory to the second series of A History of Coffee! (Link in bio).

The first series of A History of Coffee was a pure labour of love and and I didn't earn a dime despite pouring over three hundred individual hours into it.

I really wanted to make a second series, but I couldn't afford to sink another couple of hundred hours into a project without making it work financially.

Fast forward to November 2021, and I'm at HOST Milan, the largest hospitality trade show in the world, hoping for a dream to come true…

Read the rest of the story by subscribing to my Substack! Link in bio! 🙂

Morning rituals and the dance of limescale. Ever noticed those curious flakes in your kettle? Blame it on bicarbonate. W...
02/10/2023

Morning rituals and the dance of limescale. Ever noticed those curious flakes in your kettle?

Blame it on bicarbonate. While it plays a cheeky game with your coffee's taste, its origins trace back to our planet's cosmic story.

So where does it come from? The answer requires a journey back to the birth of the earth. The water in your kettle possibly shares its origins even with ancient comets.

But how does bicarbonate affect your morning cup? And how can a touch of magnesium elevate your coffee experience?

Join me in this exploration, featuring insights from experts and a journey from Earth's formation to your coffee mug.

Tune in at the link in bio for the full Water episode of The Science of Coffee's first series.

Arabica coffee is struggling to withstand a changing climate. Drier dry seasons, less predictable rains and uncertain pi...
20/09/2023

Arabica coffee is struggling to withstand a changing climate. Drier dry seasons, less predictable rains and uncertain picking seasons are all turning arabica into a headache for coffee farmers.

One solution is to switch arabica trees for a new, climate change resistant species. And the good news is that we have quite a few species to choose. But can they offer everything farmers are looking for?

In my third episode of The Science of Coffee podcast on genetics (link in bio), I spoke with leading coffee researchers, including Aaron Davis of Kew Gardens, Sarada Krishnan of the Global Crop Diversity Trust and Hanna Neuschwander of .

And my conclusion in the podcast is that the most likely species to replace arabica is…robusta! The same species of coffee that’s already extremely popular with millions of farmers.

But still need to do more genetic research to find better tasting varieties of robusta and hardier versions of arabica. And this is why I value the work of because they’re coordinating the specialty coffee industry’s money and priorities into the very complicated, messy process of genetic research.

If you’re a coffee company, you can support financially to help us discover delicious and climate change resilient varieties of arabica and robusta.

I recently wrote an article for  that summarised the first series of The Science of Coffee! The story starts from the ve...
11/09/2023

I recently wrote an article for that summarised the first series of The Science of Coffee!

The story starts from the very beginnings, the Big Bang, and shows how years of scientific research had gone into making our coffees taste better.

Coffee Magazine’s illustrator, Andy Torr, was apparently so inspired by the article he drew these illustrations!

You can read it by subscribing to Coffee Magazine (lots of other great stuff in the magazine). You can also DM me and I’ll share it ;)

I recently wrote an article for  that summarised the first series of The Science of Coffee! The story starts from the ve...
11/09/2023

I recently wrote an article for that summarised the first series of The Science of Coffee!

The story starts from the very beginnings, the Big Bang, and shows how years of scientific research had gone into making our coffees taste better.

Coffee Magazine’s illustrator, Andy Torr, was apparently so inspired by the article he drew these illustrations! Swipe right to see one of them come to life 👀

You can read it by subscribing to Coffee Magazine (lots of other great stuff in it). You can also DM me and I’ll share it. ;)

Why is America coffee obsessed? ⬆️The Boston Tea Party is the moment when Americans spat out their British tea and slurp...
07/08/2023

Why is America coffee obsessed?

⬆️The Boston Tea Party is the moment when Americans spat out their British tea and slurped coffee instead as their patriotic duty! ⬆️

(Allegedly)

In the early 1700s, most of the north-eastern sea border of the U.S, the famous 13 colonies, were under British rule. Disputes over trade rules and taxation without representation left the colonists feeling affronted that they were forced to buy tea from Britain, and had no choice but to pay an import tax.

Legend has it that the Boston Tea Party marked the turning point where a bunch of rebels took a stand by tossing tea chests off British ships in the Boston harbour, and Americans took a pledge of allegiance to coffee as their drink of choice from then on.

But, as usual, history reveals a more nuanced truth. If we were to assume that Americans were patriotically only drinking coffee after the Boston Tea Party, we would be wrong. They were drinking primarily tea (imported from China instead), and some coffee, but for at least a period they weren’t drinking anything coming from Britain.

Tune into the last episode of A History of Coffee’s second series to find out more twists and turns in America’s 300-year relationship with coffee! Link in bio.

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