Hello, my name is John. I am a husband, father of two, and an air traffic controller as my 9 to 5. When I can get a break from the fast pace of having a young family, I am roasting, brewing, and tasting coffee.
I’m an artisan at heart. I love the process of taking something simple and turning it into something unique and exceptional. The intricacies of roasting and brewing coffee fascinate me. I have a small coffee roaster and quite an eclectic collection of coffee gear.
I am also interested in loaded bicycle touring, vintage items, hanging out with my family, and am currently in the middle of trying to finish up a major renovation and addition on my house.
Why talk about coffee?
To tell you the truth, I never used to like coffee all that much until I graduated from college and entered into the working world. I think that is typical. Coffee has become a sort of cultural right of passage into adulthood for many people.
One of the things I find fascinating about coffee is the fact that nearly everyone has a connection to it. Coffee is a daily comfort staple for many people. What is better than enjoying a cup of coffee on your morning commute to work or sitting by a window with a cup of coffee during a dreary and rainy day?
At the same time, most people who drink coffee everyday, don’t know much about it. It is just taken as a constant element in their lives. They roll by their Starbucks drive-thru every morning or throw some water and grounds in the coffee maker at work. Consume and repeat. They don’t think much about it.
Coffee is interesting. It is more than just a Monday morning coping mechanism. Coffee is complex, captivating, and, i’ll admit it, trendy. You don’t have to be a hipster to explore and enjoy it though.
My Coffee Roasting Journal
What is brewing coffee manually?
Manual coffee brewing is a brewing process that removes the automation from coffee brewing and inserts a human element. There are many different styles of brewers you can use to brew coffee manually and there are countless ways of using each brewing method.
In a world where everything is becoming more automated and fast-paced, brewing coffee manually is a great way to understand coffee as well as slow down and enjoy a process that brings delight and an artisan quality to your cup of coffee.
The Blog
I’m always a little surprised when I am doing a pour over at work and someone treats it as if they didn’t know one could make coffee without an automatic coffee maker. I ingest a lot of information about coffee on a regular basis and sometimes I forget that the majority of people have no idea about many of the facets and nuances of coffee brewing.
I would like to consistently provide content that is approachable to the novice coffee enthusiast yet still interesting for the coffee connoisseur. There might not be something for everybody in each post but I will try to cover a wide range of topics. I would like to go over some basic manual coffee techniques, including how to get started with manual drip brewing. I would also like to talk about some more advanced topics, review some equipment, visit some local coffee shops and roasters, and talk about small batch coffee roasting as well.
There will probably be the occasional off topic post to keep things interesting. I have a wide array of other interests that can be related back to coffee. If you would like to say hello, have questions or there are topics you would like me to cover, please send me an email at [email protected].
Hi John,
I just stumbled upon your site: it looks excellent! Like you, I’ve been slowly drawn ever deeper into the world of speciality coffee, although I came at it through writing about coffee shops, which introduced me to a whole new world.
I graduated from a French Press and electric grinder to the point where I take my Porlex mini and my Aeropress with me everywhere I go. Two days ago I got told off for grinding my beans too loudly on a flight back from Seattle to the UK!
Looking forward to having a good look through your site!
Thanks,
Brian.
Hi Brian,
Thanks for taking the time to say hello.
I am anxious to have a look through your site as well. It is exciting to have a great resource for finding coffee shops.
The Porlex mini/ Aeropress combination on an airplane is just awesome. You make a manual brewer proud. I spend most of my airplane flights trying to keep my children entertained. :)
Keep on traveling, finding good coffee and writing about it.
Thanks,
John
Hey John,
I’m mobile right now, so maybe that’s my problem- how can I subscribe to your blog? I don’t see any “one click” options.
Thanks!
Brian
Hey Brian,
Thanks for bringing this to my attention. I added a subscription form to the footer which should would with mobile devices as well.
Thanks!
John
Hi John,
You might need to do a recount on the children front in light of recent events… :-)
Congratulations by the way!
Brian.
Brian,
My “About Me” page is on my list of pages that need a little updating… I may be a little behind on some things :)
Hi John,
Great site you have there and I’ve read a few of your posts. Keep up the good work so that the local coffee community can expand their knowledge! By any chance are you a wine person as well? :p
Cheers,
Vincent