You would think that I of all people would know better? I have been involved in the coffee industry for over twelve years, and I was reminded yesterday of how easy it is to simply accept poor quality coffee.
I am not talking about poor quality in terms of the bean, as Transcend Coffee, under the direction of Josh Hockin, does an amazing job of sourcing quality coffee. The poor quality I am referring to is the shoddy execution of brewing coffee by yours truly at home.
While I measure my beans every day (60 grams per 1 litre of water) and brew with water filtered by and Everpur system, I was destroying my daily cuppa Joe via my crappy grinder. I have been using the same Baratza Virtuoso grinder for the past six years and it was doing a terrible job at grinding coffee. Why should this matter so much, you ask? Well I have recounted countless times to many people at our coffee tastings during the past decade the importance of a good grinder at home. And like the shoemaker with holes in his own shoes, I have been guilty of ignoring the negative impact my old grinder was having on the quality of my home brewed coffee.
This came to light recently as I have been dissatisfied with my coffee experience at home, and then randomly get to drink the same coffee at the cafe, flipping the switch in my brain as to what my problem was. This morning I employed a new grinder, and the results were dramatic! The coffee had life, vibrancy and complexity. The flavours were back.
So you can teach old dogs new tricks, or at least get them back on track. If you are drinking bad coffee at home and want to learn more about how that could change, reach out, or check out one of the home brewing courses at Transcend Coffee. I should probably do some upgrading myself come to think of it, I have been coasting for too long on skills acquired many moons ago.