Brewing at Home and On the Road with Darrin Daniel

Brewing at Home and On the Road with Darrin Daniel

A Recap of The Barista League’s Mystery Coffee Vacation in Colombia

The Barista League’s Mystery Coffee Vacation in Colombia is over, and we’ve got the scoop on all the fun! BY VASILEIA FANARIOTISENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Photos courtesy of Vasileia Fanarioti and Juan Henao During the last week of February, the 2022 Barista League champions gathered in Colombia for this year’s Mystery Coffee Vacation. It was an […]


The 2023 Specialty Coffee Transaction Guide Has Landed

The 2023 edition of the Specialty Coffee Transaction Guide (SCTG) guide went live today, providing actors throughout the coffee chain a data-driven tool for green coffee price discovery. The full…


Brewing at Home and on the Road with Wilford Lamastus Jr.

We talk to the multi-time Panama Brewers Cup champion about his brewing preferences. BY TANYA NANETTISENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Photos courtesy of Wilford Lamastus Coffee professionals tend to spend most of their days brewing coffee. It can be an espresso shot pulled for a customer or a cupping to check out a new roaster to choose […]


Know Your Sweeteners: Honey: Part One

Not all sweeteners are made equal! In this series, we’ll take a closer look at different types of sweeteners and syrups—starting with honey. BY EMILY JOY MENESESBARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Featured photo by Arwin Neil Baichoo via Unsplash Though you can’t go wrong with simple syrup or the tried-and-true vanilla, there are many options when it […]

Brewing at Home and On the Road with Darrin Daniel

5 Amazing Coffee Drinks in Reno, Nev.

Here are some standout specialty drinks you can try in the Biggest Little City in the World. BY EDDIE P. GOMEZSPECIAL TO BARISTA MAGAZINE Photos by Eddie P. Gomez Reno, Nev., has more cafés per capita than just about any other place in North America. And because it is a snowier-than-usual winter in northwestern Nevada […]


Interest in coffee & health is rising – what do consumers need to know?

There is a wealth of scientific research available about the many health benefits of coffee – as well as the undesirable side effects of drinking too much. But like all fields of science, research about the impact of drinking coffee on human health is ever-changing as we uncover new findings.  Interestingly, the continuous discovery of […]


Torr Launches the Hive Cafe Countertop Coffee Concentrate System

Commercial cold coffee equipment company Torr Industries recently rolled out a countertop-friendly version of its signature Hive Brew cold coffee system, called the Hive Cafe. The northern California coffee company…


The 2023 Specialty Coffee Transaction Guide Has Landed

The 2023 edition of the Specialty Coffee Transaction Guide (SCTG) guide went live today, providing actors throughout the coffee chain a data-driven tool for green coffee price discovery. The full…

Brewing at Home and On the Road with Darrin Daniel

Test Drive: Update Your Grinding With More Comandante Grinder Accessories

The popular hand grinder has more to offer with a new line of tools and accessories now available. BY TANYA NANETTISENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Feature photo by Tanya Nanetti To brew the perfect cup of coffee, it’s important to choose the right coffee equipment. One essential is a reliable coffee grinder. Most coffee lovers start with a […]


What I Learned from My First Tea Ceremony

After taking in a brief moment of a tea ceremony in Thailand, I finally had the chance to participate in the full experience recently in Malaysia. BY TANYA NANETTI SENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Photos by Tanya Nanetti In the years that I worked as a barista in a café, tea always played a marginal role in […]


Know Your Sweeteners: Honey: Part One

Not all sweeteners are made equal! In this series, we’ll take a closer look at different types of sweeteners and syrups—starting with honey. BY EMILY JOY MENESESBARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Featured photo by Arwin Neil Baichoo via Unsplash Though you can’t go wrong with simple syrup or the tried-and-true vanilla, there are many options when it […]


U.S. Coffee Championships 2023 Denver Qualifiers Reach New Heights

The next group of coffee champions moves on to nationals at the Denver qualifiers. BY KATE VAN PETTENSPECIAL TO BARISTA MAGAZINE Photos by Matthew Temple and courtesy of Specialty Coffee Association The high-flying world of U.S. CoffeeChamps competitions reached new heights as coffee professionals flocked to the Denver qualifiers for the 2023 season, hosted in […]

Brewing at Home and On the Road with Darrin Daniel

Brewing at Home and On the Road with Darrin Daniel

minimum dose size?

Jan 31, 2024 |

I use the Hario switch to brew my coffee and am trying to reduce my caffeine consumption. Hence I would like to brew smaller cups of coffee. I am currently using 10g of coffee with 160g of water. (1:16 Ratio) I am wondering if there is a minimum amount of coffee...

Brewing at Home and On the Road with Darrin Daniel

We check in with the Cup of Excellence executive director to learn his current coffee-brewing habits.

BY TANYA NANETTI
SENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT

Featured photo by Emre via Unsplash

Brewing coffee is, for many coffee professionals, more than just a job.  

They usually brew coffee every day, both for themselves and their customers. Perhaps they do it with the purpose of trying out a new “hot” roastery in town. Perhaps it’s to check the roast profile on a fresh batch, or to share a new video on social media.

But they don’t just brew coffee when they work. On the contrary, many coffee professionals do it even when they are at home relaxing, or when they are traveling. 

The coffee bar inside Rockaway Roastery. There are swivel bar chairs, a naturally shaped wood countertop and La Marzocco machine. A bowl of oranges sits on the counter.
Inside Rockaway Roastery. Photo courtesy of Darrin Daniel.

Darrin Daniel at Home in Portland

Darrin Daniel, executive director of both the Alliance for Coffee Excellence and Cup of Excellence, splits his days between Portland and Rockaway Beach, Oregon. He also spends a lot of time on the road. 

When he’s at home, he usually brews using a Kalita Wave flat bottom or a Chemex.  

“This is almost always the case,” Darrin shares. “I recently opened a café (Rockaway Roastery) along with my wife on the Oregon Coast, so lately I’ve been going out to our coffee shop in Rockaway Beach and making a small 6 oz. cappuccino or macchiato, using a PB two-group La Marzocco.” 

A Kalita Wave pourover device. It sits on top of a Stumptown Coffee diner mug on a kitchen counter in front of a toaster.
The Kalita Wave. Photo courtesy of Darrin Daniel.

But he also loves visiting other specialty-coffee shops. When he’s in Portland, he says, “I do head to coffee shops, and I usually order the same drinks I mentioned.”

On the Road

Darrin definitely loves brewing his coffee and, whether he’s visiting friends or family, or headed somewhere on a trip, he always travels with his coffee gear. 

Having to choose the coffee tools he can’t travel without, Darrin has clear ideas. “Obviously the Kalita brewer and the Comandante grinder … which is usually enough to take care of me perfectly. Sometimes, if I want to have some fun, I add the AeroPress, too.” 

Darrin Daniel reliably brings along his coffee gear when on the road. Photo courtesy of Darrin Daniel.

But traveling isn’t just about brewing coffee in a hotel room, or at some coffee event: Traveling is also about exploring the local coffee scene. 

Coffee people usually check out the situation of the specialty-coffee they will find at their destination before the trip. This may involve consulting specialized websites, asking other coffee professionals for suggestions, or even creating a map of places to visit on an upcoming trip. 

For Darrin, on the contrary, this usually is not necessary. “Unless I am going somewhere where there’s a member of our organization I want to check out and support,” he says, he doesn’t often check out cafés while traveling.  

A photo of a white camp coffee mug on the rocky coast of Oregon. The waterfront is in the background, with tall evergreen trees in the distance.
The Oregon Coast. Photo by David J. Boozer via Unsplash.

Go Commercial?

But what about Darrin’s relationship with “commercial” coffee? If there are no specialty-coffee shops around, is it OK for him to just have a “regular” cup of coffee? 

“I’d rather do without it, to be honest. I have found many coffees on the commercial side to have secondary or primary defects, so they are really undrinkable. Plus, as I said, I never travel without my coffee gear!”

As a final suggestion on the best way to brew coffee on the go, Darrin leaves us with a simple tip—perfect for every coffee lover out there, no matter the level, or the brewer of choice. “Practice makes perfect!”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tanya Nanetti (she/her) is a specialty-coffee barista, a traveler, and a dreamer. When she’s not behind the coffee machine (or visiting some hidden corner of the world), she’s busy writing for Coffee Insurrection, a website about specialty coffee that she’s creating along with her boyfriend.

The post Brewing at Home and On the Road with Darrin Daniel appeared first on Barista Magazine Online.

Brewing at Home and On the Road with Darrin Daniel

Perfect Little Beans

Chinmey Hill Coffee uses specialty-grade beans with zero primary defects (such as black beans or sour beans) and less than five secondary defects (such as broken beans). This is important because primary defects will greatly affect the taste of the coffee. Having zero defects allows the coffee to be the most optimal flavor.

Window for Optimal Flavor

Chimney Hill Coffee ships our coffee the same day it was roasted, so you will receive it before it enters the window of optimal flavor.  This means you’ll never miss the opportunity to enjoy the coffee’s peak flavor.

Coffee Ratings

Coffee undergoes many scoring processes by professionals who achieved their Q Grader certification. Coffee is first graded when it’s green. If there are defects the coffee is determined to be “not-specialty grade”. For those coffees that pass green grading, they are sample roasted and cupped. (Cupping is the official term for critically tasting and scoring coffees. The official cupping form is standard worldwide, and where the 100-point scoring system comes from.) A coffee’s dry fragrance, wet aroma, flavor, aftertaste, body, acidity, balance, and overall impression are taken into consideration while uniformity issues and defects, will lower the overall score.

Specialty Coffee

Specialty coffee, coined by Erna Knutsen in 1974, refers to a coffee that receives a quality grading score of 80 percent or higher. While “premium” or “gourmet” seem like they’re synonymous with “specialty,” they simply are marketing terms with no defined standards. Specialty coffees are grown in specific and ideal micro-climates, and have distinctive and unique flavor profiles, with little to no defects.

Third-Wave Coffee

We’re currently in the third wave of coffee. The first wave of American coffee put pre-ground, vacuum-sealed cans in kitchens across America. The second wave started with the late ‘60s introduction of Peet’s coffee (by Alfred Peet) through the proliferation of Starbucks. The third wave of coffee focuses on origin transparency, nuanced flavors, and artisan roasting. The term “third wave” is synonymous with specialty coffee.

Brewing at Home and On the Road with Darrin Daniel

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