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

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

Coffee News Recap, 20 Jan: Last chance to apply for PRF El Salvador Mayorga Scholarship and volunteer positions, World of Coffee Dubai attracts more than 12,000 visitors & other stories

Every Friday, Perfect Daily Grind rounds up the top coffee industry news from the previous week. Here are this week’s stories. Mon, 16 Jan World of Coffee Dubai 2023 attracts more than 12,000 visitors from 48 countries. The event, which was held at the Dubai World Trade Centre, also included over 180 exhibitors and 36 […]


Cup of Excellence to Offer El Salvador Immersion Program

The immersion experience will allow participants to grow their knowledge on Salvadoran culture and coffee varieties. BY J. MARIE CARLANBARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Photos courtesy of Cup of Excellence Cup of Excellence is launching a new learning opportunity in 2024: the Origin Immersion Program, to be held in El Salvador from February 26 to March 5. […]


Congrats to the Top-Ranking Qualifiers at U.S. CoffeeChamps Denver

Dozens of coffee professionals competed at qualifiers this weekend in Colorado for coveted spots at the U.S. Coffee Championships next month. BY J. MARIE CARLANBARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Cover photo by J. Marie Carlan For competitive coffee professionals in the USA, the U.S. Coffee Championships are the place to be. Over the weekend, the second USCC […]


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 Wilford Lamastus Jr.

The First Women-Only Coffee Championships Held in Costa Rica

Feria del Café Frailes seeks to increase the gender diversity of coffee competitions. BY SUNGHEE TARKSPECIAL TO BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Cover photo by Sunghee Tark The coffee industry has come a long way in the past 20 years, with innovations happening in many parts of the world and in different links of the supply chain. […]


Breaking New Ground: A Sicilian Coffee Plantation, Part One

The impacts of climate change are starting to be felt in Sicily, but while they’re causing problems, the rising temperatures are also bringing new opportunities. BY JOSEPH PHELANSPECIAL TO BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Featured image courtesy of Henrique Ferreira on Unsplash The Sicilian love affair with coffee is known the world over. Sicily, the largest of […]


In Tbilisi, Parsek1 Merges Comic Books with Specialty Coffee

We take a look at how this innovative café has changed the face of comics and coffee in the capital of Georgia. BY VASILEIA FANARIOTISENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Photos courtesy of Parsek1 When it comes to coffee and comic books, Japan is a longtime leader in the field. Manga cafés have been around for decades, combining […]


Coffee News Recap, 26 Jan: Researchers create new genetic map to “future proof” arabica production, UAE & Italian Coffee Champions crowned at WoC Dubai and SIGEP & other stories

Every Friday, Perfect Daily Grind rounds up the top coffee industry news from the previous week. Here are this week’s coffee news stories. The word of the week is: competitions. Mon, 22 Jan Timemore launches crowdfunding campaign for upcoming Millab E01 portable electric coffee grinder. The wireless electric coffee grinder features a 5,000 mAh lithium battery […]

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

The Slingshot Chalice Puts a New Spin on Espresso Dosing

Hong Kong and Australia-based coffee equipment maker Slingshot Technology recently launched the Chalice Distributor Cup, a multipurpose espresso preparation tool for baristas. Displayed in its final production form at the…


Is the World Barista Championship too exclusive & expensive for competitors?

There are a number of competitions in specialty coffee designed to test the skills and knowledge of industry professionals. However, many consider the World Barista Championship (WBC) to be one of the most esteemed and highly regarded events, acting as a platform to showcase excellence in the barista profession. There are many reasons to celebrate […]


Book Review: From Nerd to Pro, by Patrik Rolf

From Nerd to Pro: A Coffee Journey is an autobiography by roaster, café operator, and coffee competitor Patrik Rolf sharing his coffee journey. BY TANYA NANETTI SENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Featured photo by Tanya Nanetti I’ve read plenty of books on coffee over the years: manuals on how to brew great coffee at home, books on […]


Design Details: A Petit Le Café Coffee in Midtown Manhattan

Welcome to Design Details, an ongoing editorial feature in Daily Coffee News focused on individual examples of coffee shop architecture, interior design, packaging design or branding. If you are a coffee…

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

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

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 Wilford Lamastus Jr.

We talk to the multi-time Panama Brewers Cup champion about his brewing preferences.

BY TANYA NANETTI
SENIOR 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 for the shop. Or maybe it’s a V60 brewed to post a story on social media. But what about when they’re not at work? What are their coffee habits when at home? Do these habits change when they travel? 

Wilford agitates coffee brewing in a vacuum coffee maker. He is using a wooden whisk.
Wilford has won multiple Brewers Cup competitions; he’s also a coffee producer who grew a coffee valued at a record 98 points.

Meet Wilford Lamastus, Jr.

Wilford Lamastus, Jr., the multi-time Brewers Cup champ from Boquete, Panama, is a famous coffee producer at Lamastus Family Estates. He’s also the owner of Sisu Coffee Studio, a specialty-coffee micro-roaster based in Panama City. We checked in with Wilford to learn about his coffee habits. 

“When I’m at home, I brew every morning using a Groove Coffee Dripper, a cone method similar to Timemore or Hario,” Wilford says. He confides that when he’s in his own city, he mostly drinks coffee at home. But he also loves going out for coffee. 

“I mainly go to my own coffee shop, but I also visit different coffee shops in my city, places that strictly deal with specialty coffee,” he says.  

And here, his usual order is always the same: a pourover. 

Wilford pours coffee into a cupping vessel at a competition as judges look on. He is wearing a khaki apron.
Although he most often drinks coffee at home, Wilford enjoys trying specialty coffees abroad.

Wilford on the Road

To keep up with his habit of constantly brewing coffee, Wilford can’t help but bring his own coffee gear when visiting family and friends or simply traveling. Wilford recently told the ”Eat Drink Sleep Repeat” podcast that some of his favorite cities to visit include Taipei, Taiwan and Melbourne, Australia.

“I have a travel brewer called Pakt,” he shares. “Basically, Pakt is a compact brewing gadget that includes a water kettle, a stainless-steel brew dripper, and a practical coffee thermos/travel mug. And of course, I also bring my own scale and hand grinder everywhere. And I also bring coffee around.”

Exploring the Coffee Scene

But traveling isn’t just about brewing coffee; it’s also about visiting new coffee places. 

“Now most of my trips (probably 80%) are work-related, so when I travel, I always visit clients who own coffee shops or roasters. In any case, before leaving, I always look online to check the specialty coffee situation that I’ll find at the destination… (but) I always also bring my own coffee stuff,” he says.

Wilford checks a recipe on his phone while cupping numerous coffees on a table. He has a close beard and white tshirt on.
Wilford often relies on a travel brewer called Pakt for coffee while on the road.

As a final suggestion on the best way to drink and brew coffee while traveling, Wilford has one piece of advice to share.

“Search for Pakt, and you won’t regret it.” 

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 Wilford Lamastus Jr. appeared first on Barista Magazine Online.

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

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 Wilford Lamastus Jr.

Shopping cart0
There are no products in the cart!
Continue shopping
0