With global growth ambitions, Middle East-based coffee marketplace Cofe (styled as COFE by the company) has raised US$15 million in a Series B funding round. Leading the investment is WAED...
Prodigal Update: month two and a discussion of roast quality vs roast style
-
Single Origin: Colombia Medellin
$18.99 – $169.99 -
Single Origin: Bali Blue
$18.99 – $169.99 -
Chimney Hill Coffee – Unisex Heavy Blend™ Hooded Sweatshirt
$24.37 – $28.25 -
Single Origin: Mexico Chiapas
$18.99 – $169.99 -
Single Origin: Guatemala La Morena
$18.99 – $169.99 -
Single Origin: Costa Rica Alajuela
$18.99 – $169.99 -
Single Origin: Papua New Guinea Chimbu
$18.99 – $169.99 -
Special Roast: Mbeya Region of Tanzania
$18.99 – $169.99 -
Chimney Hill Coffee Men’s Fitted V-Neck Short Sleeve Tee
$20.31 – $21.50 -
Chimney Hill Coffee Women’s Comfy Tee
$20.44 – $23.76 -
Chimney Hill Coffee Women’s Favorite Tee
$14.54 – $16.66 -
Chimney Hill Coffee Unisex Jersey Long Sleeve Tee
$19.49 – $29.11 -
Single Origin: Nicaragua Molino Norte
$18.99 – $169.99 -
Single Origin: Honduras Marcala
$18.99 – $169.99 -
Single Origin: Ethiopia Sidama
$18.99 – $169.99 -
Single Origin: Mexican Chocolate
$18.99 – $169.99 -
Single Origin: Peru Piura
$18.99 – $169.99
Prodigal Update: month two and a discussion of roast quality vs roast style
Prodigal Update: month two and a discussion of roast quality vs roast style
Prodigal Update: month two and a discussion of roast quality vs roast style
Prodigal Update: month two and a discussion of roast quality vs roast style
Prodigal Update: month two and a discussion of roast quality vs roast style
3 Must-Try Iced Coffee Add-Ins
Here Are 3 Iced Coffee Add-Ins You Have To Try Peanut better and jelly. Salt and pepper. Iced coffee and ... well, these three things: 1. Simple Syrup Yes, we all love black coffee. But when speaking about refreshment, a small amount of sugar can bring out the best...
Fellow French Press: The Brewing Beauty Everyone’s Waited For
According to the manufacturer, "Clara is your forever French press." We put this to the test. Here's how we rated different aspects of this coffee maker.
4 different ways to brew iced coffee
What are the different ways to brew iced coffee? I don’t know about you, but my Instagram feed is flooded with artsy photos of mouthwatering, refreshing coffee elixirs that I am just dying to get my hands on every time my thumb hits the phone screen scrolling. They’ve...
Pedro Pascal’s Coffee Order Is A Cry For Help
This article is from the coffee website Sprudge at http://sprudge.com. This is the RSS feed version. Daddy is tired.
In Decatur, GA, A New Community Hub Emerges At Opo Coffee
This article is from the coffee website Sprudge at http://sprudge.com. This is the RSS feed version. Sprudge Maps Spotlight: Opo Coffee in Decatur, Georgia.
Nope, Coffee Won’t Give You Extra Energy. It’ll Just Borrow a Bit that You’ll Pay for Later
Many of us want (or should I say need?) our morning coffee to give us our “get up and go”. Altogether, the people of the world drink more than two billion cups...
Study: Climate Change Increasing ‘Systemic Shocks’ to Coffee Production
The global coffee industry can expect increasing and “ongoing systemic shocks” to coffee production due to climate change, according to new research published this month in the journal PLOS Climate. ...
Marco is Rolling Out the Coldbru Commercial Brewing System
Ireland-based commercial coffee equipment maker Marco Beverage Systems has unveiled its long-awaited automatic cold brew maker the called the Marco Coldbru (styled “ColdBRU” by the company). The streamlined and straightforward...
Angelo Moriondo: The Untold Story of the Father of Espresso
This article features Angelo Moriondo, who forever changed the face of coffee. As you’ll learn, espresso lovers worldwide owe him a deep debt of gratitude.
Amaretto Coffee Recipe: The Ultimate Aromatic Cocktail
This simple Amaretto coffee recipe shows you how to easily create the ultimate aromatic coffee at home using coffee, Amaretto, whipped cream, and cinnamon.
Weber Workshops Updated Spring Clean Delivers A Maelstrom Of Cleansing Power
This article is from the coffee website Sprudge at http://sprudge.com. This is the RSS feed version. Making machine maintenance easier and more gratifying.
Fresh Fruit or “Juicy Fruit”? Tasting 90 Anaerobic-Processed Coffees
Edwin Noreña checks on his Double Carbonic Galaxy Hops Geisha at Finca Campo Hermoso in Colombia. Courtesy of Barrington Coffee Roasting Co. Of all of the innovations challenging traditional expectations in specialty coffee today, the use of anaerobic (limited...
NotNeutral’s New Pico Drinkware Line Is An Ode To Los Angeles
This article is from the coffee website Sprudge at http://sprudge.com. This is the RSS feed version. The new Pico drinkware series from notNeutral.
What Is A London Fog?
This article is from the coffee website Sprudge at http://sprudge.com. This is the RSS feed version. The history of the London Fog.
Black Russian Recipe: The Best Cocktail For Coffee Lovers?
Satisfy cocktail lovers and cocktail lovers alike with this Black Russian recipe. It amps up the original with a shot of cold brew concentrate.
How to fit coffee into your budget
Is Making Coffee at Home Cheaper? Let's just get it out there: Most office coffee is weak and terrible. How are you supposed to actually survive a day with your coworkers when your coffee is watered down, burnt—or even worse—decaf? You can't. So what do you do...
Alternative Ways of Brewing Coffee
GIVE THESE BREWING METHODS A TRY As a result of the pursuit of the perfect cup of coffee, a number of alternative coffee brewing methods naturally come to light, on the merit that they produce the best strong, dark coffee. While there are indeed quite a number of...
How to get the best service at a coffee shop
9 Tips From a Barista Now, we can all agree that buying and brewing your own beans is the way to go. Some days, though, it's nice to see what the coffee shops have to offer. We've all been there. We order one thing, we get another. We say room for cream, and alas, the...
Altdairy.org Wants to Promote Coffee Purveyors Using Alt Milks
As the marketing of plant-based dairy alternatives continues to spill into the political realm both in the United States and abroad, a UK startup is hoping alt milk purveyors will...
Fabula Coffee: Let’s Talk About This New Organic Coffee
We review Fabula coffee to find out if it’s worth the hype. We’ll try medium roast whole beans with French Press and analyze the aroma and flavor.
Four New World Coffee Champions Will Be Crowned In Athens This June
This article is from the coffee website Sprudge at http://sprudge.com. This is the RSS feed version. World of Coffee Athens takes place June 21st through 24th.
Weekly Coffee News: USCC Qualifiers, Washington State Coffee Legend Dies and More
Welcome to DCN’s Weekly Coffee News. Keep up with all the latest stories by subscribing to DCN’s newsletter, featuring breaking coffee industry news and fresh coffee job listings. Final United States Coffee...
Baileys Coffee: An Easy Recipe For Comfort In A Cup
In this short and sweet how-to, we’ll walk you through an easy recipe for Baileys coffee with just Baileys, coffee, whipped cream, and garnish.
Prodigal Update: month two and a discussion of roast quality vs roast style


Lessons from the first month
We received multiples more inquiries than we had coffee available. Some of that was due to us deciding some of our green, once arrived, was below our quality standards for Prodigal, and some was due to my poor forecasting skills.
Roasting and filling orders and handling inquiries was quite a challenge, as we had expected a much slower start. To be frank, no part of the process ran as smoothly as I would have liked, but we intend to be far more prepared for our next roasting and fulfillment session.
Before the launch we did not have a green moisture meter, color meter, or enough staff to double-check every order. We also didn’t have experience with how our roasts would evolve due to travel and resting. All of that is sorted now.
The first day of roasts (Jan 4) cupped beautifully directly out of the roaster and the next morning. A week or two later, the coffees tasted “too developed” but not roasty. I issued a public apology and offered to make any dissatisfied customers whole. Three customers took us up on that offer.
Working on a new machine in an environment I couldn’t control was challenging. Contrary to popular belief, roasting is about systems and controlling variables, not about sniffing beans in a trier or some sixth sense about what is happening to 50,000 beans inside a giant hunk of hot metal. Having sixty batches under our belts, learning when to roast (at night, in a sealed, climate-controlled space), and how our coffee would age with time, will all contribute to future improvements.
The vast majority of feedback was wildly positive; we received many comments such as “the best coffee I’ve tasted in over six months,” “the juiciest roast I can remember,” etc. The majority of critical comments were something like “it was not roasty but it was more developed than I prefer.” As noted, those batches have been acknowledged, and I don’t expect many of those roasts or comments in the future, other than from the more extreme tasters out there. Doing the best one can is not the same as pleasing everyone.
A couple of weeks ago we upgraded our sample roaster and began using the Roest. After a few days of a steep learning curve on the Roest, we’ve settled into a system using the new inlet-temperature recipe program and automated BBP. We’ve been pleased with the overall results. I’ll write a post soon about our experience with the Roest.
We sold coffee wholesale to three cafes with whom we had prearranged deals. With apologies to others who made wholesale inquiries, we did not have enough green to sell wholesale to any other cafes. We hope to change that soon, but it will depend on retail demand and green availability. Likewise, we hope to offer a subscription soon, but cannot do so until we are confident about having a steady stream of green that meets our quality threshold.
Roast level vs quality of roast
Having consulted for well over a thousand roasters over the years, I have to remain relatively adaptable about roast level. It is not my job to tell my clients how light or dark to roast, it is to help them achieve their desired roast level in the highest-quality and most consistent way possible. I’ve literally never told a client “you have to roast darker (or lighter)” or “you have to roast to 20%DTR,” etc. What one writes in a book for mass consumption is necessarily different from what one prescribes to a roaster with a particular machine and unique goals. As a consultant, step one is to ask a client his or her goals. Step two is to help them achieve those goals. Everything must be customized for that client.
Like any coffee drinker, I have my personal preferences. I prefer light, juicy roasts of clean —usually washed — coffee, and famously despise funk. I respect that others have different preferences.
There is, however, a difference between roast level and quality of roast.
I’ve noticed many people confuse the two. A roaster may roast darker than I like, but do a great job of optimizing that roast level. Likewise, another roaster may roast in the color range I prefer, but the coffee may be baked or underdeveloped. I do not judge roasts solely by the final color, I also judge them by how skillfully the roaster achieved that roast level.
Roast level is a style choice. Roast quality is independent of roast level. I don’t see that distinction made often enough.
What’s next
Prodigal will release three or four new coffees this week, depending on how we feel about the green quality once it has all arrived and we have cupped some test roasts.
I’m pleased to say that one of the coffees we will release this week is the most delicious, highest-scoring coffee I have tasted in more than a year. It’s also the best washed Colombian I have ever had, period. The other offerings are delicious, and we are excited to dial in our system further, and share the results with customers.
We will notify our Prodigal Mailing List subscribers a day before anyone else of our new releases. If you don’t want to miss out on the new offerings, please consider joining the mailing list.
Thanks for your support