Tag Archives: Colombia Sensory Trial

4 Perspectives on the Colombia Sensory Trial

2015-05-06 Comments Off on 4 Perspectives on the Colombia Sensory Trial

I have been writing here about the Colombia Sensory Trial for more than a year.  With presentations of the findings coming up at Re:co Symposium in Sweden and the Nordic Roaster Forum in Denmark, there will certainly be more to say in the coming months. For now, however, I will let this topic rest, leaving […]

SCAA Symposium video: “A Simple Question”

2015-04-29 Comments Off on SCAA Symposium video: “A Simple Question”

Yesterday SCAA Symposium organizers posted a video of my presentation “A Simple Question: Castillo or Caturra?” Watch it in its entirety here. .    

More precision on Castillo v Caturra

2015-04-22 Comments Off on More precision on Castillo v Caturra

Earlier this month, I had the honor of presenting to the SCAA Symposium the preliminary results of the work we did with friends in the research and specialty coffee communities on the Colombia Sensory Trial.  The following day, the Colombian Coffee Hub published this summary of my presentation, which concluded with my observation that the […]

The coffee variety conundrum: How Caturra vs. Castillo plays out all over the coffeelands

2015-04-20 Comments Off on The coffee variety conundrum: How Caturra vs. Castillo plays out all over the coffeelands

For my first few posts on Coffeelands, I’d like to explore a number of issues regarding coffee varietal development and farmer adoption. This week’s post will look at the undercard of the Caturra vs. Castillo bout.

A simple question: Castillo or Caturra?

2015-04-09 Comments Off on A simple question: Castillo or Caturra?

Yesterday I had the honor to present the preliminary results of the Colombia Sensory Trial at the 2015 SCAA Symposium. The Colombia Sensory Trial is a cross-sector collaboration with allies in the research community (the International Center for Tropical Agriculture, Kansas State University and World Coffee Research), industry (Counter Culture, Federación Nacional de Cafeteros, George […]

451. Intelligentsia releases first lot from the Borderlands

2015-03-04 Comments Off on 451. Intelligentsia releases first lot from the Borderlands

Intelligentsia wasn’t just a charter member of the Advisory Council for our Borderlands project in Nariño, Colombia–conversations with coffee buyer Geoff Watts dating back to 2010 helped shape the project’s design and planted the seeds for the Colombia Sensory Trial, our partnership with leaders in specialty coffee, research and philanthropy on a rigorous comparative analysis […]

440. Revisiting our 2014 New Year’s resolutions

2015-01-06 Comments Off on 440. Revisiting our 2014 New Year’s resolutions

A year ago we made three New Year’s resolutions on this blog: Generate more results-based evidence. Help the coffee sector navigate uncharted waters. Borrow a page from the microfinance playbook. Today we revisit those resolutions to see how we did on each one in 2014.

438. The CRS Colombian Varietal Cuppings series adjourns (for now)

2014-12-17 Comments Off on 438. The CRS Colombian Varietal Cuppings series adjourns (for now)

Over the past six weeks, this blog has been devoted exclusively to the CRS Colombian Varietal Cuppings–a series of comparative cuppings of Castillo and Caturra samples from our Borderlands project involving leading roasters and importers in the United States, Europe and Australia.  Even when I took a week off from reporting on the results of […]

433. The CRS Colombian Varietal Cuppings: Intelligentsia

2014-11-20 Comments Off on 433. The CRS Colombian Varietal Cuppings: Intelligentsia

Today, a conversation with Intelligentsia QC manager Chris Kornman and coffee buyer Geoff Watts regarding Colombian coffee varieties—the third weekly installment in my series on the CRS Colombian Varietal Cuppings. Earlier this month, Chris and QC Lab Assistant Amanda Seaver staged the CRS Colombian Varietal Cuppings at the Intelligentsia Roasting Works in Chicago.  Six different Intelligentsia […]

431. The CRS Colombian Varietal Cuppings: Counter Culture

2014-11-04 Comments Off on 431. The CRS Colombian Varietal Cuppings: Counter Culture

Counter Culture Coffee is a roaster that needs no introduction.  Its innovations in coffee sourcing, quality and sustainability have outsized influence in the coffee industry.  Counter Culture is, in short, a tastemaker.  And Counter Culture likes Caturra. A lot. As part of the CRS Colombian Varietal Cuppings, Counter Culture’s QC Director Timothy Hill cupped 22 […]