IT’S JUST COFFEE!

By Ben Bicknell & Rohan CookeBusiness Entrepreneurship Arts Leisure Food Hobbies

IT’S JUST COFFEE! episodes

October 28 China Just Won Its First World Barista Championship | COFFEE BREAK!
History in Panama. Pan Wei has taken out the 2026 World Barista Championship, the first ever win for China, and Acaia’s Susie Kealy was on the floor for all of it.
We break down the routines everyone’s talking about, the signature drinks that pushed the limits, and what actually separated the top six. Did our predictions hold up? (Mostly no.) And what does Susie think local cafes are getting wrong?
From the WBC stage to your corner cafe, this is your Panama debrief. Plus, Condesa Co.Lab brings the weekly green coffee market report.
Much to discuss!
If you’re new here (welcome!), Coffee Break is your weekly inside scoop into the coffee community: on-the-fly barista tips, honest and unfiltered cafe reviews (eek), hospitality stories and gatekept coffee secrets. — It’s Just Coffee!

Find Susie here: https://www.instagram.com/susiebootz/
Acaia: https://www.instagram.com/acaiacoffee/
It’s Just Coffee: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod
Want to get in touch? Hit us up at [email protected] for any questions or comments.
Proudly supported by:
Apax Lab: https://apaxlab.com/
Condesa Co.Lab: https://condesacolab.com.au/
Thanks for listening!

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55 min
October 26 Why Every Cafe Looks the Same (And How to Fix Yours) | Cosimo Libardo, Ceado
Good coffee isn't a point of difference anymore. It's the price of entry. Joining us to unpack what comes next is Cosimo Libardo.
We trace Cosimo's path from selling espresso machines to running a Sydney roastery, sitting on the SCA board and now leading the official grinder of the World Barista Championship. Then we get practical: what are the warning signs a café has lost its position? How do you test a new one without a market research budget? And how do you make it real in your menu, your pricing and the accounts you say no to?
From the red flags you'd spot within a minute of walking in to the step-by-step recipe Cosimo runs every time, this is your repositioning playbook.
Time to stand for something!
If you're new here (welcome), our show dives into some of the best coffee conversations on the internet, but we will always remind ourselves at the end of the day — It's Just Coffee!
Find Ceado here: https://www.instagram.com/ceado/?hl=en
Want more coffee content?
IT'S JUST COFFEE: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod
Want to get in touch? Hit us up at [email protected] for any questions or comments.
Proudly sponsored by:
Apax Lab: https://apaxlab.com/

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1 hr 2 min
October 21 Is 17 cafes too many? | Axil's DAVE MAKIN!
Does a second café really double your money? And what about the seventeenth? Following his Main episode, Dave Makin of Axil Coffee Roasters sits back down with Rohan and Ben for a Coffee Break on what it actually takes to run a multi-venue café group in 2026, and on building a brand-new venue in the middle of it all.
Condesa Co.Lab also brings us the weekly green coffee market report.
COFFEE BREAK! is your weekly inside scoop into the coffee community. Everything from barista tips and honest café conversations to the coffee knowledge people don’t always share.
Want more coffee content? IT’S JUST COFFEE!: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod
Want to get in touch? Hit us up at [email protected] with your questions, café stories or hot takes.
Proudly sponsored by:
APAX LAB: https://apaxlab.com/
Condesa Co.Lab: https://condesacolab.com.au/
Thanks for listening!
#CoffeeBreak #CafeBusiness #SpecialtyCoffee #DaveMakin #AxilCoffee

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32 min
October 19 WBC Panama - The Contenders & Predictions | w Axil’s DAVE MAKIN!
Get excited, the World Barista Championship is almost upon us! And joining us to discuss the upcoming event is Founder and Managing Director of Axil Coffee Roasters, Dave Makin.
We reminisce on Dave’s competition history, and reflect on how the competition shaped his coffee business. Then we look to the future: time, money, resources… What does it take to compete in 2026? What should viewers watch for in Panama? And how will this year differ from previous WBCs?
From the investment behind Jack Simpson’s world title to the coffees, tools and competitors to keep an eye on, this is your pre-Panama briefing.
Much to discuss!
If you're new here (welcome), our show dives into some of the best coffee conversations on the internet, but we will always remind ourselves at the end of the day — It's Just Coffee!
CHAPTERS:
00:00 Dave Makin on the World Barista Championship
06:17 Dave’s 2008 WBC Near Miss
10:24 How Axil Builds World Champions
12:59 How Much Does It Cost to Compete?
21:23 Is Winning the WBC Worth It?
27:47 Jack Simpson’s Road to World Champion
34:37 Is Barista Competition Accessible?
40:35 WBC Panama Preview
42:00 APAX Lab
42:38 WBC History & Australia’s Success
49:38 WBC Rules & Equipment
52:30 Do You Need Panama Gesha to Win?
54:15 Coffee Tools: Competition to Cafe
59:31 WBC Competitors to Watch
1:05:04 WBC Predictions
1:07:49 Advice for New Competitors
1:08:52 Why Coffee Prices Are Rising
1:11:33 The Team Behind Axil
Find Axil Coffee Roasters here:
https://www.instagram.com/axilcoffeeroasters/
Want more coffee content?
IT'S JUST COFFEE:
https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod
Want to get in touch? Hit us up at [email protected] for any questions or comments.
Proudly sponsored by:
Apax Lab:
https://apaxlab.com/
Thanks for listening!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1 hr 15 min
October 14 What Makes a Great Café in 2026? | COFFEE BREAK!
Can a faster coffee machine make your café feel more human?
Following their deep dive into matcha, Rohan and Jai Lott sit back down for a Coffee Break on where cafés are heading. They get into automation, pre-batched espresso and why getting your head up from behind the machine might be the best thing you can do for your customers.
The conversation moves from Melbourne hospitality and remembering someone’s name to signature drinks, simpler menus and the equipment Jai would choose if he were opening a café today. Plus, the mistakes he keeps seeing in new businesses: too little money and beautiful spaces with terrible workflow.
Condesa Co.Lab also brings us the weekly green coffee market report.
COFFEE BREAK! is your weekly inside scoop into the coffee community. Everything from barista tips and honest café conversations to the coffee knowledge people don’t always share.
CHAPTERS!
00:00 The Future of Cafés with Jai Lott
01:28 Café Automation and Hospitality
07:13 What Melbourne Gets Right
15:05 Signature Drinks and Simpler Menus
16:59 Jai’s Ideal Café Setup
19:25 Common Café Opening Mistakes
24:11 Condesa Co.Lab Market Report
26:36 Building a Café in France
Find Jai at: https://www.instagram.com/coffeewithjai/ Kissako Matcha: https://www.instagram.com/kissakomatcha/
Want more coffee content?
IT’S JUST COFFEE!: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod
Want to get in touch?
Hit us up at [email protected] with your questions, café stories or hot takes.
Proudly sponsored by:
APAX LAB: https://apaxlab.com/
Condesa Co.Lab: https://condesacolab.com.au/
Thanks for listening!
#CoffeeBreak #CafeAutomation #SpecialtyCoffee #JaiLott

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28 min
October 12 Can Matcha Save the Australian Café? | JAI LOTT!
Jai Lott was the man behind iconic US coffee brands Bluestone Lane and Blank Street. Now he’s changed course, moving back home to Australia to start a matcha business! Join us as we discuss his incredible career, why he decided to make the switch, and what we should expect from his latest venture, Kissako Matcha.
00:00 Meet Jai Lott
02:15 From Bluestone Lane to Blank Street
07:02 Why matcha, and why now?
08:11 Matcha sourcing and transparency
10:52 Matcha culture in Japan
12:03 What matcha quality really means
16:44 APAX LAB sponsor message
17:23 How to taste and compare matcha
21:45 Should cafes batch matcha?
23:18 Batching methods and freshness
28:15 Matcha drinks beyond the latte
31:04 Simple ways for cafes to start serving matcha
33:17 Matcha pricing and cafe margins
34:39 Can matcha help cafes stay open longer?
37:07 Jai’s hot takes on batching and coffee
39:19 Shout-out to Project Zero
40:22 Closing thoughts and where to find Jai
Thank-you Jai for joining the show!
Find Jai at: https://www.instagram.com/coffeewithjai/
Kissako Matcha: https://www.instagram.com/kissakomatcha/
If you're new here (welcome), our show dives into some of the best coffee conversations on the internet, but we will always remind ourselves at the end of the day - It's Just Coffee!
Want more coffee content?
IT'S JUST COFFEE: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=4e8cead0-6644-4c4a-b419-28c825b1b236
Want to get in touch? Hit us up at [email protected] for any questions or comments.
Proudly sponsored by:
Marco Beverage Systems: https://www.instagram.com/marcobeveragesystems/
Apax Lab: https://apaxlab.com/
Condesa Co.Lab: https://condesacolab.com.au/
Thanks for listening!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
43 min
October 07 Roasting Advice That Actually Changes Your Coffee | COFFEE BREAK!
What actually helps you become a better coffee roaster? We asked experienced people across the coffee world for the one skill, tool or habit that made the biggest difference.
Rohan and Ben unpack their answers: tracking time through a roast, measuring bean colour, matching the roast to the way a coffee will be brewed, and trusting what’s in the cup over a perfect looking curve. They add a few tips of their own on sensory calibration, roaster maintenance and sharing knowledge with other roasters. Plus, Condesa Co.Lab brings us the weekly green coffee market report.
COFFEE BREAK! is your weekly inside scoop into the coffee community. Everything from barista tips and honest café conversations to the coffee knowledge people don’t always share.
CHAPTERS!
00:00 What Makes a Better Coffee Roaster?
00:58 Track Time Through the Roast
04:18 Why Roasters Measure Coffee Colour
09:12 Match Your Roast to the Brew
13:15 Condesa Co.Lab Market Report
15:25 Taste the Coffee, Not the Curve
18:28 Calibrate Your Cupping
20:10 Keep Your Roaster Clean
21:31 Share What You Know
23:11 Colin Harmon’s Coffee Business Books
Want more coffee content?
IT’S JUST COFFEE!: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod
Got a roasting tip we missed? Send it to [email protected].
Proudly sponsored by:
APAX LAB: https://apaxlab.com/
Condesa Co.Lab: https://condesacolab.com.au/
Thanks for listening!
#CoffeeBreak #CoffeeRoasting #SpecialtyCoffee

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25 min
October 05 An Astrophysicist Explains Your Coffee Grinder | JONATHAN GAGNÉ!
Do bigger burrs make better coffee? Are flat burrs cleaner than conical burrs? And why can two grinds that look the same brew completely differently?
Astrophysicist and Coffee Ad Astra author Jonathan Gagné joins Rohan and Ben to unpack what grinders actually do to coffee. They get into particle size distributions, fines, burr seasoning, freezing beans and espresso flow, then tackle the coffee claims that sound certain even when the science isn’t.
If you’re new here (welcome), our show dives into some of the best coffee conversations on the internet, but we’ll always remind ourselves that at the end of the day, it’s just coffee!
CHAPTERS!
00:00 Why grinders became coffee’s big obsession
02:04 Meet Jonathan Gagné
03:11 APAX LAB
03:53 From astrophysics to Coffee Ad Astra
07:22 Are bigger burrs actually better?
12:08 Burr heat, extraction and grinder myths
16:24 Flat, conical and burr seasoning
17:45 Static, freezing beans and keeping coffee fresh
23:20 What particle size distribution really means
32:04 Why some coffees produce more fines
37:00 Should you grind coarser for filter coffee?
43:11 What the 300 grind tests revealed
48:49 How water moves through an espresso puck
58:34 Filter coffee claims that don’t hold up
1:01:58 Tamp pressure and puck preparation
1:06:53 Does “high clarity” mean better flavour?
1:13:23 What we still don’t know about coffee and water
1:18:43 How to question confident coffee claims
1:21:49 Where to find Jonathan
Explore Jonathan’s work: https://coffeeadastra.com/
Jonathan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jgagneastrocoffee/
Want more coffee content?
IT’S JUST COFFEE!: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod
Want to get in touch? Hit us up at [email protected] for any questions or comments.
Proudly sponsored by:
APAX LAB: https://apaxlab.com/
Thanks for listening!
#ItsJustCoffee #JonathanGagné #CoffeeAdAstra #CoffeeGrinders #CoffeeScience

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1 hr 24 min
September 30 Our Coffee Highlights of 2026 | International Coffee Day
In the past year of coffee: What are our favourite coffees, cafes, podcast episodes, and coffee culture moments? We also unpack our mixed experiences with pre-batched vs fresh espressos, and discuss the fermentation process by Lohas Beans that challenged us on what fermentation can be!

If you're new here (welcome), our show dives into some of the best coffee conversations on the internet, but we will always remind ourselves at the end of the day - It's Just Coffee!

Want more coffee content?
IT'S JUST COFFEE: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=4e8cead0-6644-4c4a-b419-28c825b1b236

Want to get in touch? Hit us up at [email protected] for any questions or comments.

Proudly sponsored by:
Apax Lab: https://apaxlab.com/
Condesa Co.Lab: https://condesacolab.com.au/
Riverina Fresh: https://www.riverinafresh.com.au/

Thanks for listening!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
37 min
September 28 The Book Every Café Owner Should Read Before Expanding | COLIN HARMON!
What do you know about growing a coffee business? Not much? Well Colin Harmon knows a bit, in fact he’s written another book about it! The 3fe Founder shares a taste of the stories and lessons you’ll find in his book: like the scoop mix-up that wiped out a cafe's profit, why he turned down a half-million-euro deal, and how potato bags changed his roastery.
Plus! Colin runs us through real numbers on what scaling costs, the second-shop trap, and why growth might just mean more time with your family.

00:00 Is Growth Actually the Goal?
04:37 What Does Growth Really Mean?
06:52 Should You Open a Second Cafe?
10:35 The Problem With Scaling
14:24 Business FOMO
18:25 What Makes a Good Leader?
22:59 You’re Not a Bank
25:55 Outthink, Don’t Outspend
32:28 Getting More From a Small Cafe
36:58 Does Staying Small Work?
43:16 Keeping Personality as You Scale
50:10 When Is Enough, Enough?
53:20 Fixing Barista Competitions
58:16 Where to Get Colin’s Books

Massive thank-you to Colin for joining the podcast. Make sure you check out his book at https://3fe.com/products/what-i-know-about-growing-a-coffee-business/

Connect with Colin here: https://www.instagram.com/colinharmon/
3fe Coffee: https://www.instagram.com/3fecoffee/

If you're new here (welcome), our show dives into some of the best coffee conversations on the internet, but we will always remind ourselves at the end of the day - It's Just Coffee!

Want more coffee content?

IT'S JUST COFFEE: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=4e8cead0-6644-4c4a-b419-28c825b1b236
Want to get in touch? Hit us up at [email protected] for any questions or comments.
Proudly sponsored by:
Apax Lab: https://apaxlab.com/
Condesa Co.Lab: https://condesacolab.com.au/

Thanks for listening!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1 hr 3 min