IT’S JUST COFFEE!

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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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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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!

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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.

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An Australian barista can earn enough for a cappuccino in about 10 minutes. In India, James Hoffmann’s Cappuccino Index puts it at nearly three hours. But what do those numbers actually tell us about the people making our coffee?

Rohan and Ben dig into the price of a cup, barista wages and the costs a café has to cover. Is Australia’s result a win for workers, or a sign that cafés are struggling to charge enough? And how much does the picture change when specialty coffee is an everyday drink in one country and a luxury in another? Plus, Condesa Co.Lab joins us with the weekly green coffee market report.

COFFEE BREAK! is your weekly inside scoop into the coffee community. Everything from on-the-fly barista tips and honest café reviews to hospitality stories and gatekept coffee secrets.

CHAPTERS!
00:00 James Hoffmann’s Cappuccino Index
01:02 Riverina Fresh
01:46 How the Cappuccino Index Works
02:08 Cappuccino Prices Around the World
03:07 Barista Wages Around the World
05:01 How Café Competition Affects Coffee Prices
08:40 Is Specialty Coffee an Everyday Drink or a Luxury?
10:18 Is Australia’s Cheap Coffee Sustainable?
13:00 What the Index Misses About India
15:52 How US Tipping Changes Barista Pay
18:19 Are Coffee Producers Paid Enough?
20:25 Condesa Co.Lab Market Report
22:49 What We’re Drinking

James Hoffmann’s Cappuccino Index video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WtlE3BW9Nqs

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 thoughts on coffee prices and barista pay where you live.

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!
#CoffeeBreak #CappuccinoIndex #SpecialtyCoffee

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A queue out the door doesn’t mean there’s money in the bank. Café consultant Erica Escalante joins Rohan and Ben to unpack why busy cafés can still struggle to pay the bills, and what owners can actually do about it.

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What if the secret to a better milk coffee was changing the milk itself? World Barista Champion Anthony Douglas is back to show us how freezing, freeze-drying and blending can turn an everyday ingredient into something that tastes like melted ice cream.

We break down three ways to level up your milk: freeze distillation, cryodesiccation and milk blending. Anthony explains what each method brings to the cup, which coffees work best and how to try these techniques at home or put them into café service. We get into sweetness, texture, supermarket milk powder and why more concentrated doesn’t always mean better. Then we taste regular milk and freeze-distilled milk side by side. Think grape bubblegum, butterscotch and a very convincing reason to make some room in your freezer.

Plus, Condesa Co.Lab joins us with the weekly green coffee market report.

COFFEE BREAK! is your weekly inside scoop into the coffee community. Everything from on-the-fly barista tips and honest café reviews to hospitality stories and gatekept coffee secrets.

CHAPTERS!

00:00 Giving Milk Coffee the World Champion Treatment
02:41 Three Ways to Level Up Your Milk
03:53 Riverina Fresh
05:24 How to Freeze Distil Milk
08:21 Finding the Right Balance of Coffee and Milk
13:17 Could You Just Add Cream?
15:48 Making It Work in a Café
17:03 Freeze-Dried Milk Explained
21:18 Freeze-Dried vs Freeze-Distilled: Taste and Texture
23:55 Can You Use Supermarket Milk Powder?
26:20 Blending Milks for Better Coffee
28:52 Why Lactose-Free Milk Tastes Sweeter
31:25 Milk Coffee Deserves More Love
33:25 Finding the Right Milk Temperature
34:37 Condesa Co.Lab Market Report
36:16 The Taste Test: Starting with Regular Milk
38:31 Trying the Freeze-Distilled Version
40:17 Another Way to Balance Your Espresso
41:49 Give It a Go and Tell Us What You Think

LINKS

Find Anthony and Homebody Union:
Anthony Douglas: Instagram
Homebody Union: Instagram
Shop Homebody Union: homebodyunion.com

Want more coffee content?
IT’S JUST COFFEE: Find everything here

Want to get in touch?
Hit us up at [email protected] with your questions, milk experiments or favourite coffee combinations.

Proudly sponsored by:
APAX LAB: apaxlab.com
Condesa Co.Lab: condesacolab.com.au
Riverina Fresh: riverinafresh.com.au

Thanks for listening!

#AnthonyDouglas #CoffeeBreak #SpecialtyCoffee

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No matcha. No hot chocolate. No signature drinks. So what happens when a World Barista Champion opens a space entirely dedicated to coffee?

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In our latest episode, bartender and beverage innovation specialist Thurman Wise taught us what coffee professionals can learn from the cocktail world.

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Signature coffee drinks are everywhere. But are they actually balanced, or are cafés piling on syrups, foams, layers and garnishes until the coffee disappears?

Thurman Wise is a bartender, beverage innovation specialist and Product Director at MEASURED Guide. He’s also gone viral travelling the world in search of its coldest martini.

Today, Thurman becomes our spirit guide, in every sense of the word, as he teaches Rohan Cooke and Ben Bicknell what coffee professionals can learn from the cocktail world.

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