It seems my ability to write and publish here once a week has come to a halt. Recently it’s been more like once every two or three weeks. This is due to an odd feeling I only recently identified, a feeling that is the opposite of what I expected.

The more I learn about coffee, the less qualified I feel to write about it.

My coffee journey of late has taken me from the old forum of Coffeed, tracing the footsteps of some of specialty coffee’s big names, to the wild west that is coffee roasting chemistry in the GreenCoffeeBuyingClub.com forum. Despite all that I’ve learned from these treasure troves of knowledge, I haven’t felt the adequacy to write even an introductory post on a more advanced topic.

It’s simply too complicated for me to wrap my mind around, but I can’t stop trying.

This’ll Blow Your Mind

• The soil moisture, soil type, and available nutrients matter to coffee.
• The average rainfall, humidity, and amount of sunshine matter to coffee.
• The altitude, air pressure, and oxygen concentration matter to coffee.
• The plant height, varietal, and age matter to coffee.
• The time of year, the ripeness of the cherry, and the hands that pick it matter to coffee.
• The style of washing, the length of drying, and the thoroughness of defect testing matter to coffee.
• The packaging, the shipping container, and company of trans-ocean travel matter to coffee.
• The speed of the importer, the warehouse of the distributor, and artificial climate of the roaster’s storage matter to coffee.
• The experience of the roaster, the patience of the bossman, and the quality safeguards matter to coffee.
• The size of the drum, the smallest temperature adjustments, and the degree of roast matter to coffee.
• The type of packaging, the speed of the postal service, to the temperature inside the box matter to coffee.
• The grinder’s uniformity, the water hardness, and water temperature matter to coffee.
• The pour-over cone shape, the barista’s technique, and his standards of quality matter to coffee.
• The elixir temperature, the environment it’s drank in, and the drinker’s palate matter to coffee.

And That’s Only the Beginning

There’s so much to know, and so much more than is unknown to anyone. So I ask for your patience in producing quality content that appeals not only to professionals and enthusiasts, but also to the average home-brewing coffee lover. I am determined not to back away from the ocean of mystery that is coffee.

Next time you brew a delicious cup of coffee, watch the entire thing happen. Incredible, isn’t it?

Don’t leave without checkout these posts:

• Experiment and Explore: The Start
• Experiment and Explore: The Advanced Basics