In this special 30th episode, we sit down with Ryan Castelaz, founder of Discourse Coffee and author of "The New Art of Coffee." Ryan shares his unconventional journey from aspiring opera singer to coffee entrepreneur, and reveals how he transformed a tiny shop in a town of 600 people into a thriving hospitality group.

Ryan Castelaz is the Founder of Discourse Coffee & The Afterglow Group
Author of "The New Art of Coffee"
Creator of Agency (Milwaukee's James Beard-nominated hybrid cocktail lounge)

Instagram: @ryan.castelaz
Website: discourse.coffee

"The New Art of Coffee" - Available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, William Sonoma, Onyx Coffee Labs

0:00 - Intro

0:52 - Building Discourse

2:50 - From Flavor Science to Coffee Innovation

3:37 - Head in the Clouds, Feet on the Ground

6:43 - Building Pathways of Trust with Customers

8:29 - Why People Will Still Come to Cafes

11:41 - From Opera Singer to Espresso

15:32 - Three Essential Rules for Opening a Cafe

17:50 - The Crawl, Walk, Run Model

23:19 - Inside "The New Art of Coffee"

27:32 - The Fourth Wave

32:25 - "Your Audience Isn't Ready"

34:39 - The Co-Fermented Coffee Debate

40:50 - Matrix Reference

46:18 - How to Start Creating Drinks

50:26 - Ideas Choose You

53:15 - Where to Find Ryan