S7:E1

Guest: Becca Awld, Lil Baggins Coffee RoastersFrom: San Diego, CAInstagram: @lilbagginscoffeeWebsite: www.lilbaggins.com

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Welcome to Season 7 of the Roast! West Coast coffee podcast. Things are a bit different this season. The show is focused on Coffee People. As the podcast has grown, so has our audience. This season we're expanding our guest list beyond the West Coast. We'll be featuring coffee professionals from throughout the United States and even overseas in an effort to continue growing this craft coffee community.

Don't fret if you are here for coffee education. This show will still dive into the challenges facing the coffee industry and include educational episodes, but based on feedback from the audience, we've spun off the popular Coffee Smarter episodes into its own show.

The goal of the Coffee Smarter podcast is to enable listeners to brew better cups of coffee at home and a better coffee experience overall. The podcast is more focused and designed to be listened to while you're enjoying a cup of coffee.

Season 1 is dedicated to coffee brewers like the French press, Chemex, and v60 pour-over. We'll cover full immersion and pour over drippers. We'll dig into the history of at-home coffee brewers, how they work, and even their impact on the flavor of the coffee.

The founder and Head Roaster at Coffee Cycle Roasting in Pacific Beach, San Diego, California, Chris O'Brien, will join us as our Coffee Smarter expert on every single episode. Episodes drop Wednesday mornings.

Be sure to follow Coffee Smarter on your favorite podcast platforms. Subscribers to the R!WC newsletter will receive the episodes in their in-box just like always.

Some things in Season 7 will remain the same. For starters, we’ll talk to great guests like Becca Awld of Lil Baggins Coffee Roasters.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

* Becca was a late bloomer to coffee drinking (see what I did there). The gift of a Starbucks gift card has been continuing to pay dividends. Despite an overwhelming first craft coffee experience, Becca kept at it.

* Becca and her partner Matt began roasting coffee at home on a tabletop coffee roaster. Roasting in an upstairs apartment created some sitcom-worthy shenanigans, including the creation of the Super Flap 5000, a.k.a. a sheet of cardboard used to push smoke out the window.

* The Lil Baggins branding is not a Lord of the Rings reference, but it has come up because fans of the coffee have associated the two on their own. Rather, one goal of the branding’s cartoons and comedic imagery is to keep it fun.

* We are not alone in our mistakes. There is a good chance—nay, a guarantee—that someone else has been there before. Becca roasts coffee at the California Roasting Collective, which is a coffee roasting co-working space in San Marcos, CA. Roasters at all different levels of experience are in the building and creating a unique community of coffee colleagues. Whether at a coffee roasting collective or practicing your brewing techniques at home while listening to a podcast, we’re always learning and growing.

* Lil Baggins is asking for your requests on what type of coffee they roast in 2023. Let them know @lilbagginscoffee on Instagram.

* Perfect Strangers was a great TGIF sitcom.

FROM THE SHOW

I asked some of this show’s experts which drip coffee maker they would recommend for those who don’t want to brew their own coffee in a manual brewer. Across the board, they offered a piece of advice and a recommendation.

* Be sure to buy a good burr grinder ensuring consistently well-ground coffee beans.

* Check out Moccamaster drip coffee makers. Their various versions start at about $250. You can find decent coffee makers for cheaper, but it was noticeable that this one kept coming up when I asked coffee professionals for their recommendations. Chris O’Brien of Coffee Cycle Roasting specifically mentioned the maker’s water temperature controls and preciseness as reasons he would consider it for at-home use.

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Drink their coffees and whiskeys. Visit their cafes. Support local coffee shops. You won’t be disappointed.

* Ignite Coffee Company got their final health permits (finally!) and opened the doors of their new cafe in Oceanside, California. The San Franciscan Roaster looks awesome, and the space looks great. I got to see it while it was under construction, and I have to admit, I wasn’t sure it would look as good as it does. Great job to the Ignite team. I’m drinking a mug of Ignite Colombia at home while writing this post! Check out the new space on Main St in Oceanside, or if you’re out of town, order a bag at www.ignitecoffeecompany.com.

Zumbar Coffee & Tea • First Light Coffee Whiskey • Steady State Roasting • CAFÉ LaTERRE • Mostra Coffee • Coffee Cycle • Camp Coffee Company • Ignite Coffee Company • Ascend Coffee Roasters • Marea Coffee • Cape Horn Coffee Roasters

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Coffee People: Becca Awld, Lil Baggins Coffee Roasters