fun is back?
If you're reading this then you have an interest in an incredibly niche part of the artisanal multiverse. Similar to the intricate job of decorating precious Warhammer figurines, you (and I) agonise over tasting notes and attempt to procure the latest 'it' coffee. To what end? The delicious feeling of knowing something that others don't or being part of something that your peers wish they were part of is a powerful motivator. So powerful that it has helped fuel the sub economies of the speciality coffee industry; think about the latest home-coffee gadgetry or the latest home-coffee setup for example. Before we arrived at this inflection point of disposable income vs disposable freetime, there was a little bit of 'fun' associated with specialty coffee. It was still in living memory when we collectively cooed and gasped in awe at the first signs of latte art in certain coffee shops. Taking a surreptitious photo of the beautiful latte art before the overworked barista slapped a lid on your takeaway cup was an art form. Sadly, as is all too often the case, the fun of revelling in this tradition blended into a minimum expectation and a way of judging coffee shops. The fun of it? Gone.
But is fun back? Filter coffees, which were once the high achieving yet much forgotten eldest sibling of the coffee menu, have steadily been creeping into the public consciousness. Techniques such as co-fermentation, thermal shock and anaerobic natural processing to name but a few, are increasingly becoming common place in coffee growing regions. In zaney coffee shops, customers have greater access to weird and wonderful flavours than at any point in coffees long history. This has tracked with the brazen boldness of coffee roasters choosing to throw off the shackles of narrow flavours descriptors (when was the last time you inhaled bergamot?!) in favour of more relatable tasting notes. What's more, the coffee industry has even begun to take itself less seriously. The science bros have stepped up their involvement in coffee production and declared newer processing methods as holy. We have marvelled as coffee co-fermentations yield flavours that were beyond our wildest imaginations. This Wonka styled revolution of coffee has delivered the fun flavour utopia that coffee enthusiasts with the correct amount of disposable income (and time) have so desperately craved.
In the advent of fun flavours and, frankly, rather ridiculous processing methods, there has been a quiet grumble among the early adopters of the UK specialty Coffee scene. The grumble rumbles along the lines of: 'enough is enough - let's get back to sensible coffee!' After bemoaning these goody two shoes, I find myself slowly joining their rallying cry, but not because I'm anti-fun or a lover of 'the old days'. It's more to do with the idea of what is happening to farms and producers who don't have the infrastructure or inclination to ferment or co-ferment. Coffees processed straight from the mind of Wes Anderson are fetching higher SCA (more blessed coffee bros) scores and subsequently higher price tags. Those coffees which used to score highly have been relegated to the lower leagues of our consumer-centric league tables for simply having the temerity to be 'washed' or worse...'fully washed'. Our appetite for more, more, more may leave those coffee producers adrift. Those that we once viewed as specialists in the ancient tradition of coffee production, now seem to be viewed as novices in a game of the western coffee world's making. If they are unable to afford the infrastructure to adapt their practices in order to meet our insatiable desire for evermore 'unique' specialty coffee flavours then what are their next steps? On the flip side, if farms and producers choose to innovate their practices then who are we to demand a screeching U-turn to throwback coffees? As is often the case, somewhere in the middle lays a middle ground that is cosy and beneficial to all involved. Or maybe there is no middle ground and we should lean into one side or the other of the debate. Who knows? In either case, it must be possible for us on this funny little island, which some call Great, to enjoy the fun, playful nature of coffee flavours without intervening heavily in their production. Surely it must.
