Filter Stories - Coffee Documentaries

Organic Coffee, Part 1: The magic of soil

The world’s farming soils are deteriorating quickly.Conventional coffee farming where plants are grown using agrochemicals allowed farmers to reap huge harvests these last 70 years. But these agrochemicals have been at the expense of soil health. I travel to Honduras to explore a potential solution: organic coffee farming.Come with me as I show you the organic farming tricks of Don Rufino, one of the region’s leading organic farmers. He nurtures the soil around his coffee trees using mountain microorganisms, a huge diversity of shade trees, attentive tree pruning, and very funky batches of homemade bug spray. The results speak for themselves: when I pick up a handful of his soil, it is moist, dense and writhing with life. Could these cultivation techniques be the answer to the coffee world’s declining soil health?Please spread the word about The Science of Coffee!Discover how I make these Filter Stories episodes by subscribing to my Substack newsletter! Follow me on Instagram and tag me in an Instagram storyWrite a review on Apple PodcastsLeave a 5 star rating on SpotifyDive deeper into organic coffeeExplore Sustainable Harvest’s range of certified organic and Fairtrade coffeesAre you a coffee farmer? Get in touch with Lalo Perez VaraonaCheck out Don Rufino’s organic cooperative, RAOSConnect with my very knowledgeable guestsLalo Perez Varaona - LinkedInTommie Hooft van Huysduynen - LinkedInAlison Streaker - LinkedInThe Science of Coffee is made possible by these leading coffee organisationsBWT Water and MoreMarco Beverage SystemsROESTSustainable HarvestMahlkönigThe Science of Coffee is a spin-off series from James Harper's documentary podcast Filter Stories

Coffee Roasting, Part 2: Roasting made easy

Roasting coffee can be maddening. Just 4° Celsius is enough to make the same green beans taste distinctly different! And there are so many things roasters can play around with: temperature, time, fan speed, drum speed, types of probes…the list goes on and on. So, if you want to start roasting yourself, where do you start!?In the first half of this episode, I interview one of the world's leading roasting teachers who takes me through his published scientific research to give a clear answer. It’s as simple as 80%, 15% and 5%. And then, in the second half, I show you why roasting coffee consistently batch-after-batch is so difficult. But these problems are finally being solved with smart technologies. I visited the ROEST engineering team in Oslo and cracked open their innovative prototype P3000 roaster to show you the technology that allows anybody to roast coffee consistently and fully automatically. I am so impressed with these innovations, I believe they’re going to change the coffee industry.Please spread the word about The Science of Coffee!Follow me on Instagram and tag me in an Instagram storyWrite a review on Apple PodcastsLeave a 5 star rating on SpotifyDive deeper into the science of roastingExplore ROEST’s innovative products for the coffee industry.Learn more from Morten Münchow and his coffee roasting coursesRead Morten’s paper in collaboration with the University of Copenhagen on Roasting Conditions and Coffee FlavourConnect with my very knowledgeable guestsSverre Simonsen - LinkedInCallum Gilmour - LinkedInVeronica Balduc - LinkedInMorten Münchow - Coffee Mind websiteScott Rao - InstagramThe Science of Coffee is made possible by these leading coffee organisationsBWT Water and MoreMarco Beverage SystemsROESTSustainable HarvestMahlkönigThe Science of Coffee is a spin-off series from James Harper's documentary podcast Filter Stories

Coffee Roasting, Part 1: How heat transforms coffee beans

What flavours do you want from your coffee?Every coffee bean begins its life green. And if you brewed it up without first roasting it, you’d get a yellow-green cup of grass-flavoured water.But, as soon you apply heat to a bean, the flavour can morph to from something quite vegetative to a very acidic unripe fruit, then a very sweet fruit, and eventually dark roasted flavours.This is the magic of coffee roasting!In this episode of The Science of Coffee, I show you a full roast in action on the ROEST P3000, taste how coffee flavours evolve from acidic to bitter, and speak to leading coffee roasting scientists to reveal the mind-bending chemical and physical transformations taking place. See for yourself Roest's innovative P3000 fully automatic roaster. Please spread the word about The Science of Coffee!Follow me on Instagram and tag me in an Instagram storyWrite a review on Apple PodcastsLeave a 5 star rating on SpotifyConnect with my very knowledgeable guestsMark Al-Shemmeri - LinkedInCallum Gilmour - LinkedInVeronica Balduc - LinkedInAnja Rahn - LinkedInIldi Revi - LinkedInSamo Smrke - InstagramMorten Münchow - Coffee Mind websiteThe Science of Coffee is made possible by these leading coffee organisationsBWT Water and MoreMarco Beverage SystemsROESTSustainable HarvestMahlkönigThe Science of Coffee is a spin-off series from James Harper's documentary podcast Filter Stories

Smell and Taste, Part 2: Are you and me tasting the same flavours?

Ever wonder why you and your friends can taste the same coffee, but you can’t agree on the flavour notes? Join me as I explore this metaphysical mystery! I speak with leading scientists and ask: are the flavour receptors in your nose and mouth the same as mine? How does music and the shape of a cup affect what we taste? What about our different cultural backgrounds and language? Best of all, I put all these questions to the test in the Athen’s World of Coffee trade show. Many poor unsuspecting Filter Stories spit, splutter and gasp in the name of science!---------See Marco Beverage Systems' SP9 for yourself, and discover their range of consistent and energy-efficient coffee brewers for your cafe. Please spread the word about The Science of Coffee!Follow me on Instagram and tag me in an Instagram storyWrite a review on Apple PodcastsLeave a 5 star rating on SpotifyConnect with my very knowledgeable guestsHelene Hopfer - LinkedInJoel Mainland - LinkedInFabiana Carvalho - InstagramJanice Wang - LinkedInFelipe Reinoso - LinkedInFreda Yuan - InstagramMandy Naglich - InstagramThe Science of Coffee is made possible by these leading coffee organisations:BWT Water and MoreMarco Beverage SystemsROESTSustainable HarvestMahlkönigThe Science of Coffee is a spin-off series from James Harper's documentary podcast Filter Stories

Smell and Taste, Part 1: How to be a better coffee taster

So you’ve just taken a sip of a very rare coffee, and flavours of passion fruit explode in your mouth.But here’s the thing: that flavour of passion fruit is not coming from your mouth. It’s not even coming from your nostrils. It’s being picked up behind your eyes!In this first episode of The Science of Coffee's second series, I unravel how our sense of smell and taste works to help you be a better coffee taster. I shrink us down microscopically and we dive into your tongue to show you why good black coffee tastes sweet, even though there’s no sugar in it. We then travel up into our noses and get stuck in a lot of mucus. This slime might be disgusting, but we need it to be able to smell well. And finally, with the help of tasting expert and author Mandy Naglich, I show you three effective ways you can train yourself to be a much better coffee taster without having to go on any expensive courses. The trick is to train our internal flavour prediction models!This episode will help you deepen your appreciation of coffee and its delicious complexity. ---------See Marco Beverage Systems' SP9 for yourself, and discover their range of consistent and energy-efficient coffee brewers for your cafe. Please spread the word about The Science of Coffee!Follow me on Instagram and tag me in an Instagram storyWrite a review on Apple PodcastsLeave a 5 star rating on SpotifyBecome a better coffee taster!Pick up a copy of Mandy Naglich’s book “How To Taste”Sign up for the Specialty Coffee Association’s Sensory Skills coursesDo an online sensory course with CoffeeMindConnect with my very knowledgeable guestsMandy Naglich - InstagramLinda Bartoshuk - WebsiteJoel Mainland - LinkedInFabiana Carvalho - InstagramJanice Wang - LinkedInPeter Giuliano - LinkedInBram De Hoog - InstagramThe Science of Coffee is made possible by these leading coffee organisations:BWT Water and MoreMarco Beverage SystemsROESTSustainable HarvestMahlkönigThe Science of Coffee is a spin-off series from James Harper's documentary podcast Filter Stories

Introducing: Season 2 of The Science of Coffee

We're back with another series of The Science of Coffee!Across 10 science stories, narrative audio producer and coffee professional James Harper takes you on a journey into coffee's hidden microscopic secrets. James has spent the last year traveling to Central America, Greece, Norway, Switzerland and interviewing dozens of the world’s leading coffee scientists. This insights will help you appreciate coffee more deeply and make even better coffee at home. We'll explore organic coffee growing, delve into the science of roasting, uncover optimal storage and grinding techniques, enhance your tasting skills through sensory science, and share James' journey towards thinking more like a scientist. Press the Subscribe button so you don't miss future episodes! https://bit.ly/3TdDnHOFollow James on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2Mlkk0O The Science of Coffee is a spin-off series from James Harper's documentary podcast Filter Stories: https://bit.ly/3ajoT5eThe Science of Coffee is made possible by these leading coffee organisations:BWT Water and MoreMahlkönigMarco Beverage SystemsSustainable HarvestROEST

4) Just Friends? America’s love affair with coffee

America is coffee-obsessed. From Central Perk’s red couch being the centre of major plot twists in Friends to the fact the average American drank more than two cups a day.And the conventional explanation is pretty straightforward: an English colonist introduces coffee to Jamestown in 1607. 150 years later Americans rebel against the British by throwing tea chests into Boston harbour and drinking coffee becomes their patriotic duty. Oh, and of course who won the civil war? The side that had the coffee. But, actually, the truth is much more surprising, and reveals a much more counter-intuitive story of America. In this final episode of Series Two of A History of Coffee, we offer you a story of America through the lens of a black drink, another black drink, a third black drink and perhaps even a fourth. A History of Coffee is a collaboration between documentary maker James Harper of the Filter Stories coffee podcast and Jonathan Morris, Professor of History and author of ‘Coffee: A Global History’. Don't miss future episodes by pressing the 'Subscribe' or 'Follow' button in your podcast player.-----------Please spread the word about A History of Coffee!Follow us on Instagram - Jonathan (@coffeehistoryjm) and James (@filterstoriespodcast) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Write a review on Apple Podcasts (http://apple.co/3jY42aJ)Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify (https://spoti.fi/3K2h4RQ)This free educational content for the coffee community was made possible by Rancilio, manufacturers of professional Italian espresso machines for your home and coffee bar for almost 100 years (https://bit.ly/3U3oLMz)Read Jonathan’s book, ‘Coffee: A Global History’ (https://amzn.to/3dihAfU)Listen to other coffee documentaries on James’ Filter Stories podcast (https://bit.ly/3ajoT5e)Download all episodes of this second series right now by subscribing to the ‘A History of Coffee’ podcast channel (http://bit.ly/2NArChO)Learn how Brazil massively expanded output in episode three of the first series of A History of Coffee: Coffee Catches Fire (https://bit.ly/2NArChO)Brew up some Yaupon Holly! (https://bit.ly/40R6IuY)Discover Deb Hunter's All Things Tudor podcast (https://bit.ly/3L5OZet)

3) Espresso Lungo: The slow road to Italy’s democratic espresso culture

One morning back in the ‘80s, Howard Schultz walks out of his Milan hotel, stumbles into an espresso bar, and fundamentally changes coffee history. He discovered (and then popularises) the iconic, timeless Italian coffee experience: Rich thick coffee, an affordable price and great theatre. But this Italian ritual is surprisingly young, so young that Howard Schultz was in school while some of it was being developed!In this third episode of Series Two of A History of Coffee, we show you why for most of Italy’s history, coffee was thin, expensive, dull to watch…and that’s if you were lucky enough to even be drinking the real stuff at all!A History of Coffee is a collaboration between documentary maker James Harper of the Filter Stories coffee podcast and Jonathan Morris, Professor of History and author of ‘Coffee: A Global History’. -----------Don't miss future episodes by pressing the 'Subscribe' or 'Follow' button in your podcast playerPlease spread the word about A History of Coffee!Follow us on Instagram - Jonathan (@coffeehistoryjm) and James (@filterstoriespodcast) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Write a review on Apple Podcasts (http://apple.co/3jY42aJ)Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify (https://spoti.fi/3K2h4RQ)This free educational content for the coffee community was made possible by Rancilio, manufacturers of professional Italian espresso machines for your home and coffee bar for almost 100 years (https://bit.ly/3U3oLMz)Read Jonathan’s book, ‘Coffee: A Global History’ (https://amzn.to/3dihAfU)Listen to other coffee documentaries on James’ Filter Stories podcast (https://bit.ly/3ajoT5e)Download all episodes of this second series right now by subscribing to the ‘A History of Coffee’ podcast channel (http://bit.ly/2NArChO)Go deeper into the story of espresso machines: James' science podcast about Espresso Machine Technology Neapolitan coffee maker (https://bit.ly/3zZCivl)Espresso at 1906 World’s Fair in Milan (https://bit.ly/3MOX7kQ)Rancilio's Museum, Officina Rancilio 1926 (https://bit.ly/3Q7vqTI)"La Cornuta" espresso machine (https://bit.ly/41uBryd)Rancilio's Berlin Showroom, the BER Rancilio Station (https://bit.ly/3mD0lNA)

2) A Lasting Stain: Haiti, Colonialism and Coffee

Haiti was once the biggest, most profitable coffee growing region in the world. But today Haiti is one of the world’s poorest nations where you can’t get a bag of Haitian beans delivered to Berlin in a week for love nor money. In this second episode of Series Two of A History of Coffee, we show you how colonialism and racism dragged Haiti into poverty, and the role of coffee at the centre of it.Be warned: this episode contains graphic descriptions of violence. A History of Coffee is a collaboration between documentary maker James Harper of the Filter Stories coffee podcast and Jonathan Morris, Professor of History and author of ‘Coffee: A Global History’. -----------Don't miss future episodes by pressing the 'Subscribe' or 'Follow' button in your podcast playerPlease spread the word about A History of Coffee!Follow us on Instagram - Jonathan (@coffeehistoryjm) and James (@filterstoriespodcast) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Write a review on Apple Podcasts (http://apple.co/3jY42aJ)Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify (https://spoti.fi/3K2h4RQ)This free educational content for the coffee community was made possible by Rancilio, manufacturers of professional Italian espresso machines for your home and coffee bar for almost 100 years (https://bit.ly/3U3oLMz)Read Jonathan’s book, ‘Coffee: A Global History’ (https://amzn.to/3dihAfU)Listen to other coffee documentaries on James’ Filter Stories podcast (https://bit.ly/3ajoT5e)Download all episodes of this second series right now by subscribing to the ‘A History of Coffee’ podcast channel (http://bit.ly/2NArChO)

1) It’s Just Coffee? How coffee houses changed the world

A coffee shop is a lot more than just a place to drink coffee. The seats and sofas encourage you to invite a friend, and chat.And chatting is powerful: ideas that emerge from these caffeine-fuelled conversations give birth to modern finance and even the founding of great artistic and scientific institutions.Meanwhile, other ideas threaten those in power, and have led to many attempts to ban coffeeshops (and even coffee itself!) these last 500 years.In the first episode of Series Two of A History of Coffee, we show you how the coffee shop changed the world, and we ask whether it still has what it takes to upend society.A History of Coffee is a collaboration between documentary maker James Harper of the Filter Stories coffee podcast and Jonathan Morris, Professor of History and author of ‘Coffee: A Global History’. -----------Don't miss future episodes by pressing the 'Subscribe' or 'Follow' button in your podcast playerPlease spread the word about A History of Coffee!Follow us on Instagram - Jonathan (@coffeehistoryjm) and James (@filterstoriespodcast) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Write a review on Apple Podcasts (http://apple.co/3jY42aJ)Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify (https://spoti.fi/3K2h4RQ)This free educational content for the coffee community was made possible by Rancilio, manufacturers of professional Italian espresso machines for your home and coffee bar for almost 100 years (https://bit.ly/3U3oLMz)Read Jonathan’s book, ‘Coffee: A Global History’ (https://amzn.to/3dihAfU)Listen to other coffee documentaries on James’ Filter Stories podcast (https://bit.ly/3ajoT5e)Download all episodes of this second series right now by subscribing to the ‘A History of Coffee’ podcast channel (http://bit.ly/2NArChO)