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Hello! I'm Thomas and I have been working in the speciality coffee sector ever since I was 16, from barista, to working on coffee farms, to educating farmers in Costa Rica and Guatemala. I remember when I first tried coffee at a festival with my dad at the age of 11, I got chatting to the baristas who were using a Kenyan blend and it just blew my mind. The idea of us being able to taste something that has come from another corner of the world, with different cultures and norms, using different languages and perspectives really amazed me. And I still don't think today, as consumers, we have really even started to comprehend the magnitude of the coffee trade, and the steps taken for the coffee to come to us in a cup, all the way from a farm. I'd love to try and get other people who are new to coffee to experience something similar.

If I got to be the events coordinator, I'd like to host nerdy talks/discussions for all things coffee;
-How caffeine interacts with our adenosine receptors;
-The history of coffee, going back to the ports of Mokka, Yemen and Jimma/Keffa, Ethiopia and the legend of Kaldi;
-From bean to cup (processing, dehulling, exporting, roasting etc.);
-Coffee culture(s) and tasting what different regions have to offer;
-Differences in Arabica and Robusta (delving into J.A.R.C. varietals and Catuai)
-Climate change and coffee (how the coffee trade will suffer moving forward, and what can be done about this)

And for those who just want to enjoy the taste of coffee without the bible of information that comes with it;
-Coffee Liquor/Cocktail night;
-Trying different coffee things (Vietnamese-style coffee/tiramisu etc.);
- And soooo much more! Have been thinking about possible trips to origin (very, very, very far in the future, but I have contacts :) )

I think it's very easy to get overwhelmed with all of the technical jargon when you're first introduced to speciality coffee and that it needs to be broken down without any of the holier-than-thou attitude that often comes with the territory of having the 'speciality' tag, so I'd love to make some infographics for the Instagram page to help break down things.