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Filter Stories - Coffee Documentaries

James Harper

Coffee stories with an extra shot of history and science.

Filter Stories is a podcast revealing coffee’s hidden microscopic secrets, its powerful past, and how your choice of beans impacts tens of millions of people.

See the behind-the-scenes stories on Instagram @filterstoriespodcast.

If you haven’t already, please subscribe to the show and review us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!

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  • 35 episodes
  • Avg 34 min
  • English

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  • S8 · E17
    October 26 · 28 min

    Producer Toolkit: Storage, Pt 2 - Why plastics are not all equal

    This episode explores the black box between coffee leaving the farm and the roaster's warehouse, and how quality can be ruined. Wrapping the coffee in any old plastic bag won't do. We get geeky looking at how hermetic bags like GrainPro actually work. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Related podcast episodes: Lucia: #68: Fermentation vs. Germination: A Look at The Seed From The Inside, Out (Flávio Borém's drying research and how drying works) James: Filter Stories: Farm to Port – Why Specialty Costs More Filter Stories: Freshness and Grinding, Pt 1 (oxidation, diffusion and how to store coffee) Follow us through our newsletters and Social media: Lucia's Newsletter James's Newsletter Lucia Instagram James' Filter Stories Instagram People mentioned in the episode: Ronald de Hommel — The Coffee Quest Paulino Quintero — Huila, Colombia Gilberto Baraona — Los Pirineos, Usulutan, El Salvador Marvin Tala — Engineering Department head, GrainPro Philippines Hazel Valera — COO, GrainPro Philippines Resources: GrainPro hermetic bags, container liners NKG / GrainPro bag recycling How to Protect Coffee Against Container Rain Data loggers Cover art: Nick Hafner The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT water+more | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E16
    October 26 · 24 min

    Producer Toolkit: Storage, Pt 1 - How coffee gets ruined on the farm

    This episode explores the many ways coffee can get ruined while still on the farm, including fishy concrete tanks, the importance of not using jute sacks to collect coffee cherries, and solutions to unpredictable rains ruining coffee drying on the patio. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Related podcast episodes: Lucia: #68: Fermentation vs. Germination: A Look at The Seed From The Inside, Out (Flávio Borém's drying research and how drying works) James: Filter Stories: Farm to Port – Why Specialty Costs More Filter Stories: Freshness and Grinding, Pt 1 (oxidation, diffusion and how to store coffee) Follow us through our newsletters and Social media: Lucia's Newsletter James's Newsletter Lucia Instagram James' Filter Stories Instagram People mentioned in the episode: Orlando Osorio — La Primavera, Huila, Colombia Thai Dang — 96B Cafe and Roastery, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam Flávio Borém — UFLA, Brazil Resources: Perforated harvest baskets/crates GrainPro Collapsible Dryer Case Dryer PDF (full spec table) Borém's intermittent drying research Cover art: Nick Hafner The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT water+more | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E15
    October 12 · 42 min

    Producer Toolkit: Quality Assurance, Pt 2 - The basics of good water for coffee

    This episode takes you through the basics of good water for coffee. To objectively assess a coffee's quality, both producer and buyer need to taste it using the same water. But whose water standards should you choose? Why do roasters often get to define what the "right" water is? What would the coffee world look like if producers set quality standards instead of roasters? Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Related podcast episodes: James: Filter Stories: How Heat Transforms Coffee Beans Filter Stories: How to Be a Better Taster Filter Stories: Getting Great Water, Step by Step Follow us through our newsletters and Social media: Lucia's Newsletter James's Newsletter Lucia Instagram James' Filter Stories Instagram People mentioned in the episode: Karla Boza — Jacinta Y Su Cafe, San Benito, El Salvador Paulino Quintero — Huila, Colombia Jesús Antonio Chala — Finca El Silencio, Colombia Thompson Owen — Sweet Maria's Coffee, USA Lahari Balireddi — ASG Coffee, Kenya Manuel Barsallo — Agrícola Geisha, Panama Lorenz Haschka — BWT water+more Resources: Video: How to Make Cold Brew Physical Coffee Diary Digital App: Coffee Brew Log Digital App: Tasting Notes Sweet Maria's guide to roasting in a pan or popper, with video Sweet Maria's roasting on a pan or popper tip sheet Sweet Maria's air popper resources and video Filter Stories guide: Roasting your own coffee (English) Guía de Filter Stories: Cómo tostar tu propio café (en español) Guide to getting a good sample roast Video: How to Cup Coffee at Home SCA Cupping Workshop Video: How to use an Alkalinity Dropper Kit Buy a water test kit SCA Water Control Chart Water calculator to adjust alkalinity Make your Own Water for Coffee Video: Make your own water for coffee BWT bestmax PREMIUM (under-sink option) BWT bestbarista ROC COFFEE PDFs of CVA Form in 7 languages The SCA Coffee Value Assessment, Extrinsic Criteria List Digital App: Catador Digital: CVA in your web browser Cover art: Nick Hafner The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT water+more | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E14
    October 12 · 30 min

    Producer Toolkit: Quality Assurance, Pt 1 - A practical guide to tasting and roasting coffee

    This episode is a practical guide to tasting coffee, sample roasting and judging quality, built for small producers on a tight budget. That makes it just as useful if you’re early in your coffee journey and want to learn the basics without spending thousands on equipment, starting with a frying pan or a $30 popcorn popper. If you work in coffee, it reveals the obstacles producers face when they try to discuss quality on equal terms with buyers in the global north. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Related podcast episodes: James: Filter Stories: How Heat Transforms Coffee Beans Filter Stories: How to Be a Better Taster Filter Stories: Getting Great Water, Step by Step Follow us through our newsletters and Social media: Lucia's Newsletter James's Newsletter Lucia Instagram James' Filter Stories Instagram People mentioned in the episode: Karla Boza — Jacinta Y Su Cafe, San Benito, El Salvador Paulino Quintero — Huila, Colombia Jesús Antonio Chala — Finca El Silencio, Colombia Thompson Owen — Sweet Maria's Coffee, USA Lahari Balireddi — ASG Coffee, Kenya Manuel Barsallo — Agrícola Geisha, Panama Lorenz Haschka — BWT water+more Resources: Video: How to Make Cold Brew Physical Coffee Diary Digital App: Coffee Brew Log Digital App: Tasting Notes Sweet Maria's guide to roasting in a pan or popper, with video Sweet Maria's roasting on a pan or popper tip sheet Sweet Maria's air popper resources and video Filter Stories guide: Roasting your own coffee (English) Guía de Filter Stories: Cómo tostar tu propio café (en español) Guide to getting a good sample roast Video: How to Cup Coffee at Home SCA Cupping Workshop Video: How to use an Alkalinity Dropper Kit Buy a water test kit SCA Water Control Chart Water calculator to adjust alkalinity Make your Own Water for Coffee Video: Make your own water for coffee BWT bestmax PREMIUM (under-sink option) BWT bestbarista ROC COFFEE PDFs of CVA Form in 7 languages The SCA Coffee Value Assessment, Extrinsic Criteria List Digital App: Catador Digital: CVA in your web browser Cover art: Nick Hafner The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT water+more | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E13
    September 28 · 48 min

    Producer Toolkit: Price, Pt 2 - Discovering the true value of coffee

    What is the right price for coffee? This episode shows what the journey of price discovery looks like from the perspective of a coffee farmer. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business - agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales - and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Related podcast episodes: Lucia: #64: "What Kind of Coffee Lover am I? How Much am I Willing to Pay for a Cup of Coffee?" James: Filter Stories: The Hard Business of Selling Beautiful Coffee Follow us through our newsletters and Social media: Lucia’s Newsletter James’s Newsletter Lucia Instagram James’ Filter Stories Instagram People mentioned in the episode: Karla Boza — Jacinta Y Su Cafe, San Benito, El Salvador Julia Ortega, Finca Los Pinos, Puebla Mexico Edilberto Tovar — Finca La Esmeralda, Huila, Colombia Melissa de Gasperín — Rancho San Felipe, Veracruz, Mexico Diego Robelo — Aquiares Estate, Turrialba, Costa Rica Cristian Reyes — Finca El Rodeo, Santander, Colombia César Marín — Chacra D'Dago, Peru Gilberto Baraona — Los Pirineos, Usulutan, El Salvador Lalo Perez, Biofilia ASOPEP, Planadas, Tolima, Colombia Piedras Azules cooperative, El Salvador Agnes Thieleke, InterAmerican Coffee Europe Resources: Record keeping and profitability analysis V-Hub (formerly Cropster Hub) Coffee Yield Calculator Cost-of-production calculator Fairtrade Verified Living Income reference prices Specialty Coffee Transaction Guide Chad Trewick interview on Bellwether podcast Heifer / ASOPEP / Fairtrade Tolima living income study Book: The Culture Map by Erin Meyer Cover art: Nick Hafner The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT water+more | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E12
    September 28 · 41 min

    Producer Toolkit: Price, Pt 1 - How the commodity 'C' market works

    This episode explores the strange world of the C market, where movements in the Brazilian currency or rebels boarding a random container ship decide the worth of a Colombian farmer's coffee. Yet specialty coffee still uses this number to price the coffees it says are anything but a commodity. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business - agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales - and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Related podcast episodes: Lucia: #64: "What Kind of Coffee Lover am I? How Much am I Willing to Pay for a Cup of Coffee?" James: Filter Stories: The Hard Business of Selling Beautiful Coffee Follow us through our newsletters and Social media: Lucia’s Newsletter James’s Newsletter Lucia Instagram James’ Filter Stories Instagram People mentioned in the episode: Karla Boza — Jacinta Y Su Cafe, San Benito, El Salvador Julia Ortega, Finca Los Pinos, Puebla Mexico Edilberto Tovar — Finca La Esmeralda, Huila, Colombia Melissa de Gasperín — Rancho San Felipe, Veracruz, Mexico Diego Robelo — Aquiares Estate, Turrialba, Costa Rica Cristian Reyes — Finca El Rodeo, Santander, Colombia César Marín — Chacra D'Dago, Peru Gilberto Baraona — Los Pirineos, Usulutan, El Salvador Lalo Perez, Biofilia ASOPEP, Planadas, Tolima, Colombia Piedras Azules cooperative, El Salvador Agnes Thieleke, InterAmerican Coffee Europe Resources: Record keeping and profitability analysis V-Hub (formerly Cropster Hub) Coffee Yield Calculator Cost-of-production calculator Fairtrade Verified Living Income reference prices Specialty Coffee Transaction Guide Chad Trewick interview on Bellwether podcast Heifer / ASOPEP / Fairtrade Tolima living income study Book: The Culture Map by Erin Meyer Cover art: Nick Hafner The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E11
    September 14 · 43 min

    Producer Toolkit: Marketing & Sales, Pt 2 - Navigating trade shows

    This episode explores what a trade show actually feels like for a farmer who flew in on money his community pooled together, why a sausage dog opened a door that hundreds of cold emails couldn't, and why learning English may be a better investment for a farmer than a longer fermentation. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Related podcast episodes: Lucia: #54: Visiting Producers, Advanced Tourism & The Coffee Hunter (farm visits, the buyer relationship) #56: Pranoy Thipaia (finding export markets, expo advice) #65: To Blend or Not to Blend? Wine Vintages, and Harvest Update (sales strategy, consistency over novelty) Cabal Cafe Podcast en Espanol James: Filter Stories: The Hard Business of Selling Beautiful Coffee Follow us through our newsletters and Social media: Lucia’s Newsletter James’s Newsletter Lucia Instagram James’ Filter Stories Instagram People mentioned in the episode: Diego Robelo — Aquiares Estate, Turrialba, Costa Rica Cristian Reyes — Finca El Rodeo, Santander, Colombia Cristian Reyes — Personal Instagram Catherine Bedoya — Eje Cafetero, Colombia Hamsini Appadurai — Sangameshwar Coffee Estates, Chikmagalur, India Melissa de Gasperín — Rancho San Felipe, Veracruz, Mexico Edilberto Tovar — Finca La Esmeralda, Huila, Colombia Desnudo Coffee (Austin) — Austin, Texas, USA Alejandro Rodríguez Delgado — Hacienda San Pedrito, Puerto Rico César Marín — Chacra D'Dago, Peru Karla Boza — Jacinta Y Su Cafe, San Benito, El Salvador Resources: Algrano — Producer Sign Up The list of 144 international trade shows Clases Gratis de Inglés en linea - USA Learns Clases Gratis de Inglés en linea - Voa News English Accent Training The SCA Coffee Value Assessment, Extrinsic Criteria List PDFs of CVA Form in 7 languages The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E10
    September 14 · 37 min

    Producer Toolkit: Marketing & Sales, Pt 1 - The power of story

    This episode explores why specialty coffee is a luxury business that runs on story more than flavour. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Related podcast episodes: Lucia: #54: Visiting Producers, Advanced Tourism & The Coffee Hunter (farm visits, the buyer relationship) #56: Pranoy Thipaia (finding export markets, expo advice) #65: To Blend or Not to Blend? Wine Vintages, and Harvest Update (sales strategy, consistency over novelty) Cabal Cafe Podcast en Espanol James: Filter Stories: The Hard Business of Selling Beautiful Coffee Follow us through our newsletters and Social media: Lucia’s Newsletter James’s Newsletter Lucia Instagram James’ Filter Stories Instagram People mentioned in the episode: Diego Robelo — Aquiares Estate, Turrialba, Costa Rica Cristian Reyes — Finca El Rodeo, Santander, Colombia Cristian Reyes — Personal Instagram Catherine Bedoya — Eje Cafetero, Colombia Hamsini Appadurai — Sangameshwar Coffee Estates, Chikmagalur, India Melissa de Gasperín — Rancho San Felipe, Veracruz, Mexico Edilberto Tovar — Finca La Esmeralda, Huila, Colombia Desnudo Coffee (Austin) — Austin, Texas, USA Alejandro Rodríguez Delgado — Hacienda San Pedrito, Puerto Rico César Marín — Chacra D'Dago, Peru Karla Boza — Jacinta Y Su Cafe, San Benito, El Salvador Resources: Algrano — Producer Sign Up The list of 144 international trade shows Clases Gratis de Inglés en linea - USA Learns Clases Gratis de Inglés en linea - Voa News English Accent Training The SCA Coffee Value Assessment, Extrinsic Criteria List PDFs of CVA Form in 7 languages The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E9
    August 24 · 32 min

    Producer Toolkit: Fermentation, Pt 3 - Is using yeast cheating? And who decides?

    This episode explores why 30 cents a kilo is trivial for a large farm and unaffordable for a small one, the strange power imbalance that lets roasters define quality when nobody asks a winemaker what yeast they used, and how producers can talk to buyers who think starter cultures are cheating. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Please spread the word about Filter Stories! Follow us on Instagram - James (@filterstoriespodcast) and Lucia (@lluciasolis) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Discover how I make these Filter Stories episodes by subscribing to my Substack newsletter Stay up to date with Lucia through her newsletter Write a review on Apple Podcasts Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify Support James’ work directly by buying him a coffee at Ko-fi.com/FilterStories Related podcast episodes: Lucia: #72: Planning Your First Coffee Fermentation Trials? Start Here. #76: How Commercial Microbes Threaten The Coffee Industry #80: How Microbiology Can Explain Beginner's Luck James: Filter Stories - Coffee Quality, Part 1: The birth of specialty coffee flavours People mentioned in the episode: Lester Lerner, Old Willow Coffee, Colombia Victor Chala, Palma Rosa, Colombia Fridolin Stocker— Mount Sunzu, Zambia Shyira washing station, Rwanda Evangelos Filippatos, La Cabra La Cabra, Copenhagen Helen Riley — Novonesis Gunne Øregaard — Novonesis Franz Zeimetz — Lost Origin Coffee Labs, Panama Alejandra Rodríguez Delgado — Hacienda San Pedrito, Puerto Rico Gustavo Arroyo — Rancho Contento, Puerto Rico Resources: pH meter & buffer Thermometer Novonesis Pichia yeast Novonesis Lactobacillus bacteria Pressure washer Fermentation Log Sheet Yeast’s impact on the environment in research on vineyards Sprudge Best Of Panama coverage Lucia’s Fermentation Training Camp Coffee Wet Mill Sanitize Opciones para la desinfección del beneficio Cabal Cafe Podcast en Espanol Lucia's Favorite Tools: Temperature Gun Ambient Temperature Sensor Temperature Gun pH meter & buffer solution The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E8
    August 24 · 35 min

    Producer Toolkit: Fermentation, Pt 2 - The case for avoiding exciting fermentations

    This episode explores why the specialty industry's obsession with exotic processing is a dangerous signal for farmers, five ways commercial microbes can make a farm more money, and what a well-run fermentation looks like on farms of very different sizes. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Please spread the word about Filter Stories! Follow us on Instagram - James (@filterstoriespodcast) and Lucia (@lluciasolis) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Discover how I make these Filter Stories episodes by subscribing to my Substack newsletter Stay up to date with Lucia through her newsletter Write a review on Apple Podcasts Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify Support James’ work directly by buying him a coffee at Ko-fi.com/FilterStories Related podcast episodes: Lucia: #72: Planning Your First Coffee Fermentation Trials? Start Here. #76: How Commercial Microbes Threaten The Coffee Industry #80: How Microbiology Can Explain Beginner's Luck James: Filter Stories - Coffee Quality, Part 1: The birth of specialty coffee flavours People mentioned in the episode: Lester Lerner, Old Willow Coffee, Colombia Victor Chala, Palma Rosa, Colombia Fridolin Stocker— Mount Sunzu, Zambia Shyira washing station, Rwanda Evangelos Filippatos, La Cabra La Cabra, Copenhagen Helen Riley — Novonesis Gunne Øregaard — Novonesis Franz Zeimetz — Lost Origin Coffee Labs, Panama Alejandra Rodríguez Delgado — Hacienda San Pedrito, Puerto Rico Gustavo Arroyo — Rancho Contento, Puerto Rico Resources: pH meter & buffer Thermometer Novonesis Pichia yeast Novonesis Lactobacillus bacteria Pressure washer Fermentation Log Sheet Yeast’s impact on the environment in research on vineyards Sprudge Best Of Panama coverage Lucia’s Fermentation Training Camp Coffee Wet Mill Sanitize Opciones para la desinfección del beneficio Cabal Cafe Podcast en Espanol Lucia's Favorite Tools: Temperature Gun Ambient Temperature Sensor Temperature Gun pH meter & buffer solution The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E7
    August 24 · 22 min

    Producer Toolkit: Fermentation, Pt 1 - Nature's lottery and coffee's 3,000-year lag

    This episode explores why coffee is only fifteen years into a fermentation revolution that wine and bread went through millennia ago, what's actually happening inside the tank when microbes multiply into billions on their own, and why farmers who used to ferment as fast as possible are now trying to do the opposite. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Please spread the word about Filter Stories! Follow us on Instagram - James (@filterstoriespodcast) and Lucia (@lluciasolis) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Discover how I make these Filter Stories episodes by subscribing to my Substack newsletter Stay up to date with Lucia through her newsletter Write a review on Apple Podcasts Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify Support James’ work directly by buying him a coffee at Ko-fi.com/FilterStories Related podcast episodes: Lucia: #72: Planning Your First Coffee Fermentation Trials? Start Here. #76: How Commercial Microbes Threaten The Coffee Industry #80: How Microbiology Can Explain Beginner's Luck James: Filter Stories - Coffee Quality, Part 1: The birth of specialty coffee flavours People mentioned in the episode: Lester Lerner, Old Willow Coffee, Colombia Victor Chala, Palma Rosa, Colombia Fridolin Stocker— Mount Sunzu, Zambia Shyira washing station, Rwanda Evangelos Filippatos, La Cabra La Cabra, Copenhagen Helen Riley — Novonesis Gunne Øregaard — Novonesis Franz Zeimetz — Lost Origin Coffee Labs, Panama Alejandra Rodríguez Delgado — Hacienda San Pedrito, Puerto Rico Gustavo Arroyo — Rancho Contento, Puerto Rico Resources: pH meter & buffer Thermometer Novonesis Pichia yeast Novonesis Lactobacillus bacteria Pressure washer Fermentation Log Sheet Yeast’s impact on the environment in research on vineyards Sprudge Best Of Panama coverage Lucia’s Fermentation Training Camp Coffee Wet Mill Sanitize Opciones para la desinfección del beneficio Cabal Cafe Podcast en Espanol Lucia's Favorite Tools: Temperature Gun Ambient Temperature Sensor Temperature Gun pH meter & buffer solution The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E6
    August 9 · 28 min

    Producer Toolkit: Processing, Pt 3 - Critical instruments and poisoned rivers

    This episode explores how just a handful of cheap instruments can ensure quality is reproducible year-on-year, and the wastewater crisis poisoning rivers behind picture-perfect coffee farms. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Please spread the word about Filter Stories! Follow us on Instagram - James (@filterstoriespodcast) and Lucia (@lluciasolis) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Discover how I make these Filter Stories episodes by subscribing to my Substack newsletter Stay up to date with Lucia through her newsletter Write a review on Apple Podcasts Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify Support James’ work directly by buying him a coffee at Ko-fi.com/FilterStories Related podcast episodes: Lucia: Making Coffee with Lucia Solis — How to De-Funkify your Naturals Making Coffee with Lucia Solis — Germination: A Close Look at Coffee Drying James: Filter Stories: Why One Colombian Farmer Chose Specialty, and the Other Walked Away People mentioned in the episode: Lester Lerner, Old Willow Coffee, Colombia Orlando Osorio, La Primavera, Colombia Astrid Medina, Tolima, Colombia David Velásquez, Los Naranjos, El Salvador Jesús Antonio Chala, Finca El Silencio, Colombia Victor Chala, Palma Rosa, Colombia Melissa de Gasperín, Rancho San Felipe, Córdoba, Mexico Norberto Suárez, Boquete, Panama César Marín, Chacra D'Dago, Peru Manuel Matta, Santa Maria, Colombia Resources: Innovakit: canguaro (picking sleeves) Pinhalense Cherry Floater Pinhalense Vertical Pulper Pinhalense Mechanical Dryers Tolva — Plastic Vertical Hopper Moisture Meter (Mid Tier) Moisture Meter (High End) Cenicafé Low-Water Wet Milling (Ecomill-type systems) Flávio Borém Drying Research DIY Moisture Maths (weight + fixed volume) Lucia's Favorite Tools: Temperature Gun Ambient Temperature Sensor Temperature Probe pH meter & buffer solution The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E5
    August 9 · 30 min

    Producer Toolkit: Processing, Pt 2 - Drying mistakes that ruin coffee quality

    This episode explores the simple drying mistakes that compromise months of careful work, and the low-cost fixes that protect a coffee's shelf life and flavour. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Please spread the word about Filter Stories! Follow us on Instagram - James (@filterstoriespodcast) and Lucia (@lluciasolis) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Discover how I make these Filter Stories episodes by subscribing to my Substack newsletter Stay up to date with Lucia through her newsletter Write a review on Apple Podcasts Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify Support James’ work directly by buying him a coffee at Ko-fi.com/FilterStories Related podcast episodes: Lucia: Making Coffee with Lucia Solis — How to De-Funkify your Naturals Making Coffee with Lucia Solis — Germination: A Close Look at Coffee Drying James: Filter Stories: Why One Colombian Farmer Chose Specialty, and the Other Walked Away People mentioned in the episode: Lester Lerner, Old Willow Coffee, Colombia Orlando Osorio, La Primavera, Colombia Astrid Medina, Tolima, Colombia David Velásquez, Los Naranjos, El Salvador Jesús Antonio Chala, Finca El Silencio, Colombia Victor Chala, Palma Rosa, Colombia Melissa de Gasperín, Rancho San Felipe, Córdoba, Mexico Norberto Suárez, Boquete, Panama César Marín, Chacra D'Dago, Peru Manuel Matta, Santa Maria, Colombia Resources: Innovakit: canguaro (picking sleeves) Pinhalense Cherry Floater Pinhalense Vertical Pulper Pinhalense Mechanical Dryers Tolva — Plastic Vertical Hopper Moisture Meter (Mid Tier) Moisture Meter (High End) Cenicafé Low-Water Wet Milling (Ecomill-type systems) Flávio Borém Drying Research DIY Moisture Maths (weight + fixed volume) Lucia's Favorite Tools: Temperature Gun Ambient Temperature Sensor Temperature Probe pH meter & buffer solution The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E4
    August 9 · 41 min

    Producer Toolkit: Processing, Pt 1 - Coffee rockstars and picking’s brutal economics

    This episode explores why chasing avant-garde processing before nailing the basics is a trap for most producers, the brutal economics behind selectively picking and ways to sort coffee cherries in the wet mill. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Please spread the word about Filter Stories! Follow us on Instagram - James (@filterstoriespodcast) and Lucia (@lluciasolis) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Discover how I make these Filter Stories episodes by subscribing to my Substack newsletter Stay up to date with Lucia through her newsletter Write a review on Apple Podcasts Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify Support James’ work directly by buying him a coffee at Ko-fi.com/FilterStories Related podcast episodes: Lucia: Making Coffee with Lucia Solis — How to De-Funkify your Naturals Making Coffee with Lucia Solis — Germination: A Close Look at Coffee Drying James: Filter Stories: Why One Colombian Farmer Chose Specialty, and the Other Walked Away People mentioned in the episode: Lester Lerner, Old Willow Coffee, Colombia Orlando Osorio, La Primavera, Colombia Astrid Medina, Tolima, Colombia David Velásquez, Los Naranjos, El Salvador Jesús Antonio Chala, Finca El Silencio, Colombia Victor Chala, Palma Rosa, Colombia Melissa de Gasperín, Rancho San Felipe, Córdoba, Mexico Norberto Suárez, Boquete, Panama César Marín, Chacra D'Dago, Peru Manuel Matta, Santa Maria, Colombia Resources: Innovakit: canguaro (picking sleeves) Pinhalense Cherry Floater Pinhalense Vertical Pulper Pinhalense Mechanical Dryers Tolva — Plastic Vertical Hopper Moisture Meter (Mid Tier) Moisture Meter (High End) Cenicafé Low-Water Wet Milling (Ecomill-type systems) Flávio Borém Drying Research DIY Moisture Maths (weight + fixed volume) Lucia's Favorite Tools: Temperature Gun Ambient Temperature Sensor Temperature Probe pH meter & buffer solution The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E3
    July 27 · 44 min

    Producer Toolkit: Farming, Pt 3 - Starved soils and vanishing labour

    This episode explores what plants really need from the soil beneath them, and the labour shortage forcing farms to rethink how the work gets done. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, it will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Please spread the word about Filter Stories! Follow us on Instagram - James (@filterstoriespodcast) and Lucia (@lluciasolis) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Discover how I make these Filter Stories episodes by subscribing to my Substack newsletter Stay up to date with Lucia through her newsletter Write a review on Apple Podcasts Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify Support James’ work directly by buying him a coffee at Ko-fi.com/FilterStories Related podcast episodes: Lucia: #79: Farm First: Lalo Perez on Long-Term Coffee Health James: The Science of Coffee: The Magic of Soils The Science of Coffee: Plant Genetics People mentioned in the episode: Fernando Castillo Guatemala Paulino Quintero, Colombia Orlando Osoria, Colombia Julia Ortega, Mexico Sergio de la Vequia, Mexico Hugo Lopez, Innovakit Manuel Mata, Colombia Sam Knowlton, Soil Symbiotics Lalo Perez, Biofilia Resources: Anacafe technical management Coffee Cascara Compost Guidelines (English) Compostaje de la pulpa/cáscara de café (Espanol) Netafim Drip Irrigation manual Innovakit: abonador (fertiliser applicator) Innovakit: aroplateo (tree guard for weed whacking) Innovakit: selector de arvenses (low-drift sprayer) Innovakit: canguaro (sleeves) World Coffee Research variety catalogue Recommended varieties: Centroamericano, H1, H16, Mundo Maya Coffee&Climate Toolbox Access Agriculture World Coffee Research Resources Barista Hustle’s Coffee Farm Management series The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E2
    July 27 · 35 min

    Producer Toolkit: Farming, Pt 2 - Water crisis, risky genetics and cash flow crunch

    This episode explores the growing water crisis in coffee farming, why farmers are drawn to risky coffee varieties and coffee farming's hidden cashflow traps. Part of The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis, this series will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. Please spread the word about Filter Stories! Follow us on Instagram - James (@filterstoriespodcast) and Lucia (@lluciasolis) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Discover how I make these Filter Stories episodes by subscribing to my Substack newsletter Stay up to date with Lucia through her newsletter Write a review on Apple Podcasts Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify Support James’ work directly by buying him a coffee at Ko-fi.com/FilterStories Related podcast episodes: Lucia: #79: Farm First: Lalo Perez on Long-Term Coffee Health James: The Science of Coffee: The Magic of Soils The Science of Coffee: Plant Genetics People mentioned in the episode: Fernando Castillo Guatemala Paulino Quintero, Colombia Orlando Osoria, Colombia Julia Ortega, Mexico Sergio de la Vequia, Mexico Hugo Lopez, Innovakit Manuel Mata, Colombia Sam Knowlton, Soil Symbiotics Lalo Perez, Biofilia Resources: Anacafe technical management Coffee Cascara Compost Guidelines (English) Compostaje de la pulpa/cáscara de café (Espanol) Netafim Drip Irrigation manual Innovakit: abonador (fertiliser applicator) Innovakit: aroplateo (tree guard for weed whacking) Innovakit: selector de arvenses (low-drift sprayer) Innovakit: canguaro (sleeves) World Coffee Research variety catalogue Recommended varieties: Centroamericano, H1, H16, Mundo Maya Coffee&Climate Toolbox Access Agriculture World Coffee Research Resources Barista Hustle’s Coffee Farm Management series The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S8 · E1
    July 27 · 25 min

    Producer Toolkit: Farming, Pt 1 - Low harvests and profit blind spots

    Welcome to The Coffee Producer Toolkit, a series made in collaboration with Lucia Solis. This series will help you understand coffee farming better than most professionals you'll meet at a trade show. Each episode takes one part of the farming business — agronomy, processing, fermentation, storage, quality, sales — and lays out what the best farms are actually doing. In this first episode, we cover the fundamentals of what makes a coffee farm viable. We look at how farms measure success and why so few know whether they're actually profitable. Please spread the word about Filter Stories! Follow us on Instagram - James (@filterstoriespodcast) and Lucia (@lluciasolis) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Discover how I make these Filter Stories episodes by subscribing to my Substack newsletter Stay up to date with Lucia through her newsletter Write a review on Apple Podcasts Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify Support James’ work directly by buying him a coffee at Ko-fi.com/FilterStories Related podcast episodes: Lucia: #79: Farm First: Lalo Perez on Long-Term Coffee Health James: The Science of Coffee: The Magic of Soils The Science of Coffee: Plant Genetics People mentioned in the episode: Fernando Castillo Guatemala Paulino Quintero, Colombia Orlando Osoria, Colombia Julia Ortega, Mexico Sergio de la Vequia, Mexico Hugo Lopez, Innovakit Manuel Mata, Colombia Sam Knowlton, Soil Symbiotics Lalo Perez, Biofilia Resources: Anacafe technical management Coffee Cascara Compost Guidelines (English) Compostaje de la pulpa/cáscara de café (Espanol) Netafim Drip Irrigation manual Innovakit: abonador (fertiliser applicator) Innovakit: aroplateo (tree guard for weed whacking) Innovakit: selector de arvenses (low-drift sprayer) Innovakit: canguaro (sleeves) World Coffee Research variety catalogue Recommended varieties: Centroamericano, H1, H16, Mundo Maya Coffee&Climate Toolbox Access Agriculture World Coffee Research Resources Barista Hustle’s Coffee Farm Management series The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • July 13 · 17 min

    Introducing: The Coffee Producer Toolkit

    Welcome to The Coffee Producer Toolkit, an eight episode series to help producers have long-term profitable farms. Hosted by coffee journalist James Harper (Filter Stories podcast) and fermentation specialist Lucia Solis (Making Coffee with Lucia Solis podcast), this series breaks down essential topics including agronomy, fermentation, pricing, sales, and marketing. In this introductory episode, you'll learn about James and Lucia’s backgrounds, why they joined forces to build this resource, and how this toolkit is structured to help you run a viable coffee business. Follow us through our newsletters and Social media: Lucia's Newsletter James's Newsletter Lucia Instagram James' Filter Stories Instagram Cover art: Nick Hafner The Coffee Producer Toolkit is made possible by these leading coffee organisations: The Coffee Quest | BWT water+more | Descamex | InterAmerican | Pinhalense | Novonesis | GrainPro

  • S7 · E5
    April 20 · 28 min

    History: Guatemala’s Inconvenient Truth, Pt 2

    Specialty coffee changes the story for the indigenous people of Guatemala. Coffee as a tool of oppression finally offers hope....and then something a bit more complicated. This episode explores the tension between the values of the Mayan communities who grow coffee, and the values that drive the specialty coffee movement. Many of the signals we typically look for in our coffees - super-specialty flavours, Fairtrade certification, “5th generation family farm” - might actually exclude coffee grown by indigenous Guatemalans. This episode might change what kind of Guatemalan coffee you buy. Please spread the word about A History of Coffee! Follow us on Instagram - James (@filterstoriespodcast) and Jonathan (@coffeehistoryjm) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Write a review on Apple Podcasts Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify This free educational content for the coffee community was made possible by Mahlkönig, manufacturers of world-leading coffee grinders for 100 years for your home and cafe. Read Jonathan’s book, Coffee: A Global History Support James’ work directly by buying him a coffee at Ko-fi.com/FilterStories Read James’ article on Dieseldorf, the famous German plantation owner, in Standart Pick up a copy of Prof. Ted Fischer’s excellent book Making Better Coffee: How Maya Farmers and Third Wave Taste Makers Create Value Follow Juan Jose on LinkedIn to keep up with his PhD on coffee farming in Jacaltenango exploring how ecology, generational memory and ritual all shape how Jacalteco farmers tend the land. Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

  • S7 · E4
    April 20 · 43 min

    History: Guatemala’s Inconvenient Truth, Pt 1

    When you buy a bag of coffee labelled fifth-generation family farm, it feels like a good choice. But in Guatemala, that label might actually be a signal for a more uncomfortable truth. This episode explores how land has been understood, used, and eventually fought over in Guatemala for centuries between indigenous people, Europeans and those in-between. It’s a story of what happened immediately after Guatemala won independence from Spain. This pivotal period of history gets less attention in the history books, but the suffering of the indigenous people of Guatemala gets arguably even worse. Fair warning: it's a dark story, and it will make you think twice about what you're really choosing when you pick up a bag of coffee from Central America. Please spread the word about A History of Coffee! Follow us on Instagram - James (@filterstoriespodcast) and Jonathan (@coffeehistoryjm) - and tag us in an Instagram story. Write a review on Apple Podcasts Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify This free educational content for the coffee community was made possible by Mahlkönig, manufacturers of world-leading coffee grinders for 100 years for your home and cafe. Read Jonathan’s book, Coffee: A Global History Support James’ work directly by buying him a coffee at Ko-fi.com/FilterStories Read James’ article on Dieseldorf, the famous German plantation owner, in Standart Pick up a copy of Prof. Ted Fischer’s excellent book Making Better Coffee: How Maya Farmers and Third Wave Taste Makers Create Value Follow Juan Jose on LinkedIn to keep up with his PhD on coffee farming in Jacaltenango exploring how ecology, generational memory and ritual all shape how Jacalteco farmers tend the land. Use ProfilePrint to find the coffee your customers loved last year (without a week of cupping!). Use promo code "FILTER" to get 10% off your first year of a Mini Beluga subscription. Click here to discover ProfilePrint's many uses. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. What kind of racing car does the Gaggia Classic GT home espresso machine remind you of? Use discount code FS202610 to get 10% off. Meet the Mazzer Super Jolly g, the iconic grinder that's got even better. Click here to learn about its super fast grinding, bump protection, and 100th-of-a-gram accuracy. Elevate your cafe's menu with Prana Chai: whole leaf tea sourced direct from farmers, blended with fresh whole spices, sweetened with honey. Request a sample here. Support Filter Stories at Ko-Fi.com/FilterStories

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