Paid bonus articles
For paid subscribers to The Pourover. These pieces offer extra analysis and opinion around major stories in coffee.
The Coffee Smuggler of Boca Raton
For paid subscribers: A tale of international intrigue, bank fraud, and coffee smuggling from the 1980s that sounds like an episode of Miami Vice.
Coffee Conversations: Barista Education with Rachel Apple
The consultant and educator discusses her coffee background, how she became an educator, and the upcoming Level Up event for baristas.
Crypto Coffee; or, Why a Struggling Spanish Cafe Chain Is Going All-In on Bitcoin
For paid subscribers: Troubled coffee companies now have a new way to escape their problems: invest in cryptocurrencies and pray that the line keeps going up.
How Low Can Coffee Prices in China Go?
For paid subscribers: Competition among coffee chains in China is driving prices to ridiculous new lows. Where will it end?
The Never-Ending Tariff Story
For paid subscribers: Donald Trump’s latest arbitrary tariff threat, this time against Brazil, has once again enveloped the coffee industry in chaos and uncertainty. When will it end?
Starbucks’ MAHA Misstep
For paid subscribers: What Starbucks’ CEO Brian Niccol’s meeting with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. says about the company’s embrace of coffee’s wellness trend—and the trend’s darker side.
Why Studies on Coffee’s Health Benefits Are So Popular
For paid subscribers: A look at what makes coffee health studies so attractive to news organisations and readers, and how such stories also benefit the coffee industry.
Bonus Coffee Buzzwords
For paid subscribers: deleted scenes from last week's lexicon. Musings on the words "Sustainability", "Specialty", and the old-school buzzwords like "Artisan" and "Gourmet".
Yes, Starbucks Engages in Coffeewashing. But Don’t Let Reactionaries Weaponise It.
For paid subscribers: I’ve written before about Starbucks’ myriad climate issues, but now conservative activist shareholders are trying to weaponise those failings in service of a climate denialist goal.
Conflating Your Personal Brand With Your Coffee Brand is a Risky Strategy
For paid subscribers: Recent stories show the dangers of building too much of a coffee company’s image around its founder’s personality. When things go wrong, it can blow back on the brand.
Who Will Fund the Future of Coffee?
For paid subscribers: some thoughts on the loss of USAID funding for coffee research, and the possibly misguided hope that corporations will step up.