Generally I write in my blog for my customers, but every once in a while something I write will spark controversy and spread through the international coffee-verse. I know locally there is a lot of urban legend and misinformation about me, and I'm pretty sure no one in the larger community has paid any attention* or knows anything about me. So I'm going to tell you a little, make a clarification, AND a confession.

But first, if I have anyone's attention in the specialty coffee world, I want to pose a question. Do you think it's possible to create a long-range plan in Haiti to do what has been done in Rwanda? I wonder if Tim Schilling would lend Haiti some of his successful expertise and help them create small lots of high-end coffees for people like us. Anyone?

Now, some back story on me. I played college football and then became a personal trainer for 7 years. During that time I was working my way up the coffee ladder at home. Changing coffees, brewing methods, grinders... you know the drill. One day, I think in '98, I discovered home roasting. I scoured the internet looking for a roaster and some info. I bought a Fresh Roast and Ken Davids' book from The Coffee Project. I also bought probably 20 different coffees. I read the book and roasted my first coffee, a Colombia Supremo or something. That's when this whole thing really started. Upon my first taste of that coffee (which couldn't have been very good), I discovered that I had never, until that moment, tasted coffee that wasn't stale. It was truly life-altering. I proceeded to get up and roast coffee at 430a every morning and I became addicted to the fresh taste of extremely fresh-roasted coffee. At some point, I decided to share this happy discovery with others. That's why the DoubleShot Coffee Company was born. My obsession with coffee turned into a thirst for information that is never sated. Since that day in '99, most of my waking moments have been spent playing with or learning about coffee. And I developed a sensitivity and dislike for the characteristics of old coffee (even a few days out of the roaster)- loss of aroma, minty taste and smell, and rancid aftertaste.

In my opinion, there's nothing like FRESH coffee. And I know my customers taste that too. I purposely sell coffee at a discount the day after I roast coffee (on Monday night) because I know that when people get used to drinking it that fresh, they can't get coffee anywhere else. The effects of staling coffee become very apparent when you haven't tasted them in a long time.

So eventually, after doing my best to open this thing in Colorado or Moab Utah (helluva dream), I ended up back in Tulsa. I came back because it's cheaper to open a store here and my investors were here. And I like Tulsa.

And if you think I don't love coffee, think again. I'm not just some rich kid who decided it would be fun to have a coffeeshop. I've suffered for this thing. A great deal. And I've given up my personal fitness, which is one of the most important things to me. I lived in a shitty apartment for 3.5 years without gas or electricity so this business would survive. I worked this whole operation- cafe and roastery- by myself for a 10-month stretch. You gotta do what you gotta do. If you love it.

So yes, we're a little shop in Tulsa. And we're the smallest player in Colombian coffee politics. Well, we're a non-issue in Colombian coffee politics really. Ha. But let me tell you something. People often (out of ignorance) put down the midwest. Oklahoma. Tulsa? Where is Tulsa? True, we're no Chicago. But we don't want to be Chicago. This is a unique town with unique people. I get sick of hearing people say rude things about us simply because there is not an ocean near by. I'm not sure why the ocean makes everyone think they're the shit. And to talk like there's no coffee culture here or there's no good coffee here... You're just showing your ass. You have no idea if you've never been here. So don't be such assholes about where you're located in the United States. We live here on purpose, just like you. As for coffee, where does coffee come from? Not the west coast. It's grown in the tropics. What about roasting? Well, my roaster was manufactured in Italy. Was yours manufactured in Seattle? I didn't think so. How about espresso machines? Nope. Still Italy. Well, mine at least. I am envious of some of the beautiful works of art coming out of the newer shops in the U.S., no doubt. My point is, we have every opportunity to make great coffee that any other shop anywhere in the U.S. has.

Speaking of roasters in the midwest, I think people are starting to get the wrong idea about my thoughts on Intelligentsia. It's because I keep referencing them in a negative light. That's my own fault. So let me clarify.

I think what Intelligentsia has done is amazing. What an awesome company. I really mean that. I wish I could do some of the things they do. When I look at Intelli, I see a company that does it's best and the systems they have developed are great for what they do. They're a big company. How many millions of pounds did they roast last year? They do a great job for being so big. The thing I dislike, and the reason I keep referring to Intelli, is the way it seems that everyone else in the industry tries to emulate every facet of what Intelli does. There seems to be very little thought or creativity. There is no consideration of what would work best at your shop or with your coffee. It seems to be a lock-step march behind the Intelli Juggernaut. I know that some of the methods and systems they have are not the best thing for my company. I don't think the way they make coffee is the best way. I think it's the best way for them. And I can respect the fact that they figured that out and have implemented it efficiently. But other people striving to do what Intelli does, to me, just seems lame. So my Intelli comments aren't even really a commentary on them so much as a commentary on everyone else. Hell, to me you're ALL Intelli. But that's just my opinion. And it may be unfair. Because of what I'm about to tell you.

Confession time.

Everywhere I go, I taste the coffee. I usually have a cup of drip (or whatever brewing method they use) and an americano. And most of the time I don't like the coffee. I dislike it. I don't like it at all. To the point where I can't really drink it. Most of the time. Most places. I always HOPE I'm going to like the coffee, no matter where we are. And every once in a while I have something that is really good and I get really excited and tell everyone about it. Because it's exciting. I love getting coffee that I enjoy somewhere besides my shop and my house. I go to the big-name shops around the country and I taste their coffee. Or someone brings it to me. And... yuck.

I hate that.

I wonder WHY that is... Why don't I like most coffee? I want to know why. Hell, sometimes I don't even like my own coffee. Sometimes I taste something and I know I should've roasted it differently or we need to brew it differently or maybe it's just a coffee I don't prefer. I'm not saying everything I do is good and everything you do is bad. But there is something about most coffee out there, outside my store, that I just don't like. I'm a finicky bastard. (And to be honest, I think a majority of it is that your coffee is STALE.)

I sincerely wish that weren't the case. But I've also noticed that the more often a customer comes here and drinks coffee, the more likely they are to develop this same problem. Devotees to the DoubleShot take coffee with us when we travel. Even to Portland, Seattle, and San Francisco. Maybe that's the way it is with you too. Maybe it's that way at every shop. You get used to whatever style of coffee your shop serves and everything else tastes bad. I don't know.

So I want to like your coffee. I just can't. Usually. Sometimes you guys hit a home run.

Well, that post didn't really go where I wanted it to. I was just trying to tell you guys that I'm in it for the coffee. I work hard for great coffee. I'm not a conformist and I'm skeptical. I know I come off too harsh sometimes. But I want people to think for themselves and figure out something new. And tell me about it so I can try it too.

But I'm not going to pretend I think it's good if I don't think it is.

Some questions: What's the average age of the coffee you're serving at your shop? Do you even know? Do you let the coffee sit and "de-gas" before you serve it? How long? Do you have a time limit in which you won't serve coffee any more? Do tell.

* Except possibly Doug Zell, who told me in person that he pays attention. And for the record, I like Doug Zell.