64 South Bay Accent
CHRIS SCHMAUCH (2); OPPOSITE: COURTESY OF BAREFOOT COFFEE
If the world we live in is becoming
more robotic and digitally assisted every
day, reducing human participation to a
footnote, crafted coffees offer the perfect
antidote. They rely exclusively on talented
hands-on human ingenuity to produce a
beverage that satisfies sensations of taste,
aroma and texture—uniquely personal and
elusive pleasures that machines, at present,
cannot duplicate.
THIRD WAVE
For the humble coffee bean, what a long
strange trip it’s been from a 10¢ cup of joe
to a $4.50 single-origin Amazon Rainforest
Latte. Coffee expert Timothy Castle has
traced the evolution of coffee in America.
He coined the term “third wave” to describe
its eventful journey. The “first wave”
spanned coffee’s arrival in colonial America,
Castle explains, all the way to its pre-packaged,
pre-ground, mass production in the
1960s. Among the ’60s stalwarts: Maxwell
House and Hills Bros. These supermarket
brands sold ground coffee products made
from robusta beans, which are easier to
grow, cheaper to buy, harsher to swallow
and generally inferior to arabica beans. The
sweeter arabica berries contain less caffeine
and deliver more depth, often with fruit and
berry overtones. They are chiefly responsible
for coffee’s “second wave,” which started in
the 1970s and ’80s, introduced by boutique
companies like Peet’s. As the demand
for less bland, more flavorful coffees grew,
discerning customers sought out specialty
shops for freshly ground arabica varieties.
When these small venues were absorbed
by larger corporations, says Castle, a “third
wave” ushered in today’s era of artisanal,
fair trade-focused coffee houses, many now
roasting their own beans. Currently, South
Bay’s caffeine culture is riding this wave
all the way from Campbell to Santa Cruz.
Teri Hope of Los Gatos Coffee Roasting
Company has had a ringside seat from
inception to present day. One of the region’s
first roasters, she founded her company in
1982. “I am so excited and encouraged with
the growing number of craft coffee roasters
emerging in the Bay Area, and across our
nation,” she says. “This new generation of
coffee aficionados remind me of myself 40
years ago, when I first discovered specialty
As in wine, flavor nuances abound,
so industry leaders have teamed up
to develop and licence a Coffee
Taster Flavor Wheel.
B2 COFFEE/BELLANO
VOLTAIRE SPECIALTY COFFEE SHOP