You may have heard of Third Wave Coffee... or not.
The First Wave for coffee was considered to have occurred when coffee became a widely available commodity.
The Second Wave for coffee happened when large companies such as a certain company whose second syllable rhymes with "sucks" decided that it was a good idea to roast coffee to a level where all coffee-related taste components disappear and which then requires copious amounts of milk and, perhaps, ice to make the drink palatable (call me opinionated).
The Third Wave for coffee exhibits two key components. The first is that coffee is typically sourced from coffee farmers in a sustainable way meaning that coffee farmers are paid fair prices with relatively long-term agreements. The second is that the coffee is roasted lighter than typical Second Wave coffee so that the flavour characteristics of the coffee's origin shine through. This sounds great right?
In my opinion many Third Wave coffee roasters have gone too far in terms of the lightness to which they roast. Just as I feel Second Wave roasters roast way too dark, I believe that many Third Wave roasters roast way too light. The result is unbearably acidic coffee which doesn't play well either by itself or with milk!
The way we roast here at Garage Roasters aims at the middle road. Light enough to demonstrate origin character and minimise bitterness, but dark enough to produce balancing, rather than overwhelming, brightness.
