We at Royal Coffee love writing, tasting, analyzing and sharing coffee information with you, our loyal readers. Since launching this blog in February, we’ve published over 170 articles – that’s a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. We know all of you have read each article…twice. But for those just discovering the wealth of information on our blog, we’ve highlighted some of our favorites over the past year. Let’s face it, you may need some time away from your in-laws this weekend. Catch up on what you’ve missed with our Thanksgiving holiday reader – below you’ll find some of our favorite articles.

Yemen Mocca Sanani: Bob’s Salient Travelogue
By Bob Fulmer

It has been a difficult year for the people of Yemen. It is such a pleasure to offer a glimmer or hope to Yemen coffee lovers this year. Our Co-Founder & President, Bob Fulmer wrote about his favorite origin. In an interview, Bob was asked “If you were to die and come back as a drink, what drink would you be?” He responded, “Yemen Mocca Sanani, roasted full city, made fresh and strong.” We couldn’t agree more. If you never tasted Yemeni coffee, this article does a great job delivering the Yemeni experience.

Yemen Mocca Sanani: Bob’s Salient Travelogue

Single Farmer Lots from YCFCU & Royal Coffee
By Max Nicholas-Fulmer

We write a lot about Ethiopia. From 10,000 feet, it’s easy to forget all the work that goes into bringing phenomenal farm-traceable Ethiopian lots to market. In this article, our CEO Max-Nicholas-Fulmer outlines how we bring you some of our favorite Ethiopian offerings. This is just a small part of what goes into making Royal Coffee the World’s #1 Ethiopian Coffee Buyer. 

Past Crop Coffees Part 1: Roasting
By Jen Apodaca

Face-it, all of us at some point will have to roast past crop coffee. Our Director of Roasting, Jen Apodaca takes a deep dive on some tips to make the best of your inventory. No roaster is impervious to dealing with coffee that has started to decline in flavor. To make the best of what they have, many roasters have developed techniques to deal coffees that have passed their prime. In this article, we offer a few tips to help.

 

More Good, Less Bad and Ugly
By Jennifer Huber

All of us should feel privileged and honored to work in this industry. In this article, our Director of Operations, Jennifer Huber calls for the industry to do more good. With Thanksgiving here, can you think of a better time to give back?

More Good, Less Bad and Ugly

The Blend Supply Chain
By Evan Gilman

We love blends here at Royal. This year, we launched two different blends. Prior to doing so, we asked our Creative Director, Evan Gilman to learn more about blends and share his learnings with the industry. This article does a great job explaining the pros of blending, even in a single-origin dominated world. Didn’t know we offered roast-ready blends ? Check out our latest 78 Espresso Blend and our Ras Enjori Blend

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Reconsidering How We Roast Decaffeinated Coffees 
By Jen Apodaca

Decaf is often the unfortunate stepchild in any coffee roasting operation. Most roasters offer only one decaf coffee and if there are two, then the other decaf is usually referred to as the organic decaf. Decaf is mistreated at roasting facilities around the world every morning as the first batch of the day. Our Director of Roasting, Jen Apodaca takes a serious look at one of the most often overlooked coffees on the menu: Decaf.

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What We Learned From This Year’s Catracha Quality Project
By Kevin Stark

This year we published a ton of content on our relationship with the Catracha Coffee Company and their Catracha Quality Project. This article by Kevin Stark sums up our multi-part series on Catracha. You can find all of our Catracha articles here. This is a must read for all fans, buyers & those curious about our work in Honduras.

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Sneak Peak of The Crown: Royal Coffee Lab & Tasting Room
By The Crown

Loyal readers of our blog know all about our soon to open building dubbed The Crown: Royal Coffee Lab & Tasting Room. If you haven’t heard or need a reminder of all the exciting pieces of this project, you’ll want to start here. Trust us on this one, we can’t wait to host you.

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4-Part Series on Green Coffee Analytics
By Chris Kornman

Our Education & Lab Manager, Chris Kornman, wrote a four part series on Green Coffee Analytics to help coffee buyers and roasters learn more about the backbone of our industry.

· Green Coffee Analytics: Relevance to Roasters, Buyers, and Producers – Part I: Moisture Content and Total Water Activity
· Green Coffee Analytics Part II – Screen Size
· Green Coffee Analytics Part III – Visual Defects
· Green Coffee Analytics Part IV – Density