A Two Michelin Star Coffee Omakase

We often lament the state of coffee at fine dining restaurants. It’s mostly bad, an afterthought at best for a meal that costs hundreds, prepared with tweezers. Enter Jont. Inspired by similar experiences in Japan, the Washington, DC two Michelin star restaurant has turned the same meticulous eye they use on food toward coffee. Brian Gaffney takes us there.

Pour-over innovation is a matter of inches not miles. Design modifications are subtle, and often too are the results. A new pour-over looks to continue this progress, focusing on heat retention. The June brewer by Shelbru is a double-walled, vacuum-insulated conical brewer, and in tests it loses practically no heat during the brewing process. And it’s live on Kickstarter now.

You gotta love a good brewing competition. And that’s exactly what’s taking place later this month in London. Celebrating Berlin’s The Barn’s first UK cafe, they’re hosting The London Brew Up a v60-focused brew-off, with cash and prizes for competitors and spectators alike.

All coffee produced in the United States comes from Hawaii, California, and Puerto Rico. That’s it. But a new study finds that Florida may be the next hotbed for coffee production in America. Testing four different varieties, they found that South Florida was not only suitable to grow coffee, but that it may even be more profitable for farmers than citrus.

Another week, another wild espresso machine customization. This time it comes from German product designer Tina Bobbe. Featuring interlocking raw aluminum sheets, the Topo Frame turns the straight lines of the Linea Micra into a flowing statement piece.

After the Liberation Day tariffs were declared unconstitutional, it was also ruled that they must be returned. Some green coffee importers have started receiving refunds and they are passing them onto the roasters. Atlas, Cafe Imports, and Royal Coffee have all announced they will be issuing tariff refunds to any of their customers who paid them in 2025.

Good things come in threes, like this week’s slate of Build-Outs of Coffee. Our first stop was in Spicewood, Texas, outside Austin, where Coffee Equipment Pros have opened up a new showroom and demonstration space for the roaster-inclined. Then, in Bangalore, India, Nandan Coffee takes farm-to-cup to new heights, roasting and serving only coffee they’ve produced on their Nandanvan Estate. Finally, in San Francisco, The Wild Fox is bringing high-end coffee and World Barista Championship routines to the heart of downtown.

We’re highlighting outstanding coffees from some of our favorite roasting partners each week here in the newsletter. This week’s selection of tasty coffees are…

Onyx Coffee Lab – Colombia Juan Jimenez Gesha
Partners Coffee – Burundi Gahahe
Night Swim Coffee – Colombia Ronaldo Hurtado Estate
Klatch Coffee – Panama Esmeralda Reserva De Cabaña Gesha Natural
Equator Coffees – Kenya Mount Kirinyaga
La Barba Coffee – Ethiopia Musa Abalulesa Honey
Presta Coffee Roasters – Peru Gilmer Cordova Finca Ecologica Huabal Gesha
8th & Roast – Elefante
Portland Coffee Roasters – OPBEANS
Blueprint Coffee – Colombia Nidia Lasso
Joe Coffee Company – Cafè Feminista
Stumptown Coffee Roasters — Wild Flower
Phil & Sebastian – Sure Thing
Madcap Coffee – Eureka
Olympia Coffee – Big Truck
Mr. Espresso – Java Garut
PERC – Super Power Plum
Verve Coffee Roasters – Wilder Blend
Caffe Umbria – Bizzarri Blend

Sixth Sense - Head of Green Coffee Division - Shanghai, China
Coffee Medics - Field Technician (Junior & Senior positions) - Reno, NV

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