Latest / Coffee People Podcast / Stacey Lynden, Swiss Water Decaf

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Stacey Lynden, Swiss Water Decaf · Coffee People Podcast

0:02
Hey everyone, this is Ryan, the host of the Coffee People and
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Coffee Smarter podcasts. We don't get to put on these
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Now on to the show and here we go.
0:49
OK. Hey everyone, welcome back to
1:06
the Coffee People podcast. I'm your host, Ryan Wolf.
1:09
The show is presented by Roast, our coffee packaging, and it's
1:13
part of the Roast West Coast Coffee Network.
1:16
Go to roastwestcoast.com to find recaps of this show, our Coffee
1:20
Smarter podcast, and so much more.
1:23
On this show we connect with guests who have some connection
1:25
to the coffee industry and we share their stories.
1:28
Sometimes we talk about entrepreneurship or inspiration
1:31
or art. Sometimes we talk about the
1:33
community of coffee. And we usually do it with a
1:37
great cup of coffee. Today I'm drinking decaf.
1:39
Actually, this bag of Guatemala was given to me by Friends of
1:43
the show at Camp Coffee Company, a lovely little shop in downtown
1:46
Oceanside, CA, and was roasted by Bird Rock Coffee.
1:51
Most relevant to the episode today is that this decaf was
1:54
processed by Swiss Water Decaf up in Vancouver, Canada, and it
1:58
is very likely that it was originally cupped by today's
2:01
guest, Stacey Linden. Stacy has at times been a
2:05
barista, a coffee roaster, and long been a competitor on
2:08
various coffee circuits. Today, she's the Cupping Lab
2:12
manager at Swiss Water Decaf, and we're going to talk a little
2:15
bit about her illustrious career, how her relationship
2:18
with coffee in the industry at large has changed, and a bit on
2:21
how the decaffeination process works.
2:24
While you're listening today, be sure to click on the links in
2:26
this podcast show notes. You'll find direct ones to
2:29
Stacy's Instagram, the Swiss Water Decaf website, and of
2:33
course, our newsletter that lives online at
2:36
roastwestcoast.com. Back to the coffee.
2:39
I brewed this Guatemala as a French press, and it's quite
2:42
lovely on its own. And as the temperatures have
2:45
begun cratering after dark here in Southern California, it has
2:48
become a daily meditation for me to brew up a pot of decaf.
2:51
Make our home feel just a little bit cozier.
2:54
And I hope that you're bundled up with your hands around a
2:57
lovely mug of coffee, too, because it is time for another
3:00
Coffee People conversation, this one featuring Stacy Linden, Q
3:04
Grader, Hall of Famer and cupping Lab manager at Swiss
3:08
Water Decaf. Hello, my name is Stacey Linden
3:18
and I am the cupping lab manager for Swiss Water Decaf, the
3:23
Native Coffee Incorporated. I take care of all of the coffee
3:30
that comes in and out of Swiss Water.
3:35
Our team is responsible for cupping all of our pre shipment
3:38
samples, all of our rival samples, and then all of the
3:42
coffees that Swiss Sweater produces as well.
3:46
So just like a tiny little thing that you're.
3:48
Doing this is a tiny thing. Yeah, you didn't mention it, but
3:52
you're also a certified Q grader, You're a competitor.
3:56
You've got all these other things we're going to get into.
3:59
But I have to start with the most important question, which
4:01
is, do you have a favorite Keanu Reeves movie?
4:04
Do I have a favorite Keanu Reeves movie speed?
4:10
It's a good one. It's a good one.
4:12
Everyone goes to the classics with Keanu and I'm not sure why
4:15
that is, but he just started off so strong and so handsome.
4:19
He did. I mean, Point Break is also
4:21
fantastic. It's a toughy.
4:23
There's so many now. I'm like Dad, I'm like, oh, OK.
4:27
I always feel like that desert island movie question should
4:30
just be desert island Keanu movie because it's more
4:33
challenging and more specific and you have to really dig into
4:36
it. We are here because of coffee.
4:39
It's what connects us. I'm wondering a little bit about
4:41
your background. You know, do you have a first
4:44
coffee memory, a first coffee experience that you remember
4:47
that's kind of started you down this path?
4:49
I. Mean, I don't have the memory
4:52
per SE, and but it's it's definitely a story that my
4:57
parents like to tell is the basically, I've been a coffee
5:01
addict since birth or well, since like toddler ISM.
5:07
So you know, when you go to like a restaurant, any of the little
5:10
creamers, they would put that into their coffee, but I would
5:14
ask them to put coffee into the empty creamers for me.
5:19
So I've been drinking coffee since I was like a toddler.
5:24
My little brother used to sneak into the kitchen at our
5:27
restaurant, our family restaurant, when he was a
5:29
toddler and steal those creamers and we'd find these empty
5:32
Creamer things all over the building that he had stolen and
5:38
was drinking before Swiss water. You had kind of a career and a
5:43
journey to get there. Yes, I'm going to let you kind
5:46
of get into that. How did your coffee career get
5:48
started and kind of what was that path leading you to where
5:51
you are now? Long ago I I started working as
5:56
just like I guess in like a bakery cafe.
5:59
So like coffee was definitely the side thing.
6:03
Also. I mean, this is probably still
6:05
second wave time, so not particularly, you know, the type
6:12
of coffee that we're drinking in specialty cafes today.
6:16
So I started doing that. Then I moved on to an actual
6:19
coffee shop after that, still very, very second wave flavored
6:24
coffees, you know, a pump pot of light, medium dark decaf and
6:29
flavored plus an espresso bar. So actually I like, I'm not
6:34
going to lie, but at that time, like I was 1716, you know, so
6:39
flavored coffees were super fun. So I would be able to like dump
6:43
and again, like a portion pack just to make it even better,
6:47
like a portion pack of like Dutch chocolate and a portion
6:50
pack of orange. And then I'd have orange
6:53
chocolate coffee. And well, as a teenager, that
6:56
was delicious right, 'cause I honestly coffee wasn't that
7:00
tasty. I I think that actually sounds
7:03
kind of good. Like if I were by a campfire,
7:05
I'd be all all about it. I wonder as you're saying it,
7:08
I'm imagining the characters on Friends getting coffee and I
7:12
think they kind of like made that super big poofy whipped
7:16
cream flavor thing like just in the background of that show
7:20
normalized. Pretty normalized.
7:23
I mean, that's kind of the vibe I think he would have gotten at
7:26
this coffee shop for sure. And after that, I started
7:31
working at a coffee shop owned by a company out here called
7:35
Salt Spring Coffee Company. So we're moving into like
7:38
organic fair trade, single origin.
7:41
So kind of like moving more towards like, yeah.
7:46
Was that intentional for you to go to someplace like that, or
7:49
was it just sort of like, hey, here's a new job in coffee and I
7:53
have coffee on my resume? It was kind of for me at that
7:57
point, It was definitely more customer service oriented.
8:01
Like I liked that side a lot more.
8:03
I liked getting to know my regulars.
8:06
That was kind of the more important thing for me was, was
8:09
having a job that allowed me to be like in the community, you
8:14
know, and just like being a part of the community and hanging out
8:17
with people pretty much, right? Like just hanging out, serving
8:20
coffee, cleaning up some dishes, but just spending time with
8:25
different people, like in the community that I was living in.
8:28
And then it was just kind of by chance that I decided I wanted
8:32
to progress a little bit more in coffee.
8:35
So I did that. I was there for quite a while,
8:39
and then during this time I graduated from university, so I
8:43
did that for a little while as well.
8:46
I have a degree in anthropology, so I did some anthropologist
8:51
stuff and then during a work break there was kind of like the
8:56
first third wave high end specialty coffee shop opening
9:00
where I was from. I didn't have a job.
9:02
They were like, do you want to come in and manage this job for
9:05
us for a little while? I said sure.
9:08
I did that and then I started competing and that is kind of
9:12
what really drew me into like the specialty coffee community.
9:18
I needed to nationals for barista competition on my first
9:22
go and I think that was a huge like eye opener.
9:25
So I come from a very small town.
9:28
So actually kind of seeing like everything that the Canadian
9:32
coffee community had and like there was so much more outside
9:37
of like what I was doing. So that's, I think what really
9:41
started my journey in specialty coffee was, yeah, kind of doing
9:46
my first competition. Was there a reason you decided
9:50
to do that first competition? It seems like kind of a big jump
9:52
from, you know, hey, I'm hospitality forward to like, oh,
9:56
I'm going to go up on stage because there's a definite, you
9:59
know, is there a performer in you that just had to come out or
10:01
what was the the impetus? I played a lot of sports growing
10:05
up and as you grow up, there's less time for sports.
10:09
Also your body is just like, I don't know about this, you know,
10:12
also kind of becomes part of that.
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So competition gave me that outlet, like coffee competition
10:20
gave me that kind of competitive outlet.
10:22
And you know, you, you have a team and you're working with a
10:25
team. You're, you know, like you're
10:27
competing, you're meeting like other competitors.
10:31
So really to me competition is like coffee sports, right?
10:36
Is more the way I see it, you know, and then I get to like
10:40
after an event, I get to go out, you know, and usually have
10:43
drinks with these people and talk like you know, for example,
10:47
the roasting competition, there was an event I met you,
10:51
etcetera, right so. I think that's a really
10:55
interesting thing you just brought up, which is competitive
10:58
outlets as an adult, you know, as kids, there are all kinds of
11:02
opportunities for you if you want to be competitive and it's
11:06
encouraged. It's, you know, available in
11:07
school. And then you all of a sudden
11:11
you're out in the world and you're probably working or
11:13
trying to survive. And you, you know, if you're not
11:15
like going to the like a local gym or something and like
11:18
actively getting into it, there are less opportunities for that.
11:22
And as you break down physically as I have, and I'm sure other
11:25
people have or maybe just don't quite have the same oomph as you
11:29
did, it becomes harder and harder to get that same thrill
11:33
is the wrong word, but same competitive out outlook.
11:37
I've tried to find that in various careers without a lot of
11:41
success. And I think it's cool that
11:42
you're saying you did find some of that some of that outlet to
11:46
fill that niche. You mentioned you had started
11:50
working in specialty a little bit there before that
11:53
competition. When you come back from that
11:54
first big competition and you see this bigger world, how did
11:59
that expand your, you know your, your world view as far as your
12:02
career is going? Well, I guess it had a pretty
12:06
big impact, I guess. After that, a customer of mine
12:12
asked me if I had ever thought about roasting.
12:16
And honestly, the answer at that time was no, not really.
12:19
Like, I'm just kind of doing this thing.
12:22
It's fun. I like it.
12:24
And he was like, you should go meet a friend of mine.
12:28
He roasts at this nonprofit social enterprise every.
12:33
I think it was Monday morning. Just go knock on the door and
12:36
say hello. So I did that.
12:40
I went down into the city and I knocked on the door and there's
12:44
a man in the background and he's roasting coffee.
12:48
I have no idea who he is or what he does or anything.
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And I'm like, hi, Stacy. I sit on the dishwasher in the
12:56
backroom, like just kind of watching him roast and, like
13:00
talking. I have no idea that he's like,
13:03
you know, a roasting teacher. He fixes most of the roasters,
13:07
you know, across North America. I have no idea who he is, like,
13:11
as far as like, how many accolades he has and how
13:14
talented he is. I just, he's this really nice
13:16
guy. I'm sitting there listening to
13:19
him talk about roasting. Then eventually he's like, oh,
13:21
do you want to put a load in? And that's kind of how it all
13:25
started. And then I got asked if I wanted
13:27
to come back the next week and I did.
13:31
And I also kind of ended up roasting a little bit there.
13:35
It's a nonprofit social enterprise called Eastvan Coffee
13:37
Roasters. It helps women get out of at
13:41
risk situations and get back into the regular workforce.
13:45
So they did kind of want a woman roasting because there's a lot
13:49
of situations where they're just not comfortable with men around,
13:53
right? So, but there was just nobody to
13:56
roast at that time. So I just kind of fell into that
14:01
role for a little while, helped out with their barista program,
14:04
more volunteering, but also learning how to roast totally
14:09
for free, which was really great.
14:12
And then after that, there was an opportunity to apply to roast
14:17
at this kind of macro roaster. They did that, I got the job.
14:23
I ended up roasting like 2,000,000 lbs of coffee a year
14:27
for a couple years. I realized I totally hated that.
14:33
I learned a lot, but I hated it. Learnt so much, but just not,
14:38
not for me. After that I ended up working
14:41
for a specialty coffee shop in Vancouver called Pallet.
14:45
Then after that I went even smaller and opened up a small
14:49
coffee shop just as COVID was starting called Harkin.
14:54
And and that unfortunately due to COVID and just like, you
14:59
know, we're going to open this thing should only last two
15:03
weeks. Yeah, but definitely didn't last
15:07
two weeks. I think we all remember that
15:09
time. Right.
15:11
A little bit off topic, is pallets still still open?
15:14
Oh yeah. I think I've been to Pallet and
15:16
my my one visit to the wonderful city of Vancouver.
15:20
So Harkin closes and how do you get from there to Swiss Water?
15:26
My supervisor messaged me on Instagram, actually, as you do,
15:34
and he's like, we're looking for a cupping lab manager.
15:36
Do you know anybody? And I had kind of seen the
15:40
writing on the wall already, and I was like, yeah, I know
15:43
somebody. Hello Pick.
15:45
Me, pick me. That's kind of how it all
15:48
happened. I like that you were advocating
15:51
for yourself. I also was kind of hoping
15:54
against hope that when you went to that first kind of roasting
15:58
session with the unknown gentleman that it was going to
16:00
turn out to be Keanu Reeves. So you have this experience
16:06
you've been roasting. I mean, we went over it really
16:08
quickly. But it's I mean, it was a lot of
16:11
of practice and a lot of experience obviously with the
16:13
big macro roaster and then moving into Swiss water.
16:17
What was the difference or is there a difference for you in
16:20
going from roasting everyday coffee to decaf specifically?
16:27
I mean, how does that change your process if it does?
16:30
I mean, we roast a lot of regular coffee here as well,
16:33
obviously, because we roast all the pre shipments, we roast all
16:36
of the arrival samples. And then when we're evaluating
16:40
decaf coffee, we're actually always cupping it next to the
16:44
original. So we're looking for like how
16:47
alike the coffees are rather than giving it like a cupping
16:50
score, for example, because we don't want to change the
16:53
profile. We just want to know that it's
16:56
as close to the original product as possible.
17:00
But decaf definitely roasts different.
17:02
I think really important things to pay attention to are like
17:09
your data, like if you have software, huge advantage.
17:13
And then also just like your probes as well are super
17:17
important when you're roasting decaf is you really need to
17:20
trust your machine. You need to know that everything
17:23
is working properly because a lot of the time decaf is a
17:27
little bit darker. This can be, at least for Swiss
17:32
water, it's because it's soaked in green coffee extract, which
17:37
is all the water soluble compounds found in coffee minus
17:40
the caffeine, and it's darker. So it kind of just imparts a
17:44
little bit of color onto the bean.
17:48
So it can. Obviously, if you've ever
17:50
roasted decaf, you'll notice that it is a little bit darker,
17:54
even if you're roasting it relatively light.
17:58
Interesting. Just to clarify for anyone
18:00
listening that maybe isn't familiar with the Swiss water
18:04
process, how would you describe it to someone in an elevator?
18:08
That's like I don't understand what you're talking about.
18:11
We are soaking caffeinated coffee well.
18:15
First we soak it in hot water and it double S in size.
18:19
Then we put it into green coffee extract, which is all the water
18:23
soluble compounds found in coffee minus the caffeine.
18:27
Then what happens is through osmosis, that green coffee
18:31
extract pulls the caffeine out of the coffee.
18:35
When the coffee coffee becomes 99.9% caffeine free, we remove
18:42
it from the GCE. We put it through dryers until
18:46
it comes back down to 11 to 10% moisture.
18:49
So what a normal moisture that a normal coffee bean would be at
18:55
and then we reuse the GCE. So we run that through carbon
18:58
filters to get rid of all the caffeine.
19:02
This facility is chemical free and organic.
19:06
So we do not reuse the caffeine because in order to that in
19:11
order to do that we would have to use chemicals.
19:15
So instead we just burn off the caffeine, we reuse the carbon
19:20
filters and we reuse the GCE. So essentially we are just using
19:26
water. I didn't know that last part
19:28
about Chemical Free actually, or didn't didn't remember it.
19:32
If anyone's listening and wants to know more, I'll share links
19:36
and things to Swiss Water. And also we did a show on this a
19:38
couple seasons ago. I'll make sure that's up there
19:40
as well. There seems to be a burgeoning
19:44
demand for decaf. I, you know, I'm seeing
19:48
specialty decaf roasters and, you know, people that are
19:52
considering decaf as an alternative for various reasons,
19:56
whether it's as an additive to their coffee drinking, you know,
19:59
I've already had my two cups and now I want a third or if it's as
20:03
a replacement for caffeine. I recently chatted with a
20:05
gentleman, Matthew Torres from Familiar Coffee, who's focused
20:09
only on specialty. Why do you think this this
20:13
demand is increasing and how has that changed things for for you?
20:19
I think we need to remember that like decaf customers are your
20:25
best customers. They are people who are drinking
20:31
coffee purely because they enjoy coffee, right?
20:36
I mean, they're not getting the caffeine kick.
20:39
You know, it's not, I have to. Maybe there's a placebo effect
20:43
for some people now, but, you know, the whole reason that that
20:46
you're drinking coffee or decaf coffee is just because you enjoy
20:50
coffee. And I think that now maybe
20:56
consumers are starting to speak up or maybe, you know, we're
21:00
starting to realize that decaf doesn't need to be an
21:04
afterthought. It can be really delicious, you
21:09
know, and why? Why not work towards that?
21:13
I think there's certain producers that have done really
21:16
cool things which have kind of led that, you know, path forward
21:22
here as well. There's always been a pretty
21:25
passionate, at least core group of specialty coffee people here.
21:30
There's a small batch series line which always has like super
21:33
awesome coffees. So sometimes I think also people
21:37
may not have known to look either that these options are
21:41
here and now people are starting to look as well.
21:45
Also, I think the, you know, non alcoholic movement has also
21:49
really kind of helped in this is we're seeing that people want to
21:54
enjoy flavors. You know, like sometimes you
21:59
don't want to keep drinking, but do you really want like a
22:03
cranberry soda with lime or you know, like Shirley Temple?
22:07
I don't know, but it's it's nice to be able to have like a
22:11
complex non non alcoholic beverage, right?
22:16
So I think that we're seeing this in bars and I think that's
22:20
also inspiring as well is why can't we have, you know, a
22:26
complex, flavorful, non caffeinated pour over?
22:32
Why is? Why can't that be an option?
22:34
I mean, I don't know the answer, but I do think like customer
22:37
demand is certainly part of it. I think, I mean, I'm guilty of
22:41
having a lowered expectation for decaf.
22:44
I think over time I've become a big decaf drinker over the last
22:49
couple of years, especially in the afternoons.
22:52
And I think for a long time I just didn't think of coffee as
22:55
something I had outside of the mornings.
22:58
And that is certainly shifted in recent years.
23:01
But I'm not drinking. Even though I don't get a lot of
23:04
impact or effect from caffeine, I I still don't drink it in the
23:06
afternoon just because I'm old now and you're not supposed to.
23:12
A decaf coffee actually won the 2024 Brewers Cup this year.
23:17
How big of a deal is that? I mean, it's, it's a huge deal
23:23
and my coffee is fantastic. I I've had the opportunity to
23:27
drink it at blend in multiple times.
23:31
It's so good. And I think that it just again,
23:36
just solidifies that theory. I guess, you know that like
23:41
people are realizing that decaf can be delicious.
23:44
And I think that this just kind of shows the world, right?
23:47
Like decaf just won a national competition.
23:51
I do think that the technology to create that particular decaf
23:56
too, is just so cool. Being able to decaffeinate a
24:01
coffee at origin and and also before a coffee is dried.
24:07
It's just showing that like people are trying to push decaf
24:11
forward, right? We're trying to find different
24:14
ways to to make decaf better. So there's so many cool things
24:19
to do with that, coffee in particular.
24:22
I was thinking, you know, as we were chatting before, you
24:26
mentioned that the East fan group that you kind of got your
24:29
start roasting at, and you mentioned they were looking in
24:32
particular for a woman to be the roaster because of the group
24:35
that they were representing and supporting.
24:38
How do you feel about being a woman in a role like you're in
24:41
and someone who's had as much success as you had?
24:43
Does that matter to you? Is that something you find that
24:47
other people have come up to you and said, I saw you doing this
24:50
and it inspired me, you know, Do you have any reflections on
24:53
that? And I say that in part because a
24:56
lot of women that have been on this show have commented on how
24:59
they didn't see a lot of role models in their path or they
25:03
didn't know how to connect with other role models.
25:05
And, you know, maybe there's something there that you could
25:08
chat to. Yeah, definitely.
25:10
I think especially when I first started, I felt I, I now I know
25:17
there were other women roasters, but at the time I, I felt like
25:20
there were none. I've had conversations with
25:23
other women that I have met throughout my career.
25:26
And I mean, Canada's so big, so big, and it's so spread out, so
25:31
it's hard to get across, right? So there were, we were kind of
25:36
just dispersed all the way across the country, you know,
25:39
and it's like, how am I supposed to know that there's somebody in
25:42
Montreal feeling exactly the same way?
25:44
But again, through competition, I've had the opportunity to meet
25:47
these people, you know, and we've shared our stories and
25:51
just had these kind of connections of like, hey, I felt
25:54
like that too. One time it would have been my
25:58
first time at nationals for barista competition.
26:01
It was just so big compared to like what I was used to.
26:05
And I was there with my mom. So, you know, you see all these
26:10
like competitors with teams and all this stuff and it's me and
26:14
my mom and I get up on stage and like, it was packed and I was
26:18
like the last person of the day and there's a lot of stuff going
26:24
on, right? And you kind of have that moment
26:25
and you're like, Oh my God, you know, maybe I just leave and my
26:29
mom is going to love me. She has to.
26:32
And I'm kind of like standing up there and, and there's this
26:36
woman judging me and I, I do my routine, etcetera.
26:41
But I was like, obviously pretty nervous, finished, did all that
26:44
stuff, It's done. We met a few years later again
26:49
and we kind of stayed like sort of friends.
26:52
But she was judging the Canadian Aeropress Championships and I
26:56
was competing. And then afterwards we had this
26:59
conversation and she's or she was like an amazing barista
27:04
competitor by that time, like second place at nationals, like
27:08
fantastic. But at the time I was competing,
27:11
she was just judging. And she's like, you know, it was
27:15
you who inspired me to compete. You know, I see that you were
27:20
nervous, but you were like, I'm going to do this, you know?
27:23
And she's like, well, if she can do it, I can do it.
27:27
You were you were entered into the Golden Being Hall of Fame.
27:31
I was. Do you introduce yourself as
27:35
Hall of Famer Stacey Linden now? Or how do you, How do you let
27:38
people know that you are in a Hall of Fame?
27:41
I suppose the better question is, and not to put you on the
27:43
spot, is, you know, what does that mean to you?
27:46
To to be recognized for the things that you've been, you've
27:49
been doing over the past, you know, decade.
27:52
Well, I mean, it's kind of crazy to think that.
27:55
I've been involved in Golden Beam for over a decade now,
27:59
which is crazy. I've been doing coffee for over
28:03
2 decades now, which is also crazy.
28:05
It was a pretty big surprise for me.
28:08
I'm very close with the Golden being team.
28:11
Couldn't believe that they had like got it past me without my
28:14
figuring it out as well. I mean, it's humbling for sure.
28:20
I mean, I don't do it for the awards.
28:25
I can't even say that I compete to win.
28:28
I compete because it's just what I like to do and everything else
28:32
is just an added bonus. I think like the real
28:36
accomplishments and like the real winning is just I've had
28:41
the opportunity to connect with so many people and I've been
28:46
asked to be a part of their teams as well.
28:50
And I think kind of the real reward, real reward has been
28:54
being having the opportunity to coach and work with competitors
28:59
as well. And I think that that just kind
29:02
of makes me a stronger competitor and just coffee
29:06
person in general and it helps push these people forward as
29:10
well. You are you won the Canadian
29:14
Coffee and good spirits championship recently.
29:17
Congratulations, 2024. The coffee is already really
29:21
complex and then when you add, you know, putting other things
29:25
into it, it takes on another level.
29:27
How do you approach kind of that that alchemy, that mixing
29:30
alcohol and coffee together? Is it just like, oh, here's
29:34
flavors, or is there something that about it that makes it
29:37
interesting for you? I always really liked signature
29:41
drinks and it like I was telling you, like I think it started a
29:44
long time ago by like throwing different portion packs
29:48
together. And I think also just starting
29:51
in specialty coffee. Well, I guess before specialty
29:54
coffee, like, again, coffee didn't taste great, so you had
29:58
to do other things to make the drink taste good.
30:02
And if I serve myself a shot of espresso that I had pulled over
30:08
20 years ago, like I don't even know what I would do right now.
30:16
I feel the same way. I actually didn't even remember
30:18
this, but I was technically a barista at a restaurant in
30:21
Madison, WI for a bit. It was also a bar and I was a
30:25
bartender and I think about some of the shots that I pulled with
30:28
no training or understanding of what I was doing or even
30:31
measuring. And I just think, oh, those
30:33
people, I should like, apologize and give them money back or
30:37
something. Yeah, I think kind of started
30:40
there with like just making like fun drinks and I really enjoyed
30:45
again, doing that kind of stuff or like having customers come in
30:48
and be like, oh, can you make me like, you know, that fancy latte
30:52
you made me that one time or so. I I've just really always
30:57
enjoyed making signature drinks and that was kind of my favorite
31:01
part of barista competition, but I just never wanted to do
31:04
barista competition ever again. So Sigs gave me an opportunity
31:12
to kind of take my favorite parts of competition.
31:16
I also compete in Barista League where we make like a signature
31:19
drink as well, which is one of my favorite parts.
31:23
So gave me another opportunity to just kind of work on that
31:27
that one part of those competitions that I really
31:29
enjoyed and just kind of focus it all into one space.
31:34
And then the neighborhood that I live in in Vancouver is the
31:39
Brewery Distillery neighborhood. I'm so I'm very fortunate that
31:44
way as well that I've just, I've lived in a neighborhood that's
31:47
full of creative people doing really cool things.
31:52
And so that was, I was like, OK, well, if I can like take this
31:56
part of my neighborhood and then mesh it together with coffee and
32:00
then talk about it and share, you know, like what I love about
32:05
like the people who are doing great stuff in my neighborhood,
32:07
the producers I think who are doing great stuff.
32:10
I just get to share this cool information about people who I
32:14
think are doing great things. Well, that's a lot of what I
32:18
find valuable about coffee is the story and obviously I want
32:22
it to taste good, but there's this whole other part of it of
32:26
of what you've been kind of speaking to about the community
32:29
of it. You know, if you scroll through
32:33
your social media feed, there are a lot of pictures of cats
32:38
and also softball. Those are the two things that I
32:41
pulled away from that. What's important to you outside
32:45
of of coffee? I mean, outside of this, this
32:47
world, do you even have time for another life?
32:50
It seems like you're very involved in coffee as it is.
32:53
I am very involved in coffee and that's very true.
32:57
But I do play slow pitch, which if you look on my Instagram
33:02
feed, it's there as well. So that's that's a big part of
33:07
what I do outside of coffee. I go to yoga as well.
33:11
That's important when you're traveling so much all the time.
33:15
It's important for that mental health, self-care.
33:20
And then yes, I I have a cat as well.
33:24
The thing I noticed was that, and I just kind of, I think this
33:28
is I'm getting this, this vibe from you, but you, your softball
33:32
team has been together for quite some time.
33:35
Yeah. It seems like you really
33:37
gravitate towards making connections that stand the test
33:40
of time. I, I really appreciate that just
33:43
because our world is so quickly transitioning from thing to
33:47
thing to thing to thing, and you're always, people are always
33:49
looking for the next thing. And so it seems as if you found
33:53
a way to kind of slow things down a little bit for you.
33:55
In that vein, I was thinking about, you mentioned how when
34:00
you were on stage and you were at that first competition with
34:02
your mom, you were kind of psyching yourself up to continue
34:06
to go out there. You know, with the experience
34:10
you've had, there's likely somebody listening who's in the
34:13
beginning stages of their coffee journey, their coffee career
34:17
potentially. What advice would you offer
34:20
them? Go, go ahead and just do it.
34:25
I was really lucky to meet somebody kind of in the
34:29
beginning of my competition career who is like, you know, I
34:33
want to do these competitions. Do you want to come and do it
34:36
with me or like, let's go try this?
34:40
And we've done every kind of small competition together,
34:45
Barista League together, like kind of everything.
34:49
So it's really lucky to have a buddy, kind of a buddy system
34:53
for quite a while as well. But the community is so
34:57
supportive. Obviously we're all competing.
35:01
Obviously everybody wants to win, but everybody wants you to
35:05
do well as well. You know, like nobody wants
35:08
anybody to not do well. If I could see everybody win,
35:12
like I think most people know me.
35:15
I'm just here to cheerlead everybody.
35:17
I'm like, I think that's why I'd be a terrible judge.
35:21
I just feel like you did so good.
35:23
Hey, I think I was born to judge.
35:27
There's nobody that's like the bad guy in Rocky, you know,
35:30
there's nobody out there just trying to destroy the other
35:32
competitors. I'd I'd never hear that.
35:34
But I feel there has to be somebody who is like secretly
35:39
you can call them out saying by name on the show.
35:41
No, I'm scared. Is there anything I didn't ask
35:44
that you want people to know about you, about your coffee
35:47
effort? I think we've covered a lot of
35:49
stuff. Well, what comes next for you
35:52
then? You're the next step in your in
35:54
your journey here. Oh gosh, honestly, I am really
35:59
looking forward to a little bit of downtime.
36:03
I just finished a really big trip for work.
36:06
Like you said, I've been on the go kind of non-stop and so I'm
36:11
definitely looking forward to kind of doing nothing for for a
36:15
little a little while. Do you have the capability to do
36:20
nothing? Not everyone does.
36:23
That's not a a critique, it's just a a knowing yourself
36:27
question. I mean, there will be like a lot
36:30
of yoga probably. So not nothing, but kind of just
36:35
like more just enjoying being at home.
36:39
I think anybody who lives in the Pacific Northwest knows that
36:43
kind of being home in in October is pretty nice.
36:47
Kind of just having that like hibernation month is nice.
36:53
We've all taken as much advantage of the few sunny
36:56
months that we have, right? Yeah, you had to get out.
37:01
No, you're coming to that realization that it's going to
37:04
rain for like 9 months. So I find that giving myself
37:09
October to like huddle in recharge.
37:13
Then, you know, we'll figure out what next year has to offer.
37:21
Next year when you hit the road again and you're traveling
37:23
around and you pop into a cafe somewhere and let's just in
37:27
theory say the specialty Craft Coffee Cafe seems to know what
37:30
they're doing, What? What are you going to order?
37:36
I, I'm not here to like judge anybody by any means that I
37:39
think there's, there's so many that are doing a really amazing
37:44
job. So I do, I think that that lots
37:47
of people know what you're, what they're doing.
37:50
Like I, I, I think there's so many cool things happening.
37:54
I think you can't walk into a coffee shop like expecting
37:57
anything. Just kind of go in with with an
38:00
open mind, you know, and just allow that space to show you
38:05
what it's all about. A very wise answer and I feel a
38:08
little chastised for my commentary.
38:13
Stacey, I really just appreciate your time.
38:15
I, I know that you've got a lot going on and I've been, since
38:19
meeting you, I've learned a little bit more of you know,
38:21
about your path just by following along and seeing all
38:24
the things. And I can say that having met
38:27
you, you did not introduce yourself as Hall of Famer Stacey
38:30
Linden. And it's a credit to your, to
38:33
your willingness to get out and just engage with everyone.
38:36
So thank you for being here. I appreciate you well.
38:38
Thank you for having me, it is awesome.
38:51
OK, some quick key takeaways from the podcast today.
38:55
Very quick because Stacy offered up so much that my take away
38:58
notes span more than 1000 words. I'll give you a few here, but be
39:02
sure to head to roastwestcoast.com to see much
39:04
more in the newsletter. My favorite take away came about
39:08
halfway through the pot when Stacy effused that decaf coffee
39:11
drinkers are the best coffee customers and consumers.
39:15
They're drinking coffee purely for the enjoyment of the coffee.
39:19
Companies that offer a high quality decaf that can stand
39:23
alongside the caffeinated coffees in terms of complexity
39:26
and flavor speaks to the pure passion we have for coffee.
39:31
The process that the beans go through at Swiss Water is
39:34
organic and chemical free. It involves a long soak of the
39:37
coffee beans. I'll share video and links that
39:40
will actually show you the process in the newsletter.
39:43
Somewhere out there in the multiverse, there's a Stacey
39:46
Linden that is doing anthropology stuff.
39:49
Thankfully, the coffee industry pulled this version of her into
39:52
its orbit by offering a competitive outlet and the
39:55
opportunity to continue learning.
39:58
She began roasting almost by accident when it was recommended
40:01
that she visit E Van Roasters, a social enterprise to help women
40:05
get out of a risky situations that also produces coffee and
40:09
chocolate. So basically all the most
40:11
important things. We covered so much more in this
40:14
episode, including the importance of finding your fit
40:17
in the industry, be it a macro or a micro company or somewhere
40:20
in between. We also talked about the value
40:22
of data collection when roasting decaf because the process can
40:25
impact the color of a roasted bean.
40:28
According to Stacy, decaf is in the innovation phase right now,
40:31
and her efforts are part of a way of pushing quality and
40:34
expectation for decaf Coffee forward.
40:38
She isn't the Golden Bean Hall of Famer for nothing.
40:41
That's our show for today. Thanks to Stacy for sharing her
40:44
time and her story. You can find a longer recap in
40:47
our newsletter at roastwestcoast.com and be sure
40:51
to click the links directly to Stacy's Instagram and the Swiss
40:53
Water Decaf website in this podcast's show notes.
40:57
It really helps us if you also tap those follow buttons and
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Excuse my language, but it's a blend of Colombia and Ethiopia
42:26
and I've been drinking it pretty much every day on top of all the
42:29
other coffee that I'm drinking. Thank you to you for listening
42:33
and sharing this podcast, asking questions and being coffee
42:36
curious. I hope that you're getting a
42:38
chance to relax and just chill out for a minute this week.
42:42
But if you are doing some last minute holiday travel and
42:44
desperate for content, stay tuned.
42:47
We dropped a second episode today featuring Andy Kleich from
42:49
Atomo Coffee, the coffee produced without the coffee
42:54
bean. There's a lot to unpack there.
42:57
This show, the Coffee People podcast is part of the Roast
43:00
West Coast Coffee Network. In this episode is was has been
43:03
written, produced, researched and recorded by me, Ryan Wolt.
43:07
Wherever you find yourself today, I hope it's with a fine
43:09
cup of coffee. Thank you for listening to us
43:12
share the stories of Coffee People.
43:15
Cheers, everyone. Hey everyone, this is Ryan, the
43:27
host of the Coffee Smarter and Coffee People podcasts.
43:30
If you get a second and you happen to be looking for a great
43:33
coffee gift this year, check out the Simply Good Coffee Brewer.
43:37
You're going to find links to that Brewer directly in the
43:40
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43:43
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43:46
I've used my simply coffee Brewer 507 hundred times.
43:50
I mean, it's I've stopped counting to be honest, but it's
43:54
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43:57
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44:00
We don't promote things on this show that we don't believe in.
44:02
So it's easy for me to suggest the simply good Brewer.
44:05
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44:25
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44:31
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