This piece is dedicated to Velton Ross, our excellent Patreon supporter whom we love and appreciate.
By Chris Deferio
DAVIS, CA— In a move to meet consumers where they are, specialty coffee officials have joined forces with scent scientists to design a tool for consumers who make coffee purchases by squeezing bags and smelling the valve.
“For too long we have been working to codify tasting notes around roasted brewed coffee. It seems embarrassingly obvious looking back that we completely neglected the primary touchpoint for coffee consumers: squeezing the retail bag and smelling the off-gassing odor through the valve,” says Jerome Fritzman, a representative of the group that spearheaded this groundbreaking work.
The Bag Squeezer wheel has been a hit with beta testers.
“I squeeze the bag because in the 25 years I have been buying coffee it always gives me the sensory info I need,” says coffee consumer Bill Williamson. “It’s nice to have a tool that legitimizes what I know is the real test of what a gourmet bean might taste like.”
The squeezer wheel is broken up into 3 main categories: “old gas,” “iffy gas,” and “fresh java gas.” Within each section are subsections that contain more detailed notes like ”rich,” “nutty,” “bold,” “too fruity,” and “better ask the barista what’s good.”
Adds Fritzman, “It’s nice to know that we can come together and help people choose which coffee, out of the 6-8 bags they crushed and sniffed, is the perfect one for them”
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Chris Deferio is an 18 year specialty coffee veteran and is the host of the Sprudgie award nominated podcast, Keys to the Shop. Chris is based in Louisville, Kentucky where he dabbles in cheap bourbon, and crafts artisanal puns.
