FROM THE PUBLISHER
Connie Blumhardt
IN MAY OF this year, I was honored to be recognized by the Specialty
Coffee Association of America as Distinguished Publisher of the Year.
Honored and humbled, as I shared the stage at the awards banquet with
other honorees that are or have been the most exceptional people in our
industry, or any industry. Not just the people on stage, such as Paul
Katzeff of Thanksgiving Coffee (Lifetime Achievement), David Griswold
of Sustainable Harvest Specialty Coffee Importers (Outstanding Contribution),
but also those attending in spirit, such as Dr. Ernesto Illy of Illycaffe
S.p.A. (Special Recognition) and Alfred Peet of Peet’s Coffee & Tea
(Alfred Peet Passionate Cup).
Few things are as rewarding as being recognized by your peers
(or as fear-inducing as speaking in front of those peers). The obvious
public nature of my work means that it is not difficult for people to
see the results and it means that the work is more likely to be recognized.
At risk of sounding like a bad beer commercial (redundant term?),
I wish we could recognize all of the hard-working women and men that
bring the bean from seedling to cup, and in truth, many of them can be
found in the background of our photos, picking beans, moving sacks and
cleaning stacks (for example, on pages 55 and 56). These people rarely
realize the effect they have on others around them and the influence
they have on the industry as a whole.
In an attempt to recognize this hard-to-see labor, each year
we try to pull these people out of their hiding places behind the aprons
and machinery to compete in the Roaster of the Year award.
The key to having a successful competition has been to have
a variety of entrants, from both a company size and an approach to business
perspective. Our previous winners have been geographically and philosophically
diverse. So please, take some time to review and enter this year’s
competition (see details on page 19). If you win, I promise I won’t
hold you to public speeches, only some great press in our end-of-the-year
issue.
Warmest Wishes,
Connie
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