By Wendy Chappell-Dick

Eight people took a blind taste test at Ten Thousand Villages “Coffee College” to see which roast of coffee prevailed. Here is what they discovered.

Strong or weak, cold or hot, rich or bland, dark roast or light roast, smooth or bitter… there are many ways to describe the complexity of how humans experience coffee. At an event called Coffee College, Bluffton Ten Thousand Villages let customers taste test various coffees to find what they liked best. Many participants were surprised by some aspects of the experience, a rare chance to compare small amounts of coffee side by side. Linda Nelson said, “I really enjoyed it and learned so much. What surprised me was that I like a dark roast and I always thought I liked a light roast.” Beth Boehr commented that she will start using more coffee per cup for a richer taste.

Coffee College students learned a lot of facts about coffee as well. For example, instructor Andy Chappell-Dick explained the legend of how coffee was discovered. A shepherd in East Africa was amazed by how his goats were dancing with joy and energy, and he noticed they had been eating the cherry like fruit from bushes growing wild on the hillside. Eventually humans fine-tuned the art of roasting the pits of the fruits, grinding them, and brewing the drink that we now call coffee. Coffee’s popularity spread across Europe around the time of the Reformation, leaving some to assume Protestantism would not exist without coffee.

Coffee’s effect on health is somewhat controversial, with some studies showing positive aspects and some identifying coffee consumption as a health risk. For better or worse, many people love coffee. Coffee consumption peaked in the 1940s but now has been replaced in popularity by caffeinated soft drinks and energy drinks.

Unfortunately, the coffee industry is often bad for workers and the environment. Many coffee farmers in developing countries do not receive enough payment to pay for the cost of production and earn far less than a living wage. They end up trapped in debt and a cycle of poverty. Poor farming practices lead to unnecessary deforestation and degradation of the land. Ten Thousand Villages only sells organic, Fair Trade Coffee, which preserves ecological diversity, protects against climate change and empowers worker-owned cooperatives which pay a fair living wage. For a brief discussion of the coffee industry, check out this article about Fair Trade coffee brands Equal Exchange.

As participant Linda Headings said, "I never knew there were so many layers to making a good cup of coffee!” 

Benji Bergstrand liked the way people were encouraged to explore the different tastes of the coffees that were offered and describe them in their own words without having to worry about a "right" answer. “I thought it was neat that some of the participants discovered new coffee varieties and roasts that they really liked and really seemed to discover more about their own tastes and preferences,” he said. 

Paul King summed it up by saying, “For those who enjoy the different eco flavors of coffees from various parts of the world, this is a great way to serve yourself or guests the many different tastes. A cup at a time.”