I'm not a barista, a roaster or anyone working in the coffee industry. I just got curious—and never really stopped.
It started with a simple question: why does my coffee sometimes taste incredible and other times… not? That led to a lot of trial and error, research, experiments, more coffee than I care to admit and eventually, writing. Not because I set out to make something public—but because putting it into words helped me make sense of it.
Along the way, I figured I wasn't the only one asking these questions. So I started turning what I'd learned into something I could share.
There's already plenty of gatekeeping in coffee. I wanted to make something useful without requiring a dictionary, a refractometer or a stack of YouTube tabs. If you're curious—at any level—this is for you.
I'm not the most experienced person in the room and that's fine. But if my way of explaining things helps something finally click for you, then it was worth the effort.
Coffee gets more enjoyable the more you understand it. And learning is always better when it's shared. If these guides help you taste something new, fix a frustrating shot or just feel a little more confident about what's in your cup—that's more than enough.
I'm really glad you found this—whether by accident, curiosity or deep caffeine-fueled investigation. I hope something here helps you notice more, understand a bit better, skip what doesn't serve you (for now or forever) and maybe enjoy your next cup a little more because of it.
Have fun with it.
Why does coffee taste the way it does?
This guide is my attempt to answer that—from the ground up. It covers the main things that shape flavor: where coffee is grown, how it's processed, how it's roasted, brewed and eventually tasted.
Whether you're just getting into specialty coffee or have been in it for a while, this guide is designed to meet you where you are. Each section starts with a short summary, then goes deeper—into fermentation types, variety differences, roast chemistry, water composition, sensory language and more.
I wrote it to make coffee a little easier to understand—not by simplifying it, but by making it more navigable. It's not about telling you what's good. It's about helping you make sense of what you're tasting.
What makes a good espresso—and why is it so easy to mess up?
This guide is for anyone who wants to understand espresso more deeply—whether you're just starting to dial in or already tracking shot curves and flow rates.
It covers all the core variables: grind size, dose, time, pressure, yield, temperature—plus detailed sections on puck prep, pressure and flow profiling (with actual graphs), common shot failures and gear that helps (or doesn't). There's a full chapter on machine care too, so you're not chasing clarity with a dirty setup.
It's not a checklist—it's a framework. Something to help you troubleshoot, refine and make sense of what you're seeing and tasting.
If you're new, it'll give you confidence and clarity. If you're further along, it'll help organize what you know—and probably challenge a few assumptions along the way.
Beyond the guides, these interactive tools help you explore coffee terminology and understand espresso variables.
From "extraction" to "terroir," "crema" to "cupping"—this comprehensive glossary covers the essential terms you'll encounter in specialty coffee. Search, filter by category or browse alphabetically to find exactly what you're looking for.
Whether you're reading the guides above or exploring coffee content elsewhere, this reference helps you understand the language of coffee without getting lost in jargon.
Curated, trusted methods for brewing, milk steaming, cleaning and more. Filter by category and search titles or steps. Each card opens a detailed, attributed page.
An interactive tool to help you understand how different espresso variables affect your shot. Explore the relationships between grind size, dose, time, pressure, yield, and temperature.
Perfect for troubleshooting shots, learning about variable interactions, or planning your next dial-in session. Visualize how changing one variable affects others and understand the science behind espresso extraction.
If you made it this far—thank you.
I do my best to keep these guides clear, useful and approachable. But there's always room to improve. If something helped you, confused you, made you laugh or made you want to throw your tamper—I'd honestly love to hear about it.
Feedback, questions, nitpicks or ideas—send me an email. I read everything and reply when I can.
Every bit of support is genuinely appreciated
These guides represent hundreds of hours of research, testing, writing, styling, reviewing, fact-checking and way too much coffee. I'd appreciate every bit you're willing to give back to help fuel more research and keep improving these guides or enable me to make new ones.
Thanks again for reading—even a little. These guides only get better when they're part of a conversation.