Equal Parts Coffee Podcast

Jack Clark and Nic Bilderback

Industry interviews, gear reviews & education Hosted by Jack Clark & Nic Bilderback Named after the cortado. Obviously equalpartscoffee.com

  1. Batched Espresso Scares Me | Ep. 37

    2d ago

    Batched Espresso Scares Me | Ep. 37

    Batch espresso scares us. Not because it's bad, but because what if it's actually good?  When Valor Coffee posted that they were testing batch espresso, it got us thinking about the "shots die" rule and whether any of that actually holds up in a blind taste test. We get into the tradeoffs, the perception problem on the cafe side, and what you're really giving up when you pull the barista further from the drink.  What We're Drinking: https://www.mundosroastingco.com/coffee/p/colombia-cesar-ledesma-pink-bourbon Say hi: hello@equalpartscoffee.com equalpartscoffee.com 00:00 Intro 02:29 What We're Drinking 10:14 Valor Coffee 11:35 The Batched Espresso Dillemma 13:44 Blind taste test 16:00 First Attempt 20:15 Round 2 22:52 Results 27:31 Batch Espresso vs. Cold Brew Concentrate 32:03 Speed, Quality, Perception 34:20 The Barista Experience 37:39 Wrap Up

    39 min
  2. The Espresso Machine That Does Everything (Is It Worth $2000?) | Ep. 36

    May 19

    The Espresso Machine That Does Everything (Is It Worth $2000?) | Ep. 36

    Meraki Gen 2: https://tidd.ly/4ukKTDh Podium Coffee Club: https://tidd.ly/4qo2NCs We got our hands on the Meraki Gen 2 espresso machine and have been using it daily. Built-in grinder, dual boiler, integrated scales for both grinding and brewing. On paper it has everything. In this episode we share our honest first impressions, break down what makes it stand out, and compare it to other machines in the same price range. Meraki sent us this machine but did not sponsor this video. Full review coming soon. 0:00 Intro 1:33 Are We Espresso or Milk? 6:33 Podium Coffee Club 7:07 What We're Drinking 8:21 Potato Defect Tangent 9:40 Tasting the Coffee 10:50 Meraki Gen 2 13:08 Ease of Use & Build Quality 14:02 What's Included in the Box 16:06 Meraki vs ES1 18:10 Built-In Grinder 19:35 Integrated Scales 25:10 Dual Boiler Benefits 29:09 Steam Wand Performance 33:10 Temperature Probe & Auto-Stop Feature 39:04 Menu Settings & Customization 41:51 Pre-Infusion Settings 43:39 The Car Analogy: Where Does the Meraki Fit? 45:21 Who Is This Machine For? 47:04 What's Coming Next

    48 min
  3. You’re Not Ready for Coffee Competitions — Here’s Why | Ep. 25

    May 5

    You’re Not Ready for Coffee Competitions — Here’s Why | Ep. 25

    Morgan Eckroth: 2022 US Barista Champion, content creator, and Onyx Coffee Lab team member, sits down with us for an honest conversation about what it takes to compete at the highest level of coffee, how she builds signature drinks from scratch, and why hospitality is the thing she cares about most. Find Morgan at @morgandrinkscoffee on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, and on Substack at Coffee for Here. 0:31 Introductions 1:41 What We're Drinking 4:33 Who is Morgan Eckroth? 7:40 What is the US Barista Championship? 10:03 How Morgan Prepares for Competition 12:17 Bringing Competition Drinks to Cafes 14:06 Coffee Meets Cocktail Culture 16:49 Morgan's Creative Process 20:20 Culinary Influences in Coffee 21:29 Widening the Lens Beyond Coffee 22:44 From Barista to Career 24:10 When Coffee Became More Than a Job 25:55 Making Competition Accessible 27:40 The Power of Coffee Community 29:46 Advice for Aspiring Competitors 33:39 Defining Your Own Success 34:53 Morgan's Favorite Drink 37:44 Savory & Umami in Coffee 40:31 Fostering Creativity in Your Cafe 42:30 Barista League & Lowering Barriers 43:47 How to Start Preparing Now 45:25 The Future of Specialty Coffee 47:18 The Importance of Hospitality 49:19 Where to Find Morgan

    50 min
  4. The Fellow ES1 Changed How We Think About Home Espresso | Ep. 35

    Apr 21

    The Fellow ES1 Changed How We Think About Home Espresso | Ep. 35

    Fellow Espresso Series 1: https://fellow.sjv.io/series-1 We've had some time with the Fellow ES1. Enough to move past first impressions and actually talk about it. In this episode we get into everyday home use, steaming, shot consistency, the price conversation, and where we think home espresso is heading. ☕️ What We're DrinkingColombia Finca El Chaferote II from Prodigal Coffee RoastersAiden Profile: https://brew.link/p/8jC2 Firmware video: https://youtu.be/2CS3TP-9aBE?si=Gv7b46Kch5plRh4c 0:00 - Open 1:12 - Intro 2:53 - What We're Drinking 7:24 - Owning the ES1 8:35 - Milk Steaming 10:33 - Full-size steam wand & drip tray thoughts 13:04 - Shot-to-shot consistency at home 15:18 - Why the ES1? 18:43 - App Integration Ideas 19:26 - The Bluetooth Lever Tangent 22:17 - Rabbit Hole 26:16 - Features we want to see fixed/added 27:30 - The hidden hot water spout. 33:46 - Who should (and shouldn't) buy this machine 38:33 - The home espresso grinder gap 41:22 - Fellow Opus 2 first thoughts 46:03 - Where home espresso is heading 49:34 - Outro

    51 min
  5. Home Espresso Has Always Been a Compromise. Fellow Changed That | Nick Terzulli | Ep. 34

    Mar 24

    Home Espresso Has Always Been a Compromise. Fellow Changed That | Nick Terzulli | Ep. 34

    Nick Terzulli didn't set out to reinvent home espresso. He started with a latte at Sightglass, a honeymoon in Barcelona, and a medical engineering background he couldn't stop applying to coffee problems. Now, as VP of R&D at Fellow, he's the person behind one of the most talked-about espresso machines to hit the market in years — the Espresso Series 1. In this episode, Nick breaks down the boosted boiler architecture that makes the Series 1 tick, why shot-to-shot consistency has been the white whale of home espresso, and how building the Aiden brewer laid the foundation for everything that came after. He also gets into burr design, why unimodal isn't always better, and what it actually takes to bring a product from a blank piece of paper to thousands of people's countertops. Find Nick: Instagram: @nicholasnumbers LinkedIn: Nicholas Terzulli Equal Parts Coffee is a podcast about the people, gear, and ideas shaping specialty coffee. New episodes drop every other week. Subscribe so you don't miss one. 0:00 Intro 0:40 Welcome & Guest Introduction 1:14 What Nick Does at Fellow 1:53 How Nick Got Into Specialty Coffee 3:30 From Coffee Lover to Coffee Engineer 8:24 First Espresso Machine 9:42 Was Espresso Always in Fellow's Roadmap? 17:17 How Aiden Influenced Series 1 18:40 The Boosted Boiler Explained 21:39 The Challenge of 120V Home Espresso 22:17 Designing Three Machines 24:06 Fellow's Growth as a Company 27:22 Series 1 Dev Time 34:44 For the Casual Home Barista 38:21 Designing for Everyone 41:38 Shot-to-Shot Consistency 44:40 Reliability & Longevity 48:21 Repairability & Refurbishment Facility 54:19 Unimodal vs Bimodal Grind Distribution 57:41 The Hardest Thing Nick Has Done 1:02:08 Rapid Fire 1:06:27 Wrap Up & Where to Find Nick

    1h 8m
  6. 33 - Matcha Is Everywhere Right Now — But Are Coffee Shops Doing It Wrong?

    Mar 9

    33 - Matcha Is Everywhere Right Now — But Are Coffee Shops Doing It Wrong?

    Tea in a specialty coffee cafe, should you even bother? In Episode 33, we dig into one of the more overlooked questions in cafe ownership: how (and whether) to build out a tea program without letting it pull focus from the coffee that brought people in the door. We cover matcha: its place on the menu, how to source it, and the case for and against batching. Why a bad tea experience can quietly damage your reputation just as much as a bad espresso. If you're opening a cafe, already running one, or just really passionate about what goes across the bar, this one's for you. We are drinking Colombia Buesaco from Jack's roastery Mundos Coffee - www.mundosroastingco.com 00:00 Intro 03:00 What We're Drinking 07:43 Should Cafes Offer Tea? 10:55 Finding Your Cafe's Philosophy 13:25 How Mundos Built Its Tea Program 18:13 Types of Tea a Cafe Can Offer 21:01 Matcha's Place in the Cafe 26:08 Getting Creative with Matcha 30:07 Choosing the Right Matcha Grade 38:46 Batching Matcha: Pros & Cons 47:37 The Cold Water Matcha Method 52:16 Iced Teas & Seasonal Drinks 56:38 Loose Leaf Tea Essentials 1:00:34 Wrap-Up & Final Thoughts

    1h 2m
  7. 32 - The Coffee Trend Competitions Are Banning

    Feb 23

    32 - The Coffee Trend Competitions Are Banning

    Podium Coffee Club - https://tidd.ly/4qo2NCs Co-fermentation has exploded in the coffee industry. Farmers are fermenting coffee with fruits, hops, and exotic yeasts to create wild new flavors. Some see it as innovation that helps farmers add value to their crops. Others see it as a shortcut that's damaging the pursuit of natural coffee excellence. The debate got real when Best of Panama 2024 outright banned all co-fermented and infused coffees from competition. So what's really going on? Is this the future of specialty coffee, or are we losing something important? We break down co-fermentation vs infusion, the farmer economics, competition implications, and our honest take after tasting dozens of these experimental coffees. We're drinking Colombia Galaxy Hops Co-ferment from Freelance Coffee. - freelancecoffeeproject.com Want to experience award-winning coffees like the one we're drinking in this episode? Podium Coffee Club is a monthly subscription that sends you coffees exclusively from roasters who've won championships and competitions. Every coffee has been recognized for excellence, so you're guaranteed something special each month. It's how we discover incredible roasters we might never find otherwise. Sign up using our link and support the podcast https://tidd.ly/4qo2NCs Let us know what's your take on co-ferments? Are you team innovation or team purist? 👇 0:00 Industry Standards 0:31 What We're Drinking 3:38 Podium Coffee Club 8:04 What Is Co-Fermentation? 10:03 Fermentation Refresher 21:00 Co-Fermentation vs. Infusion 27:37 Pros & Cons 38:12 Consumer Perspective & Transparency 42:44 Co-Ferments in Competition 44:46 Purist Philosophy & Industry Direction 53:47 Listener Questions

    55 min
  8. 31 - We Need to Talk About What's In Your Coffee

    Feb 9

    31 - We Need to Talk About What's In Your Coffee

    Podium Coffee Club - https://tidd.ly/4qo2NCs Want to experience award-winning coffees like the one we're drinking in this episode? Podium Coffee Club is a monthly subscription that sends you coffees exclusively from roasters who've won championships and competitions. Every coffee has been recognized for excellence, so you're guaranteed something special each month. It's how we discover incredible roasters we might never find otherwise. Sign up using our link and support the podcast Companies are claiming "mold-free" and "mycotoxin-free" coffee, implying that regular coffee is contaminated with dangerous toxins that survive roasting and are slowly poisoning you. But is any of this actually true? We examined lab tests comparing cheap grocery store coffee, specialty coffee, and "certified mold-free" brands. What we found about mycotoxin levels might surprise you. The question is: should you be worried about what's in your daily brew, or is this just expensive marketing preying on health-conscious consumers? We're drinking: Goshen Coffee Roasters Colombian co-fermented with wine yeast and lychee Thank you to James Hoffmann for conducting the lab testing we reference. Studies  Determination of potentially mycotoxigenic fungi in coffee: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6049681/ 0:00 - Intro 1:45 - What We're Drinking 2:31 - Co-Fermented Coffee  9:49 - Is Your Coffee Moldy? 10:32 - The Mold Marketing Trend 13:34 - What Are Mycotoxins? 15:41 - Mold Survives Roasting 19:02 - James Hoffman's Testing 22:28 - Results 25:20 - Specialty Coffee Standards 28:00 - Coffee Storage & Freshness 35:04 - Final Verdict on Mold 45:30 - Outro

    47 min
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5
out of 5
11 Ratings

About

Industry interviews, gear reviews & education Hosted by Jack Clark & Nic Bilderback Named after the cortado. Obviously equalpartscoffee.com

Information

  • Creator
    Jack Clark and Nic Bilderback
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    39
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Jack Clark and Nic Bilderback
  • Show Website
    Equal Parts Coffee Podcast

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