Believe me: The world of coffee changes...
First Hamburg Coffee Festival
Why passion matters
The First Hamburg Coffee Festival, aka HCF, gave me an impression, which was totally different to what I was used in terms of coffee related events like exhibitions and fair trades.
Either the visitors' and organizers' average age was approximately between 25 and 30 years. What they had in common was a special passion for coffee. Not being these guys seeking for quick and dirty cash by following a particular trend or mainstream. No, they belong to this group of people which are able to do things with ease because they do things they love and therefore they can do them with passion and enthusiasm.
The result is an environment you immediately feel comfortable in. The ease is jumping over, the enthusiasm is like a spark. The people, especially the organisers, were friendly, helpful and courteous.
I'm convinced they were able to create this perfect mood because their passion is what drives them and lastly is their secret of success.
Growing Interest in Details
Why we love our coffee roasters
A time ago I wrote about the upcoming trend of small coffee roasters, everyone can use. Some people laughed about this vision because they could not imagine that anyone would take the effort to roast his own coffee.
Unfortunately non of these doubters attended the HCF. I think they know why. The audience at the HCF was very curious and interested in details about coffee roasting. The live roasting sessions were attended by a lot of people asking for detailed explanations about the used coffee beans, their origins and the different approaches in terms of the ratio between roasting-time and temperature.
I'm absolutely sure that the idea of roasting your own coffee will grow more and more. These young enthusiastic people don't want to consume out of the box coffee. They want to be a part of the whole chain and want to decide which products they consume. They are curious about either new coffee-growing areas and new regional coffee-roaster.
Those who have the capacity and space to setup their own coffee-roasting environment strive this plan to gain full independence.
Personal conclusion
The Change is good and important
The change is very good because it is the result of curious young peoples' engagement and deep interest in the whole coffee process. Their engagement will lead to a cut of old structures in the coffee industry and will also lead to new opportunities for producers, roasters, bars, consumers....
What I love most is that the will to change things has its roots in enthusiasm and passion, not in a money hunt. For me a further argument to support this new coffee-generation movement. I hope you'll join us too.
Therefore events like the Hamburg Coffee Festival are so important and worth to attend, which is a very valuable kind of support. I already decided to join the second Hamburg Coffee Festival in 2020. Hope to meet you there...