The Coffee Show with Kirk Pearson

Boram Um is the 2023 World Barista Champion, a coffee producer and contender for worlds most handsome barista! In this podcast Kirk and Boram discuss the challenges of preparing for a world title run, how Boram prepared and how life changed for him after the win. Boram and his family own Fazenda Um in Brazil from which he produced one of his world championship coffees. Interestingly, Boram is an advocate for the new changes to the coffee scoring system under the Coffee Value Assessment, which is contrast of a lot of coffee personalties based in consuming countries. Do coffee farmers actually see this as a good thing? Like this podcast? Leave a review or even share to some friends! Sharing helps us grow so that we can go to more places and share more stories around the world.

Daryanto Witarsa is a well known coffee entrepreneur in Indonesia who now works as high ranking government official overseeing food security. Hosting the World of Coffee is now a competitive process and Yanto lobbied for years to make it happen. This year that dream was achieved with unprecedented success. The show was bustling and set a new standard. In Yanto's new role, he oversees a project of national importance working in the government of newly elected Prabowo Subianto, as a director of food security. Prabowo as he is known to Indonesians, has prioritised nutrition for Indonesians as a key pillar for their economic goals which are ambitious. Like this podcast? Leave a review or even share to some friends! Sharing helps us grow so that we can go to more places and share more stories around the world.

Jay Kim is the co-founder of the UFO dripper and growing personality in the specialty coffee space. Jay's public profile has grown enormously in recent times for his inspiring social media posts and videos emphasising the importance of hospitality in coffee.In this podcast Jay and Kirk talk at length about inequality in coffee and how drinking coffee is a privilege, not a right.Like this podcast? Leave a review or even share to some friends! Sharing helps us grow so that we can go to more places and share more stories around the world.

Savina Giachgia is a runner up in the World Brewers Cup competition of 2023 and passionate advocate for sustainability in coffee. In this discussion Kirk and Savina discuss why everyone should be more concerned about sustainability and what we risk if we don't pay attention. Kirk also reflects on a recent farm visit in Indonesia and highlights why investing in farms is essential for the future of coffee production and maintaining financial viability of coffee farms. Like this podcast? Leave a review or even share to some friends! Sharing helps us grow so that we can go to more places and share more stories around the world.

Jakarta's specialty coffee industry is booming! With more cafes opening than anyone can keep track of, Ombe Kofie has remained adored in a hyper competitive market. Ombe coffee serve some of the best coffee in all of Indonesia (we can confirm that). We were lucky enough to record this podcast inside one of their venues. Two of Ombe's leaders, Jordy and Herru join us to explain the origins of Ombe Coffee (founded by Jordie's father Jason). Why did they decide to open a cafe? How challenging was it? What is the coffee scene like in one of Asia's most populated cities? Jordie and Haru answer all in this podcast. Like this podcast? Leave a review or even share to some friends! Sharing helps us grow so that we can go to more places and share more stories around the world.

Yoshua Tanu is an icon in the Indonesian Coffee Industry. A former Indonesian Barista Champion and co founder of Common Grounds Coffee, he has founded a new venture that changes the game. Jago Coffee is a mobile cafe that operates using karts. Mobile karts are very common in Indonesia for selling food and other goods. Jago Coffee have for the first time introduced mobile cafes to Jakarta using refrigerated smart bikes that take coffee to where customers are. Using both nimble bikes that can weave through Jakarta's notoriously congested roads and combining them with smart technology that can alert an operator where customers are, Jago has been able to rapidly expand and now have 1500 carts operating in Jakarta (a city of 28 million people). Jago Coffee is also very affordable, offering coffee for under $1 USD. Yoshua explains the challenges of entrepreneurship in coffee as well as his vision for Jago in the future. Like this podcast? Leave a review or even share to some friends! Sharing helps us grow so that we can go to more places and share more stories around the world.

Recently it was announced that the system coffee quality graders (Q graders) have been using to score coffees for decades will radically change, causing fury throughout the industry. In this podcast Kirk questions the CEO of the Specialty Coffee Association on how the new system works, why it is changing and how it will be implemented.The scale of the change has been hard to comprehend for Q graders and many coffee producers. Some have said they won't recognise the new system, while others have welcomed the change as it reflects a changing coffee industry. Which pages of the new system should cuppers use? Should cuppings be managed on an app from now on? Kirk and Yannis discuss this at the World of Coffee in Jakarta. Like this podcast? Leave a review or even share to some friends! Sharing helps us grow so that we can go to more places and share more stories around the world.

Hidenori Izaki — 2014 World Barista Champion and one of the most influential voices in specialty coffee — joins Kirk to explore the evolving landscape of coffee. From the shifting dynamics of global competitions to how baristas can stay sharp, Hide offers rare insight. They also dive deep into the intersection of AI and coffee, and how the industry can better connect with everyday consumers without losing its soul.A must-listen for anyone passionate about the future of coffee.

In this episode, we sit down with Gabriel Agrelli, Product Development Director at Daterra Coffee, one of Brazil’s most innovative farms. Gabriel shares firsthand insights into how the ongoing drought is reshaping coffee production, what it means for farmers on the ground, and how Daterra is responding with cutting-edge agricultural practices and long-term sustainability strategies. From climate resilience to future-ready coffee varieties, this is a conversation every coffee professional and enthusiast should hear.

In this deeply personal episode, Brewing Champion Carlos Escobar shares the story behind the cup — one rooted in sacrifice, injustice, and unshakable purpose. Growing up on a coffee farm in Colombia, Carlos witnessed firsthand the harsh reality of an industry that undervalues its producers. His father stopped growing coffee — not because of poor farming, but because farmers have been undervalued for too long.Now, Carlos is using his voice, skill, and platform to advocate for change. We dive into his journey from farm to world stage, the broken systems behind your daily brew, and how we can all be part of something better.