By Natasha Bourlin, Passport and Plume

Over the past 23 years, Owner/Roaster of Wood-Fire Roasted Coffee Company Tim Curry has refined his roasting skills seeking coffee excellence. Of the 50 coffee-exporting countries worldwide, Tim has experimented with roasting coffees from 31, delving into the bean’s flavor profiles from each region…and even tasting green beans for a baseline.

“I create coffee beans,” he explains. Some have called him a coffee whisperer as he’s fine-tuned his ears to the frequency of roasting beans, listening for that first crack as they bask over his old-world roaster’s wood fire.

This indicates the moisture has evaporated from the beans, causing them to enlarge and the delectable flavor profiles to begin emerging. As this “first crack” process ends the beans are nearly ready.

Each bean has its own roast profile.  Sometimes “second crack,” is the marker. Tim’s at the ready to drop the beans from the roaster, helping them further achieve their finest flavor potential.

Tim prefers the term “coffee scholar” to “whisperer”, however, he’s practically a Ph.D. by way of decades of experimentation with the way he roasts, the High Sierra altitude’s influence, and the way he’s learned to mesh both the art and the science of roasting coffee to produce exceptional products.

Scientific Artistry

“It’s all about the coffee,” Tim asserts.

He works diligently within the parameters of science yet uses his refined artistry when seeking to reveal the finest expression of the bean given its origin. He’s learned where he can manipulate the science and get to the art.

Science takes coffee from green beans to something roasted and flavorful, with basic rules to follow such as increasing temperature over time. Using all of his senses beyond science is where the art comes in.

As with every artist, Tim has developed a system that leads him to success in roasting. Artistry for Tim is manipulating the scientific system to achieve specific goals based on one’s knowledge of the coffee. For example, changing the time and temperature slightly, or listening to the beans crack.

One-of-a-Kind Wood-Fire Roasted Coffee

Many other coffee companies roast all beans the same way nearly every time. Yet there’s not a singular way to roast beans. Doing so often results in underdeveloped beans that remain green on the inside, producing coffee with a grassy, hay-like taste, or, on the other end of the spectrum, over-roasted, burnt, and bitter coffee that worsens as it cools.

Part of what makes WFRC’s coffees exceptional and diverse is Tim’s ongoing education on his favorite subject matter, his mission to find the best expression of each bean and his familiarity with the coffee region and the bean’s flavor profiles.

Self-taught, once he learned to roast, Tim then needed to learn to blend different coffees that complement each other.

Some of Wood-Fire Roasted’s awards

Sometimes he dabbles in traditional blends with rules to craft it such as Mokha Java. While traditional blends have guidelines for blending, no rules around the roasting exist, so Tim consistently creates his own flavorful interpretation of tradition.

But when Tim thinks two coffees will marry well, he experiments with proportions and some of his most popular coffees are born, like Cowboy Roast. His first-ever blend evoked an exclamation of “that’s it!” when tasted, and to date remains his bestselling coffee.

Others like his Truckee River Espresso, a light and bright espresso, Tim worked on for three years, off and on, until achieving satisfaction.

Of all the diverse flavor profiles, regions, and one-of-a-kind coffees Tim has crafted over his 23 years in the business, some consistencies remain: His pursuit of perfection is tireless, his education of his craft endless, and his desire to bring superior, delicious coffees to his customers wakes him daily.

A contributive piece by Natasha Bourlin of Passport and Plume

You too? What a coinkidink!

Over the two decades since Wood-Fire Roasted Coffee Company Owner/Roaster Tim Curry began experimenting with roasting green coffees on his stove, he’s learned a few things.

Oh yes, there was much trial and error. But he ended up with some rock-solid knowledge about coffee in his noggin.

Things like how certain beans behave under certain temperatures, and how to unlock their purist, most flavorful potential during roasting. And why roasting in the old-world style over wood evokes such deliciously different flavor profiles than other methods (there’s simply nothing else like it).

How to create a coffee ritual for yourself daily, how to be mindful in your tasting, and how to grind your coffee so it’s brewed to that near-perfection needed to face the day.

Want to know where your coffee comes from (aside from the farm)? What about all those fancy terms for the different types of processing…what do they even mean?

Since sharing is caring, we also come up with other tidbits for you to enjoy while sipping your brew, like how to pick gifts for the coffee connoisseur in your life, why coffee is like music,
Tim’s tale of pursuing a dream and becoming a roaster.

A great cup of coffee can help set the day’s tone. Flavorful complexities emerging from a freshly brewed cup are often the first experience your taste buds have each day, and, for many people, also the last, say after a delectable dinner and dessert.

We’re here not just to roast some of the most magnificent coffees you’ll ever taste, but to help make your coffee ritual impeccable, from start to finish.

Thank you for drinking Wood-Fire Roasted Coffee!

Recently, I’ve been reviewing some of our past blog posts. Coffee lovers can learn much from the info in there, each telling a wonderful story specific to its individual theme.
Reading through randomly selected content, I felt a quiet satisfaction with the messages being portrayed, as well as the over-arching theme that seemed to present itself through my reading.
Can you see what I saw as I went back in time through these snippets of our history?
How about this from Questing for the “god shot”? A god shot is attained when all the factors involved in making espresso — the water, the temperature, the tamp, the coffee, the pressure, and the person drinking the shot — are all perfect.
“What?” you ask. “The person is perfect?”
I mean everything comes together just right in that instant so the person drinking it can experience its perfection. If everything comes together ideally it might be a god shot for the next person in line, but if for some individual reason, the person getting that particular espresso can’t fully experience it – such as allergies causing a stuffy nose, or eating something before that doesn’t react well with the shot — the perfection is lost.
Or this from Develop a Coffee Ritual: Coffee is about the entire experience, not just the burst of energy you get from being caffeinated. The brewing method. The time dedicated to crafting your perfect cup. The flavors. The temperature. That first sip…
Whether you’re trying to be a little calmer on your morning commute or are enjoying a special roast you picked up, creating a coffee ritual makes you more mindful of each part of the experience and only heightens the taste of the brew. A well-roasted bean is just the first step.

And, finally, my examples from Mindful Tasting: Get More from Every Cup:
Happiness studies show that mindfulness, being in the moment, increases enjoyment — no matter what we’re being mindful of — and that when our minds wander, even while we’re doing something we love, it diminishes the experience.
When it comes to coffee, we tend to rush things, throwing it down our throats to get that precious caffeine pumping through our veins as quickly as possible. Like with any kind of meditation, practice makes truly losing yourself to the experience easier.
For example, the more practiced your taste buds are, the easier it is to:
• Identify flavor components
• Feel viscosity
• Be aware of lingering and changing characteristics
As you become more familiar with how to thoroughly taste your coffee (our classes and blogs can help) you achieve a greater depth of enjoyment in every sip of every delicious coffee you drink.
You’ll find it easier to identify the less-than-stellar coffees, too, in addition to really getting in touch with the elements you love.
Within these examples, we can find a few consistent themes.
Coffee is a flavor sport. Much like wine or exotic teas, coffee is very complex in both flavor and aroma. The quest for excellence and finding the perfect balance of terroir, variety, and roasting is my greatest joy as a roaster. I believe that flavor should be the most important consideration when selecting a coffee. That flavor consideration could very well be, “I’ve never had a coffee from that region, so I’ll try it.”
Also important is your ritual. This will enhance the mindful experience associated with your daily cup. Contemplate each step in your brewing process, mindfully experiencing the entire life of the cup. This is the path to fully appreciating your brew.
Then, finally, coffee is best shared. Whether it’s with a partner, friend or stranger, the joy of a well-roasted and brewed cup of coffee is enhanced. Sometimes losing yourself in your cup is the right place to be, but, for me, there is no greater joy than exploring a cup of coffee with someone else.

Coffee is always the perfect gift (we think, at least). As we head into the holiday giving season, get your loved ones something personalized and delicious from our roastery.

We want to help make finding the perfect present easier for you this year.

Here’s our personality-based coffee gifting guide to getting your friends and family to grin broadly as they unwrap your thoughtful gift, then discover their taste buds can sing.

Your loved one is:

• Bold and Daring
If this describes your coffee drinker, then look at some of our bold and daring coffees such as the Desperado. Doesn’t the name say it all?

It’s bursting with rich, full, lush chocolate, and roasted nut tones ideal for the Desperado in your life.

• Desires to be Adventurous
We bring in some of the finest beans from micro-lots around the world, roasting them to their best, most flavorful expression.

These coffees are not readily available, you may even get to experience them just once.

Gift them some of our current micro-lot Brazil Bela Vista featuring notes of cocoa, stone fruit, and raw sugar. Or perhaps, new to the list, the Cameroon Caplavi Java Cultivar with notes of cocoa, plum, and rose petals.

• Always Reliable
Our Cowboy Roast has been our tried-and-true customer favorite since we began roasting over 20 years ago. For people that like to have that comfortable, smooth, rich coffee flavor and not be pushed too far from their comfort zone, pick up a bag of Cowboy Roast today.

• Morning Person
They practically bounce out of bed, ready for the world. Gift them a bag of Ethiopia Yrgacheffe, as bright and lively when brewed as they are.

• The Traveler
Do you know someone that just can’t stay in the same place? They are constantly looking for something new, fresh, and exciting?
This person needs a Coffee of the Month Club subscription. This is where we get to have the most fun discovering new coffees, processes, and flavors from around the globe. It’s like getting a world tour in their cup daily.

Our Coffee of the Month Club is ripe with decadent global coffees from the tastiest of regions. Each month, they’ll receive a new excursion for their taste buds, like December’s Costa Rica Finca Bernina Red Honey Geisha, and they’ll thank you for it.

We hope this helps your holiday gifting. Don’t forget to be generous with yourself also, you need plenty of coffee to get through this magical season.

Over the course of the last 21 years, I have seen quite a bit of exciting and intriguing things in the coffee world. I’ve tried some stellar coffees and even roasted some of the best.
What many people don’t realize is the cost of some of the world’s most expensive coffees and why they garner that price.
Elite Coffees
Consistently the most expensive coffee comes from Black Ivory Coffee Company in Thailand. They feature coffee that is naturally processed through the digestive tract of elephants. Reports are the coffee is smooth, mellow, and has low acid.
As their website states, “Production of Black Ivory Coffee also provides valuable income generation for elephant caregiving families as well as students of the local high school who are taught how to wash and dry our coffee. The money earned generally tends to support aging parents, health expenses, school fees, food, and clothing. Some of the students are also saving for university. We pay 350 THB (Thai Baht) per kilogram for picked coffee. One can pick this quantity in roughly 15 minutes.”
This coffee is consistently the most expensive in the world, currently selling for $1,200.00 per pound.
There are less consistent sources for ridiculously expensive coffee as well. A few years ago, a tiny lot of unroasted La Esmerelda Geisha from the Boquete region sold for $1,300.00 per pound. In history, we brought in a very small lot of some Jansen Estate Panama Geisha from the Volcan region, located on the other side of Volcan Baru from the Boquete region. We sold out of this limited allotment (7.5 pounds sold) at $34.95 for ¼ pound. It was a fun thing to do, but not something we can do regularly.
Other well-known coffees available for a high price are Jamaica Blue Mountain and Kona. Availability of Jamaica Blue Mountain is very limited and costly. Finding true high-grown Jamaican coffees is difficult and problematic. Then in Hawai’i, getting specialty-grade coffee has become nearly impossible due to the coffee borer beetle infestation they’ve been experiencing for the past several years.
Again, scarcity drives the price. For me to even consider Kona coffee it must have either a Fancy or Extra Fancy grade. This is possible, but the price would run from $65-75 per pound.
Affordably Decadent
More realistically, there are some stellar coffees that are more approachable from a price standpoint.
I’ve done much research to find them, keeping my eyes open for some new and unique coffees that are available for an affordable price, and offered through the Micro-Lot Series or the Coffee of the Month Club, or sometimes both.
Back in June 2020, we found a Guatemala Geisha. This coffee should have sold for around $50.00 per pound. We made it available to our Coffee of the Month Club members exclusively for their membership fee.
More recently, we had a Costa Rica Tarrazu Termico, an experimentally processed coffee that was again offered through our Coffee of the Month Club. This one was so well received that we had to bring in another bag and offer it to a broader customer base through our Micro-Lot Series.
Rest assured; I am keeping my eyes open for the next stellar coffee to share with our beloved customers. Maybe it’s the Kenya Nyeri Kagumo AB ($30.00 per pound) that will be making its way onto the Micro-Lot list shortly after we receive it. Stay tuned, and thanks for drinking Wood-Fire Roasted Coffee!

As the day begins, to many, the first thought is “COFFEE.” We look forward to that sweet, steaming nectar for an extra little push. It’s that first sip of delicious coffee that can set the tone for your entire day.

It’s a beautiful daily ritual.

In a world of inconsistencies, it’s one thing you can look forward to. Carving out a few extra minutes to mindfully grind, brew, and taste your morning cup can help set the tone for a happy and productive day.

Here at Wood-Fire Roasted Coffee Company, we have the beans covered for you. We seek out exceptional coffees from around the globe, then roast them to their fullest flavor potential in our old-world, Italian wood-fired roaster.

Once you’ve got beans in hand, it’s time to grind for your favorite brewing method. This is a critical step in creating a truly extraordinary morning ritual for yourself.

Why is a proper grind so important?

Because, depending on how you prepare your coffee, the grind can determine if you’re getting a full-flavored experience once it reaches your lips, or if it will fall flat. A good burr grinder is the starting point. On occasion, I will use a hand burr grinder. It is a bit more work, however, the tactile sensation of feeling the beans crumble adds a new dimension to the entire brewing ritual.

Locked away inside each bean is a world of hidden flavor. Grinding opens up the bean, allowing access for the water to work its magic.

The grind size determines the speed of brewing. The finer the grind the more slowly the water will pass through. Also, a smaller grind size increases the speed of extraction due to easier access to the grounds for the water. The objective is to maximize the extraction of the good things in the coffee such as the flavor oils, acids, and caffeine while leaving the less water-soluble components that add bitterness behind.

This is derived from how coarsely or finely your beans are ground, how quickly the water passes through the grounds, and what brewing method you use in your daily coffee ritual.

It all comes down, however, to personal preference. Remember, I am not the one drinking the coffee you make at home for yourself. So, make it taste the way you like it. Have fun with grind sizes and dosing to find your perfect cup.

Today, the many options for brewing can entice coffee-lovers to explore. Have a Chemex? French press? Prefer a pour-over? Or the ol’ stand-by, drip coffeemaker?

No matter your choice, grind your beans directly before brewing for optimal freshness.

Now, a very general guide to assist with properly grinding for each brew method.

Grind Options:
• Extra-Fine: Usually used for Turkish or Greek coffees where the grounds are a part of the brew.
• Fine: Best for espresso. Fast brew times of under 30 seconds.
• Medium-Fine: Faster brew methods such as single-cup pour-over. Brew time of 2.5-3-minutes.
• Medium: A good everyday grind, and jumping-off point for grind experimentation; best for drip machines.
• Medium Coarse: Great for Chemex and pour-overs; 3.5-4-minute brew time.
• Coarse: Ideal for immersion methods such as a French Press; requires at least four minutes of brewing for optimal flavor and balance; large grind size means beans retain more flavor
and aroma.
If you’re finding your coffee too watery, try grinding your beans finer. If it makes your face pucker a bit—never a good thing—try a coarser grind.
Creating your own coffee ritual is simple with a bit of personal exploration and worth every second spent to perfect it.

There are very creative forces at work within the coffee community. With the goals of maintaining and improving the quality of Specialty Arabica coffees while ensuring yields and prices that are both worthwhile and sustainable, these innovators are looking for solutions. Additionally, many within the community are looking for new methods of processing coffee (Removing the fruit from the seeds.) This is where we are able to experiment as well, with the various new and creative processing methods.

Here are the basics:
Washed: Washed processing is one of the most common, and popular, types of processing in the coffee industry – and for good reason. Washed coffees are clean: they allow you to taste all the delicious flavors of the origin and variety, from a sparkling acidity to that hint of sweetness or a floral aroma.

Natural: Typically, in countries such as Brazil where water is not readily accessible to farms, the dry process is the preferred method of processing. In this process, the coffee goes through a cursory separation to remove any debris then the cherries are set out on drying patios for anywhere between 2 to 6 weeks.

Wet-hulled: Wet hulling, or Giling Basah, is a type of coffee processing that is unique to Indonesia and most often used in Sulawesi and Sumatra. The wet climate of Indonesia makes it difficult for coffee to dry for long periods of time. A combination of rain and humidity prevents easy drying, and the farmers had to come up with another way to process their coffee. Another factor is the desire to get their coffee to the market as fast as possible. Spending extensive time on drying out coffee means they have to wait longer to sell it, so they prefer using a faster method.

Another method that is gaining popularity is Honey Processed. https://www.craftcoffeeguru.com/?s=honey+process
Then, we have tried some Anaerobic fermentation coffees as well as, Termico (thermic) processed. An experimental method is being used by Cordillera de Fuego

The Termico (Thermic) Process
The Termico process is a new, experimental coffee process invented by don Luis Campos of Cordillera de Fuego. The process starts with cherries picked at their ripest, allowing them to have a high sugar content and thus feeding the Termico process. The semi-washed coffee is then heated with some of the coffee mucilage left on the bean. Exposure to the heat starts to break down the natural sugars of the coffee cherries, partially caramelizing them. This inventive process gives the coffee an exceptionally sweet and fruity flavor as well as around and balanced cup.

Don Luis Campos
“The owner and founder of Cordillera de Fuego, don Luis Campos, purchased his farm in 1984 shortly after graduating from university. Over the past 10 years, don Luis has been experimenting with different coffee processing methods such as natural, honey, thermic (termico), and anaerobic. In addition to quality innovation, the farm and wet mill joined the national group NAMA (Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions) in 2017 with the objective as a group to reach reduction emissions of greenhouse gases within the coffee sector. One of the biggest projects they have done is the installation of solar panels, with these panels the main office is able to run off of 100% solar energy plus the solar panel also supplies more than 50% of the energy for the wet mill.” (From Genuine Origin Description)

Most experimentation in the coffee world comes to us through the brewing process which includes all the steps post-roast to drinking. The objective is clear, produce the “best” cup of coffee possible. The reason for the quotation marks around best is that best is entirely subjective. One person’s nectar is another’s swill. That being said, optimum extraction of the chosen beans goes a long way toward the enjoyment of the cup, and experimenting to find new and creative methods of extraction can be both fun and rewarding.

How do we at Wood-Fire Roasted Coffee Company experiment with coffee? Foremost, we are all about tradition and providing the best possible building blocks (beans) for your daily coffee ritual. We are always looking out for new and creative methods of processing and brewing coffee as well as striving to ever perfect our roasting craft. We try new woods to see what that impact will be on the coffee, as well as modifying our approach to roasting which might mean speeding up the process or slowing it down. Rest assured, we are always looking for new and innovative coffee information to continue to bring you fun and exciting things to try.

Natasha Bourlin Passport and Plume

Perhaps you’ve wondered how a little coffee bean can be so positively impactful to your day. What journey did it make to get into your cup?

Well, let’s ask a bean.

Hanging On

Here I am with all my friends. We’re hanging out, literally, from the branches of a thick plant. It’s warm here, I’ve got a pretty red coat on, and the environment is what they’d consider tropical, I suppose.

Eeek, they’re coming to pluck us! But I hear it’s the beginning of a fun journey. Guess I’m finally ready! That guy that’s always walking by finally took me off the branch and tossed me in with a bunch of new friends.

Sunbathing

How nice, I’m getting a bath!

Then they dropped me off for some sunbathing. It’s like bean beach around here! The humans keep flipping us around so we get a nice dose of sun all over. But the light is intense and making my coat dry up and fall off. Thank goodness it’s so warm.

Hey, there’s a woman picking me up, and I’m almost naked!

Maybe we’re going to school! My friends talk about being graded…but it’s not with A’s, B’s and C’s. My friends and I are being checked out to see if we’re good enough to make someone’s day in a cup.

The humans are chatting about grades one through five. I really want to be in Grade One, but we’ll see. Here’s hoping. They say that’s the very best grade.

Heading for the Cup

Yikes, it’s super-hot now! Something is making us sweat, we’re in a tight space with what must be a campfire nearby. But it’s nice being with everyone. Some friends are starting to pop, I assume they’re very excited.

I went in green, but now am turning a pretty shade of brown. The warmer it gets, the sweeter I become. I’m so happy, I’m about to burst. Ahhh, that felt good, like a release.

Wheee, now we’re on a slide! The sauna is over, but we’re all happy to be out, it was getting hot. Now we’re cooling down, and I feel a little funny, but in a good way.
Wait, what’s that? We made it??? We’re going to be drank??? First, we’re getting some sort of massage in what the humans call a grinder. It looks a little intimidating, but they say it’s the last step to making these humans smile really big, all thanks to little ol’ me!

Here we go! Well, that was fun. I’m a bit smaller now. Okay, a lot smaller. And now they’re pouring hot water over me.

This is it!!! I get to express all my fantastic qualities to this person putting me into their cup!

They seem thrilled. They’re making funny but seemingly happy noises as they sip on me and my friends. We’ve completed our journey. It was such fun!

Building a coffee legacy over 20 years
Many years were spent in the pursuit of a creative outlet.
I am neither creative nor talented in the classical sense. There is no workmanship buried in my hands.
Painting? Nope, I quake a bit.
Writing? I’ve tried that too; my hands can’t keep up with my caffeinated brain.
Then, one day, in a quest to open a small coffee house, driven by a passion for the beverage, I ordered some green coffee that I might grasp a very basic understanding of the process of roasting. Picture me with a three-quart saucepan, an electric stove, and a burning curiosity.
And that, my friends, is how Wood-Fire Roasted Coffee Company was conceived.
The next step was to have a small, mesh-drum charcoal roaster built. I had a vision, but limited means, and no customers.
I practiced, I got more coffee, I practiced more, then I started giving coffee to people to try. On July 1, 2001, I was given my first business license.
A business was born.
The first year and several months were mostly spent learning about coffee, roasting, and getting some small revenues. Wood-Fire Roasted Coffee Company was small but determined. I spent a great deal of time searching the world (from my desktop) trying to find a wood-fired coffee roaster. Really, I thought it would be easier than it turned out to be, but in the end, things worked out quite well.
I found one manufacturer in Spain and another in Costa Rica, but decided to attend a Specialty Coffee Association event in Las Vegas to find a U.S. manufacturer that could build what I needed.
No luck, they all proposed a modified gas roaster that would roast with gas and infuse smoke. This was not what I needed or desired. As I was about to resign myself to figuring out how to get a Spanish roaster, I met Cal and Max.
They were among the few wood roasters in the United States, and the representative for the Balestra brand (the manufacturer of my roaster.) They were selling their demo roaster that doubled as a backup and it was too small to fit their needs.
Everything worked out.
On November 7, 2002, I opened my shop in its current location. A lot of time was spent figuring out how to roast on this fabulous new-to-me machine, plus pay the rent. In January 2003 I met Nancy at Dish Café and Catering and she ordered some coffee to serve to their customers.
They were not my first client, but we still provide their coffee.
Knock Knock Knock.
That is how it started.
When I first opened my shop, I had no thought of foot traffic. The website, on the other hand, was operational within a few weeks of getting my business license.
The shop’s door was never open, and, quite frankly, the roaster was rarely on. I was hanging out at my desk one day trying to figure out where the next customer was going to come from when out of the blue there was a knock on the door.
It was my next sale. My first retail visitor came into the roastery.
Inside, I celebrated.
Outside, I put a sign up and kept the door open. Hours were posted on the website, and Wood-Fire Roasted Coffee has steadily and consistently built that aspect of the operation ever since.
In fact, customers are at the heart of all I do. Hearing of and seeing customers’ love for what I craft daily, how it brings a smile to their lips with that first sip, and how I get to help begin someone’s day with the taste of my coffee…I’ve come to realize that’s what I do this for.
Today
I do it to help new customers explore different varieties and find their favorite.
I do it for regular customers like Eric Swanson and Kim Roberts, who share positivity in return, such as, “The aroma and taste of Tim’s coffee each morning is one of life’s little treasures. It’s so good we even travel with it, and we love trying his new coffees through the Coffee of the Month Club. Great quality and well worth the fair price.”
Not only are my coffees sold in the shop plus several cafés and retail outlets around the region, longtime partners like Two Chicks serve Wood-Fire Roasted Coffee to their thousands of customers.
Feedback like that of Haley Moseley, co-owner of Two Chicks, also keeps me going:
“We couldn’t be more grateful for Tim. He worked with us at the beginning of our restaurant planning to develop the perfect flavor profile for our house coffee. We are very proud of our coffee and people absolutely love it. Over the years, he continues to personally deliver the beans he roasts especially for us. We consider him to be a part of the Two Chicks family and our restaurants wouldn’t be the same without him.”
Lessons about business over the past 20 years
Everybody else is an expert.
You would not believe the number of times I have been told that I can’t do what I am doing. One of the top names in the coffee industry told me not to roast with wood. Small business counselors told me my multi-market model won’t work, e.g. I can’t do both retail and wholesale.
To them, I say, “My customers, my awards, my accolades, show I CAN!”
I’ve only followed my heart.
But along that path, I’ve learned many things. Just a few are:
1) It’s okay to be me when everybody else is trying to conform to “industry norms” and trends.
2) It feels really, really good to see someone smile because of my art.
3) If you didn’t love it, I couldn’t do it.
Customers, often who have become friends over the years, drop in to chat while grabbing their beans. They share tales of their family and friends who have also come to love Wood-Fire Roasted Coffee. They express how the flavors I elicit from the beans are something they look forward to daily; that what I’ve developed through years of trial and error, research and development, and a fervent passion for the beans that rejuvenate us every day brings them joy.
In a nutshell, without loyal coffee drinkers enjoying my craft, I would not have lasted more than a minute in the business, let alone 20 years.
It is truly a humbling experience to have you return time and again to gather some beans for the start of your day. I appreciate each one of you for your continuing support of this small roastery.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart…and roaster. Here’s to another 20 years of Wood-Fire Roasted Coffee Company!

Thank you Natasha Bourlin of Passport and Plume for your assistance in producing this post.

By Tim Curry
Personally, I am a coffee purist. I drink my coffee straight and black. I do the same with my espresso. When I make the rare change to this it is only out of curiosity. You know, “Hmmmm, I wonder what this will taste like?” or, “That might be refreshing as a hot day pick-me-up.” Other than that, it is hot and straight into the cup where I experience the life of the coffee as it cools.
Now, here we are Spring is waiting to jump out at us and warming days will impact how we approach our coffee ritual. So, let’s take a look at three coffee drinking ideas to help us transition through the cold of winter into the warmth of Summer.
1) March is still mighty chilly and there is nothing like a hot cup of Joe to get the day started. Keeping your winter routine is great. A hot, warming brew to help get the day rolling is just what is needed. But, perhaps a little something different to “spice” up your cup and offers an occasional difference to your morning. It’s simple, sprinkle a touch of cinnamon into the brew basket and see what the result might be. You can try several different experiments such as nutmeg, clove, or cardamom. You can even put a pinch of black pepper into the basket. Maybe even some dried vanilla powder. Have some fun and find a new twist to your morning cup.
2) The saying goes April showers bring May flowers, well one thing is certain coffee is a necessary part of April. Some fresh blooms might also be a great way to change up your coffee day. Many coffees have very distinct floral notes sometimes in the dry grounds, sometimes in the brewed cup, or maybe even both. Maybe some rose pedals or marigold pedals would offer a pleasant diversion for the occasional cup, or perhaps some lavender. Really the most important thing is to make sure the pedals are edible and the flavors match your coffee of choice.
3) In May as the Spring comes to a close, we find the temperatures rising, and even though a hot freshly brewed cup of Wood-Fire Roasted coffee is still on the morning menu the afternoon pick-me-up is about to enter the next realm. Nitro Cold Brew, take a look at the link, ask me in the shop. This device is fabulous. It is easy to use, easy to clean, and the coffee, WOW! In all actuality, I am not a huge fan of cold brew. Try as I might I just can’t wrap my head around it. Then I got the Nitro Cold Brew dispenser from Royal Kitchen and that was a game-changer. Again, WOW! And think about this, mix a touch of adult beverage additive and you have a great brunch beverage. (Just a thought) (Yes, I have experimented)

Once again, I am a coffee purist. The glory of the coffee is, in my opinion, all the experience of the cup needs. I source and roast coffees to be their best rendition of themselves. But let’s have some fun.