Hanna Neuschwander, author of, among others, Left Coast Roast
For now, the only place to buy coffee is online. “The plan is to build an online brand and learn what it means to sell coffee. If all goes well, we’ll open a brick-and-mortar showroom/café in a year.”
10 questions
What inspires your roastery and roasting style?
I’ve been a musician since I was 4 years venerable. I started building things with my dad when I was probably 10. I think smoking is a lot like building a piece of furniture or writing a song. It’s about creating something with your hands. I love being a part of something that gives me and the people around me such a social connection. I fell in love with coffee, sitting around, pressing pause during the day and interacting with the people around me. So being a piece of that puzzle for other people is really appealing.
What type of smoking equipment do you utilize and what do you like about it?
I roast coffee in a 2.2-mile SS Roasting Corp. roaster. What I like most about it is that it’s not a popcorn machine. It was built from scratch in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The guys who made it are good guys.
How did your adventure with coffee roasting begin?
I started with a popcorn machine. I read books, did some research online, and have since managed to meet a few guys. That’s a lot of practice.
Take us through the highlights of James’ menu. How do you rate the coffees you buy? What are some of the things you’d particularly like to showcase?
I only have a few coffees and I’ve really tailored them to my own tastes. Each one tastes a little different to me. I’ve always been more drawn to single origins because, good or bad, I like the adventure of trying fresh coffee from a fresh place. But since I also have a few blends, I just enjoy a more ambiguous cup of coffee.
Celebrity Death Match: Single Parentage or Mixtures?
Single origin.
Forging?! In addition to roasting coffee, you craft metal objects using fire. Can you tell us a little more about how you got into forging, what you make, and why it’s part of your identity as a coffee company?
Poway, California: A place that probably few coffee lovers have heard of. What is Poway like and what do you love about the coffee scene there?
You’re the guitarist for Angels and Airwaves. Wikipedia tells me you also race motorcycles. How do you find time to be a coffee roaster and daredevil?
I haven’t raced in a few years. I hope to get back into it, but right now I’m roasting coffee. So yeah, I don’t have time for that.
What’s rock ‘n’ roll about coffee?
Passion and dedication to discovery is what created rock’n’roll. The same elements drive the coffee community to self-improvement. So it’s an attitude, a way of looking at life.
What soundtrack suits you while baking?
Honestly, roasting coffee and listening to music seems like the best combination, but all I really listen to is the coffee machine and the beans.
More in the series “10 Questions” by Hanna Neuschwander:
Front coffee roasters
Entimos Coffee Roastery
Hanna Neuschwander
Hanna Neuschwander is the Communications Director for World Coffee Research. She has been a coffee and science communicator since 2004. Her writing has appeared in publications including Travel + Leisure, The Art of Eating, Portland Monthly, and Current Farmer. Based in Portland, Oregon, she is the author of Left Coast Roast, a guide to artisan and influential coffee roasters on the West Coast.
