2018 has left me feeling a couple of things. Mostly, I'm working on finding a voice. Where James Perry Coffee sits now is as an add on to my portfolio. I wanted to write an epilogue to Brewers Cup, and break that down a little more, but I didn't feel comfortable publishing it so late. I think timeliness is important, and depending on what I choose to do next year, I will be looking into exploring ideas of preparation a lot more. I decided to take the rest of the year as easy as possible. Working, spending time with family, and not stressing about arbitrary deadlines. I'm going to get back on those deadlines this year instead, and use this time away from my computer to plan.
I'm a bit of a sucker for a good ol New Years Goal. I want my 2019 to be about learning more. I wanted to start my blog up because of what I was hoping to learn from doing Brewers Cup for the first time. But the good news is Brewers Cup isn't on for another little while, giving me a fair bit more time to plan and really reflect on what I want to say, brew and how I want to get there. A dear friend once told me that the best way to do things is to keep on saying you're going to do it. Keep on having that plan, and keep on sharing it. So friends, here's mine:
The List
Post Brewers Cup left me feeling really drained. I felt like I hadn't come close to achieving what I would like to in an ideal world. While it did teach me a lot about brewing, it reminded me about how much more there is to do and learn. So I thought, what better way to move into the new year than to write a list of every coffee related thing I feel I don't know enough about. So here's the 2019 list!
☕ Ratios
☕ Temperature & Sugar Development
☕ Water & Chemical Composition
☕ Workflow
☕ Content Creation
☕ Marketing and SEO
☕ Colonialism's Effect in Coffee
☕ Storytelling in Coffee Writing
☕ The Actual History of Coffee
☕ Laminar Flow and It's Practical Applications to Brewing Coffee
☕ What Can A Coffee Shop Do?
If you're wondering what the last point is, have a read of the tab on the top of the page! It's one of many projects I'm really excited to get cracking on. I've also got a bunch of things to say and photos to share from Japan, the Same Cup Fundraiser (and giving a shit in the coffee industry), plus a heap more lists and articles I'm keen to write.
Sometimes you gotta just relax when you can. Thanks for supporting my journey so far everyone, let's all have a great year ahead Jimmy xx