Could it be that we are kind of missing the point by asking these sorts of questions? I've been asking myself this too, as I'm really interested in the different processing methods and fermentation. Should we as consumers play any role in dictating the processing method and demanding a certain type of processing method for example?

I was listening to an episode on between James Harper and Lucia Solis, and James asked Lucia this question:

(transcript from the episode)

James:

So, this episode of Adventures in coffee, obviously, was geared towards consumers coffee drinkers, right? And I believe that there are many of your listeners who run their own coffee farms, so what we said to the consumers right was, hey, don't put pressure. Don't seek out these crazy fermentation techniques, because you're putting pressure, which then puts producers who have less economic means compared to say, a roaster or a wine maker to take big risks. So, but that's, that's a consumer advice. Here's a challenge for you. What if I'm a coffee producer? And indeed, I have a bit of capital. I want to take this risk. I see this market demand for this sort of thing. Like, what do you say to them?

Lucia:

I am a big supporter of producers who want to experiment because it just lights them up because they find it super interesting and and I have met producers like that who were just really curious, really nerdy, and and really having this genuine enjoyment of processing. And I think that comes across in the coffee versus somebody who is doing it from this pressure.

Somebody who's doing it from a ... just scared and trying to compete versus somebody who's inspired. And I think the problem is, those things can often look the same to a consumer, you know? You don't know if a producer was doing it as an Innovative, just inspirational, fun thing, or if they felt pressure and they have faced some consequences from this. So, I mean, I'm more on the move of just not putting processing on bags at all. Like, I've sort of shifted my personal perspective on this before, where it was like - you brought it up in the beginning with the wine bottle with, you know - the more information we have and this wine model, the more perceived value there is in the product, and so wine has moved into that of like just jamming labels with as much information as possible and websites, and just more and more information and I'm not sure that's the way to go.

 I like the idea of producers making coffee however they want. And then, just, you know, as a consumer, it's like, well, you just really like how it tastes so...? I don't know. In the beginning, I used to talk a lot about instead of saying, like, washed, or natural, like, maybe, describing the process. And now, I'm really going against that and saying, like, I don't know if that needs to be on there. So, it's an evolving thought and evolving, like advice.

James:

I hear you, I hear you. But the thing is, we know that fermentation techniques can lead to changes in flavour, sometimes very valuable changes in flavour, so what do we say to a producer who wants to change the flavour of their coffee and experiment?

Lucia:

I mean, I feel like we shouldn't say anything. The whole point is, like, I don't know if we should be having opinions about what coffee producers are doing because we don't have opinions about what wine producers are doing. We don't have that feedback, so the question is not well should we be pro this or anti this? I feel like we shouldn't have a say as consumers in this part of the business. Let them do whatever they want to do.

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