One of the perks of The 30 Clean is that we allow you one precious cup of coffee to kickstart your day. Coffee beans and tea leaves, after all, are 100% natural “foods” produced by the Earth. And study after study has shown numerous health benefits to those who imbibe within reason. The caveat, of course, is that you are not allowed to “dope” up your drink with all of the goodies from your pre-30 Clean life. Gone are the days of dumping half a carton of sugar-laden creamer and 4 bags of artificial sweetener into your cup. For former flavored latte or frappuccino lovers, the transition from sugar-loaded coffee drinks to straight black coffee can be a bitter one… literally.
So how can you enjoy that cup in its purest form and not feel like you’re missing out on your favorite flavorful and soothing morning ritual? By drinking premium high-quality coffee and by learning how to brew it properly. Did you know that coffee actually possesses more flavor notes than wine? Yes, you read that correctly: coffee is more complex in flavor than wine. Yet sadly, a majority of the general public still sees coffee as a basic commodity that offers little variation in taste.
True coffee connoisseurs know that nothing could be further from the truth. Of course, misconceptions about coffee are understandable when most consumers are drinking instant and/or low-quality coffee. In wine terms, this would be similar to drinking very cheap wine that leaves you with little more than a terrible hangover the next day. Low-quality coffee might “do the trick” and give you a caffeine boost, but the taste can be unpalatable – hence why we find ourselves smothering it in sugar and creamer.
The ultimate taste of a cup of coffee is affected by every step of the journey from seed to cup. There are numerous critical stages in the process, including but not limited to: growing, farming, processing, drying, roasting, grinding, and brewing your coffee. With each step, there is the risk that, if not done properly, your coffee will be ruined. Likewise, when it’s done right from start to finish, the difference in taste is incredible.
While wine can benefit from the aging process, coffee should ideally be consumed within a month of its roasting. This is why bags that were roasted and ground in a factory and then left sitting on shelves for weeks and months aren’t going to taste as fresh as the beans you buy at a local shop and have ground for you on the spot.
Thankfully, with the advent of “The Third Wave” of coffee, perceptions are changing, consumers are becoming more educated, and coffee is beginning to get the respect that it deserves. We recently had the pleasure of sampling some coffee with a coffee roaster in San Diego who takes their beans very seriously, The WestBean Coffee Roasters. What we learned from, experienced, and tasted at The WestBean was so interesting and exceptional that we had to share it with our cleaners!
The WestBean was founded by a group of friends who wanted to bring responsibly-grown, skillfully roasted, and expertly prepared coffee to San Diego. They select beans based on quality and use importers who have direct trade relationships with farmers. In other words, they pay a premium to use beans that were grown on farms that use responsible and sustainable practices. Once they obtain the beans, often from some of the most exotic places on Earth, they test it relentlessly, running it through multiple roast profiles, until they find what they call “the sweet spot,” where the coffee reveals its optimum flavor characteristics.
In the beginning, The WestBean focused solely on perfecting the roasting process. Their roaster is unique and was hand-crafted locally. It is an incredibly sophisticated machine and gives them ultimate control over the roast by allowing them to manually alter the burner output, drum speed, and airflow. The ability to manipulate these variables in the roasting process allows The WestBean’s master roaster to micro-batch each roast, bringing to life and fine-tuning the defining characteristics found in each bean variety.
Micro-batching is truly a labor of love that does not produce massive amounts of coffee, but rather small quantities. This is why the coffee you drink at small roasters like The WestBean tastes SO much better than the mass-produced coffee you might drink at larger chains.
After a few years of selling their delicious beans wholesale to a variety of restaurants and coffee shops in San Diego, the owners of The WestBean decided they were ready to take the plunge – they opened a shop of their own in the heart of downtown. To say it was an instant success would be an understatement! There was such a demand for their coffee that they opened a second location early this year at Liberty Public Market, an enormous local marketplace in Liberty Station that has become a must-visit for foodies, both locals and tourists.
What we noticed right away when we sampled this coffee was that it was so smooth – it had none of the acidic aftertaste that lower-quality coffee can have. That being the case, we could drink it black! In fact, that is the most common comment that our challengers on The 30 Clean make when they try this coffee – “I never thought I could drink coffee black… until now!” Thanks to our relationship with the partners in this booming business, we are bringing you an exclusive discount code so that, no matter where you are located, you can get your hands on this coffee. Just visit www.thewestbean.com and enter the discount code 30CLEAN when you check out to get 20% off your order. A word of warning: once you try quality coffee, you won’t be able to go back to the sludge you had previously been drinking, so be prepared to become a self-proclaimed “coffee snob.” It’s a compliment, after all.
The WestBean Coffee Roasters
The WestBean is a San Diego-based roastery founded by two friends with a true passion and love for coffee, along with the drive to create and bring to you the highest …