CoffeeCon is a lot of fun! Buy your ticket!

Roasters risk everything having you judge their coffees steps away from their competitors.

The same thing happens every year. We offer CoffeeCon tickets for sale. A group of folks go in and orders a bunch. Then there’s the group I would fall into. We wait, until the week before or simply say we’ll get them on the day. We had to disappoint a few last year when we exceeded our building limits. This year we’re in a larger space, but the same thing is happening.

I’d like to beg you to buy soon. Why? Simply because the ticket sales totals help me close exhibitors who are not yet convinced there are enough people who really want to enjoy sipping every great coffee in the world, brewed in every manner of brewer and attend master classes in brewing. The more tickets we sell early, the better. Obviously ones sold on the day of the event at the door don’t count because it’s too late to get them to show up.

You really can’t blame them. CoffeeCon is not for the trade. It is only for consumers. Most in the trade understand trade shows. Trade shows are great offering the chance to learn the latest business techniques, find out about new cash register supplies and food service management, plus see their drinking friends. Coming to our show is more extroversion than many of them can handle comfortably. Plus, some of them aren’t convinced that consumers really care or that brewing even matters. Consider too that they’re being asked to put their coffees right next to their competitors’, and then let a thousand-plus consumers compare them. That can be a humbling experience.

A little story: When a CoffeeCon coffee festival was still just a figment of my imagination I contacted a well known roaster, really a larger one and well-regarded as one of the best. He listened to my pitch and said, “Kevin, you are telling me my coffees are going to be within a foot or two of all the other roasters in the city, and even a few national ones?” “Exactly” I assured him. I never heard from him again.

Meet Marysabel Caballero, Cup of Excellence winning coffee farmer.

Meet Marysabel Caballero, award winning coffee farmer.

This year’s CoffeeCon is better than ever. We again have George Howell. Oren Bloostein and I are going to share our tips on how to outfit your kitchen for coffee, including Oren’s twelve tips to Pourover perfection – he only had ten, but I had two so we got an even dozen. We’re bringing a Cup of Excellence coffee farmer, who’s going to give us a first-person look at sustainability and what we consumers can do to help make sure we have a lifetime supply of the best beans. Oh, and Jim Schulman is back with his espresso presentation. See our Speaker List here!

Exhibit-wise, we’re offering the chance to compare various single-serve technologies, the ones you see in department stores, plus a few you don’t, including one that sells for upwards of $500!

Our classes are expanding too. We’re adding a Cubano coffee presentation. We added a Coffee Lifestyle class to teach how to host a Tasting/Cupping party. Our usual assortment of international, siphon/vacuum, various pourover method labs will be taught by experts, every one.

Don’t forget the hourly prize giveaways, not just the one at the end this year. We’re not just giving filters away either. Someone’s going to win coffee gear with names like Technivorm, Baratza, Bonavita, Bunn. You get it, I’m sure.

But, do me a favor. Give me a leg up in my goal of getting the industry to support CoffeeCon. Buy your ticket today.