Specialty Coffee Association Expo '25

Editor’s note: This is part 2/2. Click here to check out part 1.

It's hard to recap an intense week of coffee exploration in a few hundred or even a thousand words, but I will try. First, what is Expo?* The Specialty Coffee Association puts on an annual event bringing together coffee roasters, vendors, farmers, tech companies, and more for a convention. The event includes a very large vendor floor, competitions for coffee skills, educational seminars, presentations, and networking events. There is also a very healthy party scene that takes place after Expo hours. This year's Expo occurred at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, Texas.

*It was recently announced that next year, the event will be rebranded as World Of Coffee! The exclamation point is theirs.

HOUSTON: DAY 2

The drive-in.

The convention floor opens at 10:00 AM, but I'm headed downtown by about 7:30AM to beat traffic (I didn't) and give myself time to emotionally prepare for a long day of human interaction. Also, I want to try to beat some heat while carrying my gear in. It's already 80 degrees, and I only brought three shirts this morning.

At big events, I just pay whatever it takes to park right next to the venue. I cruise to the parking ramp across from the George R. Brown Convention Center and pull up to the ticket booth. What's that noise?

The rooftop box on my midsize SUV is scraping the hanging warning post that lets me know there is a 7' height limitation. How is this possible in Texas? Every other person is driving a truck the size of a small house? I back up into the street. The early morning is my friend, and it isn't a chaotic mess, but now I'm looking for another place to park. I turn a corner. Another parking ramp. The warning sign says 6'9"!

I turn another corner and see a parking lot. No ramp, just a lot, but it is the wrong way down a one way to get there, or what looks like a trip back onto the highway. I take a deep breath and summon my inner Austin, TX driver. I hit the gas and Zowie! I'm in a lot behind the convention center. I pay the mythical QR code. I think I do. I hope my car will be here at the end of the day.

Pregame

The building is open. I get the first cup of coffee out of an automated machine from the Metric company. I wander into the press room just off the convention floor to walk myself through my equipment one last time. Mic's are charged. Bluetooth is connecting. The tripod is stable. All is good until I make the mistake of leaving the press room in search of another cup of coffee.

The crowd has increased, and the head of security stops me from going back to the press room. But I'm press, and that is the press room, I say, and show him the paper badge they gave me with a green dot on it. No press until 10:00! He repeats it several times until I ask him to gather all my gear and bring it to me. Instead, he escorted me to the room and made me promise not to leave until 10:00. I swear my fingers weren't crossed.

The interviews

Editor's note: Each of these shorts will be part of an entire Coffee People episode in the near future.

Nick Schmitt from Roastar curated a great guest list. We planned two interviews each day at the Roastar booth. Day one featured Charley Phung who Co-founded Chloé Cà Phê + Roastery with his wife Crystal. Charley's passion for Vietnamese coffee and the scene surrounding it was evident in our conversation from the jump. You don't have to look further than the coffee bag to see what inspires Charley and Crystal.

Our second guest was Kenzel Fallen who along with her partner Tio Fallen Co-founded Three Keys Coffee in Houston, TX. The jazz-inspired roastery was founded in 2019 with the intent that it act as a multi-sensory experience-based shop.

Across from the Roastar booth the quirky design and enthusiasm emitting from the Paper Frog Coffee booth was infectious. We snagged Co-founder Elizabeth Heller for a quick chat, which is going to turn into an entire episode of Coffee People in the near future. We went right of the rails, and my life changed forever the moment Clyde hopped into it.

Clyde kept me company all the way home.

PARTING THOUGHTS FROM DAY 2

I found a note in my journal that feels reflective of the first official day of the Expo.

A smile and a cup of coffee do it for most people.

I’m back in full-on convention mode where one connection leads to the next which leads to the…you get it.

Post-show

The car is still there! I leave it for a few more minutes to snag a beer at Rodeo Goat courtesy of Roast Magazine. I meet a few new friends, but when the karaoke begins and the conversation turns to politics I call it a night.

We’ll be back with more on Houston Day 3 tomorrow.

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