The Journal
Notes from the trail.
Brew guides, road notes and the craft behind the coffee. Pull up a chair.
The craft · 4 August 2026
Coffee tasting notes explained: what "blackcurrant, oak" actually means
No, they did not add blackcurrant. Tasting notes describe aromas the coffee genuinely produces — and once you know how to read them, they stop being marketing and start being useful.
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The craft · 4 August 2026
Resting coffee: why fresh beans can be too fresh
Coffee straight off the roaster brews badly. It needs a few days to degas first. Here is why, how long to wait, and why almost nobody in a supermarket has ever had this problem.
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The craft · 4 August 2026
What is speciality coffee? The score, the supply chain, and whether it matters
Speciality coffee has an actual definition and an actual number behind it — 80 points out of 100. Here is what gets measured, who measures it, and where the term gets stretched.
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The craft · 4 August 2026
What to do with used coffee grounds: 11 uses that actually work
Most advice about coffee grounds is repeated nonsense. They will not deter slugs and they will not fix your soil on their own. Here is what genuinely works, and what to stop doing.
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Brew guide · 4 August 2026
Why is my coffee bitter? The five causes, in the order to check them
Bitter coffee is almost never the beans' fault. It is over-extraction, and there are only five things that cause it. Work down this list in order and you will fix it without buying anything.
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The craft · 30 July 2026
How much caffeine is in a cup of coffee?
A straight answer with real numbers — filter, espresso, cafetière, instant and decaf — plus why the dark roast you thought was stronger probably isn't.
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Brew guide · 25 July 2026
Cafetière vs filter coffee: which should you actually buy?
Two ways of making coffee that produce genuinely different cups. Here's what separates them, which suits which kind of drinker, and how to get the best from either.
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The craft · 20 July 2026
How to store coffee beans (and why the fridge is the worst place)
Four things are quietly ruining your coffee between the bag and the cup. None of them are fixed by the fridge — that one actively makes it worse.
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The craft · 18 June 2026
Roast levels explained: from light to extra dark
Light roast or dark? The roast level shapes everything in your cup. Here's what changes at each stage — and where every Western Tamp blend sits.
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Brew guide · 15 June 2026
Grind size guide: how to dial in your coffee for any brew method
Grind size drives extraction more than almost anything else. Get it wrong and no amount of good coffee fixes it. Here's how to get it right, method by method.
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Brew guide · 12 June 2026
The golden ratio: how much coffee to use per cup
Too much and it's muddy. Too little and it's thin. The coffee-to-water ratio is the easiest fix in your brew routine — here's how to get it right.
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Brew guide · 10 June 2026
How to brew a bolder cup
Grind coarser, pour slower, and stop drowning a good roast. Three habits that make a stronger, cleaner cup at home.
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Road notes · 28 May 2026
On the road with Backroad Bourbon
A medium-dark roast built for long drives and late porch sits. Where this one came from, and how we like to drink it.
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The craft · 12 May 2026
Why we roast to order
Coffee is at its best fresh off the roaster — so we don't let it sit. Here's how roast-to-order keeps every bag honest.
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