The Coffee Show with Kirk Pearson

This week we have Sam Keck of Commonfolk Coffee on the podcast to talk about an upcoming program coming up called Good Coffee Month. Good Coffee Month is looking to raise money to help fund some equipment upgrades for coffee producers in Uganda at the Zukuka Bora washing station. Commonfolk have partnered with Zukuka Bora for many years now are every year have seen increases in the quality of coff...

Lukas Martin is a young entrepreneur looking to revolutionise how hospitality venues connect with suppliers/wholesalers. Lukas has been bemused by high fees and lack of functionality from other online ordering software providers and decided to make his own. In this podcast which has a new format, we get interactive with CarePack and show you live how to set up an account and use it. Plus, Kirk and...

This weeks podcast will be audio only because we had some issues with the camera recording this. The honest story is we were in a venue where chefs were butchering some freshly caught tuna (which looked lovely) and so the camera was out of focus and thus we couldn't use the footage. Kay Cheon is the United States Barista Champion of 2025 and founder of Parterre Coffee. This podcast was the las...

Chris Maybury is a disruptor in coffee and this episode has been a long time coming. Chris and Kirk have a lot in common: They both embrace pre batched espresso, embrace automation and hold dear the very thing customers love about coffee: People! Kirk and Chris discuss what they think the barista profession will evolve to and how baristas in the future may end up becoming sommeliers. Plus, the fal...

Australian coffee professionals have been up in arms about a new concept called Specialty Coffee Factory Outlet (SCFO). Kirk interviewed the founders Julian Moussi and Cory Slater to get their perspective. The team who founded Inglewood Coffee are trying a new strategy in specialty, selling high quality coffee for ultra cheap prices and betting on selling high quantities. They're going for a l...

Do you want to quit the job you hate and start a new career you love? This podcast might be the encouragement you need. Dennis Do last year had never made coffee in a cafe, now he runs Project Zero Coffee and competes in the Brewers Cup! This is a great podcast detailing how Dennis was able to change careers and a great example for other cafe owners to consider hiring staff with no experience. If...

Greg Cornes is a New Zealand based cafe owner and operator with multiple venues. Greg's profile has grown this year thanks to his viral videos dissecting and analysing what it takes to be successful business in 2026. In this podcast Greg discusses his strategy and playbook in a marketplace that has frankly turned upside down after the Pandemic, multiple supply chain issues and a protracted cos...

Andrew Sinclair is without a doubt one of the best ranters in specialty coffee, and should probably have a podcast of his own. Until then, Kirk sat down with him at his roastery and discussed what its like operating a coffee shop in the US and just how hard it can be for people to make it, especially in the City of Angels. This podcast was done just by the cooling tray of Andrew's roaster! Lik...

Derek Taylor is a cafe owner based in Los Angeles California. His cafe Noun, is serving coffee that has been pre batched and we recorded this mini podcast in the middle of service there! Derek is unique in his approach to business. Customers can pay with bitcoin and he has been making sure people have been caffeinated at Coachella for a number of years. This was a short but interesting podcast tha...

On the Austin stop of Kirk's USA Tour he met up with old friend Jak Michael Ryan and new friend Zack Talender. Zack Talender is a US musician who wen't omega viral in Australia for his videos about the coffee. Zack's whole thing was to try and find a 'bad coffee' and he was unable to, which found him adored by pretty much every Melburnian. Jak Michael Ryan is the new US Barista Champion, together...

This week The Coffee Show and Keys to the Shop are doing a crossover episode in Nashville Tennessee, the closest point that could meet. Kirk and Chris Deferio are both outspoken in the coffee industry. They agree on a lot of things, and disagree on some things as well. This podcast has been months in the making but we both wanted to do it in person and it was great to make that happen. No studio,...

Jak Michael Ryan, originally from Australia, is the United States Barista Champion. Jak is one of the most unique personalities you will find anywhere in life. Jak is a professional dancer, dedicated boxer with ambitions for great things and just casually, the best barista in the USA. This podcast looks into his journey and discipline and the many years of hard work it took to reach this point. Ja...

Davy Ball is the Founder of Draped in Blue and one of the Co-Founders of Now and Then, a now closed coffee bar that provided a fine dining coffee experience. In this podcast Davy and Kirk are recording in Chef Sean Brock's office in Nashville with all of his cook books, as you can see there are many! Kirk and Davy discuss how fine dining and coffee can work together and the future of coffee ex...

Kirk has reached the means streets of Calgary, Alberta in Canada. In Calgary one of the worlds most reputable specialty coffee roasters is there, Rosso Coffee Roasters. Rosso was started by David Crosby who is a 2x World Barista Championship coach, coaching both Mikael Jaisin and Boram Um to victory in consecutive years. David and Kirk have been friends for years now and it was great to catch up a...

George Howell is the Founder of George Howell Coffee and one of the most influential forces in the coffee industry ever. Many know him as the man who created the Frappuccino, which he sold the rights of to Starbucks. Such was his influence in the 90’s he sold all of his venues to Starbucks as well, and has devoted his entire life to the betterment of the specialty coffee industry. In this podcast...

Nemesis Coffee are based in Vancouver and have multiple venues spanning specialty coffee focused venues and bakeries. The owners Jes and Albert blew Kirk away with the coffee quality and service throughout the Vancouver leg of the 'Freedom Tour!' We sat down in their Great Northern Way store and spoke about the origins of Nemesis and the near terminal challenges they faced along the way. A...

Dr Doran Pennington is a former student of someone the coffee industry knows well: Dr Christopher Hendon. Doran and Chris story has shades of Good Will Hunting, Doran the former student recruited his teacher to form a start up that has the change to change the beverage industry as we know it. It is called Overpotential. In this episode Kirk visits the ‘Engine Room,’ a start up accelerator within t...

Last year the Coffee Quality Institute (CQI) announced sweeping changes to what is known at the Coffee Value Assessment. Coffee professionals were furious that a seemingly functional system of assessing a coffees quality was being replaced by a system that was far more complex. Craig Simon is Australia's leading coffee trainer who was one of two certified Q Grade instructors in the country. Cr...

'Breakfast Shirts' or Mark Crotti is a content creator who travels Australia as a touring musician and cafe connoisseur. Mark has compiled some data from a survey sent out to his followers. It seeks to find out: Who is Australia's favourite coffee roaster? What is Australia's favourite coffee order? And where is the best breakfast in the country? Kirk and Mark discuss all this week...

Nic Petrie is the Head of Coffee for Born and Raised, a Melbourne based coffee roasting supplying cafes and sharpening their focus to go direct to consumer. Nic has been one of the lead agitators with pre batched coffee, something Kirk is very familiar with. Additionally, Nic has been big on Co-Fermentation. Kirk and Nic discuss the potential problems that Co Ferments could create and also discuss...

Ryan Caisley is an ‘Oat Dealer’ from Oatly based in Melbourne Australia. When working in London, Ryan would often serve some of the biggest name actors and sports stars, leading to him eventually featuring in a Hollywood film! Kirk and Ryan discuss famous stars like Jimmy Butler and Emma Chamberlain entering the specialty coffee industry with their own brands that are doing very well. Sustainabili...

Think of this podcast as a 100 minute lesson on how to make espresso. Whether you're a beginner at home or in the cafe, you're going to get something out of this. 2022 World Barista Champion Anthony Douglas sits down with Kirk to go through espresso making. What is the best equipment to use if you're on a budget? Where should you allocate your money for buying home coffee equipment? Pl...

Kirk is getting international heat, again! Firstly, Kirk and Jack caught up during the week and sorted out their drama from last week, which ended in a really pleasant reunion. There are some looming articles to come out soon where journalists have been seeking alternative opinions on pre batched espresso. Potential hit pieces in the works? What are Kirk's philosophies on coffee service? Find...

This morning, World Barista Champion Jack Simpson took to Instagram, rebuking the idea of pre-batched espresso. The post came as a complete surprise to Kirk. Jack had previously played a role in helping set up the café, yet there was no prior conversation or warning—just a post pontificating on the inferiority of pre-batched espresso. In this episode, Kirk responds. He revisits why he started pre-...

James Coburn is the man behind one of the most hilarious coffee content creations currently going. You might know him as Human Tobasco, and after nearly a decade living and working in New York, he's taking a brief stint living and working back home in Melbourne Australia. James is as hilarious in person as he is online, but most of all he is very down to earth. Many of his video ideas arose fr...