Coffee Sprudgecast

It was the product that baffled and dazzled the attendees of World of Coffee San Diego in equal measure. We're talking, of course, about Soup Latte. Not a soup caffè latte, mind. No espresso involved—we're talking a chuggable micro-foamed milk-based soup. Soup Latte debuted at World of Coffee sampling three of their five flavors: Broccoli Cheddar, Coconut Curry, and Truffle Mushroom. The product was dreamed up by Rio Miura, one of the co-founders of global chai juggernaut David Rio. Miura serves as Creative Director for Soup Latte and we had an opportunity to interview her on the floor about this innovative new product that might carve out a new comestible category. For this week's Coffee Sprudgecast Mocha Moment Presented By Ghirardelli, we're giving the Peppermint Mocha a chance to shine here in late Spring. As a spring/summer agricultural product, peppermint is in season. So why should a peppermint mocha get filed away as a winter treat? We say no! More! Drink Peppermint Mochas year round with us, loud and proud, let's have a parade in July, even. For the build, we used 8th & Roast's Sunflower Blend as our espresso base, Pacific Food Barista Series Pistachio Milk, Ghirardelli Sweet Ground Dark Chocolate & Cocoa Powder, and a homemade peppermint syrup. Peppermint Mocha Peppermint Syrup 1 cup sugar 1 cup hot water 1 tsp peppermint extract Add one cup sugar to heat-proof vessel. Add boiling water to sugar and stir until dissolved. Add a teaspoon of peppermint extract. The Build 1 espresso shot of 8th & Roast Sunflower Blend 1 tbsp Ghirardelli Sweet Ground Dark Chocolate & Cocoa powder 8oz Pacific Foods Barista Series Pistachio Milk 1 tsp peppermint syrup Add chocolate to bottom of drinking vessel. Pour espresso in and stir until well mixed. Add peppermint syrup. Pour steamed milk. Garnish with fresh peppermint. Show Notes On the show, Jordan Michelman brings us a fresh cook of Gilly Brew Bar coffee sourced at World of Coffee. It was brewed in an AeroPress XL (so big!) using the inverted method (terrifying!) and enjoyed in the Slow Pour Supply Two-Way cups. The coffee had lovely fruits and florals and we're delighted that Gilly has entered the roasting arena. We'll be watching this space. We shout out to California coffee legends on the podcast: Tony Serrano and Kenneth Davids. Do you have a question for the Sprudgecast? Jump on the horn at 1-855-SPRUDGE or drop us a line. This episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast is sponsored by DONA, Pacific Barista Series, and La Marzocco.

As far as food fads go, protein and the desire for more protein seems to be as enduring as the non-fat craze of the 80s and 90s. Protein injection into familiar foodstuffs and beverages seems to only be getting more pronounced. This also applies to coffee. Protein enhanced coffee beverages, or "proffee", lines RTD shelves in the grocery store and even Starbucks is joining the game with a range of protein infused lattes. Highly addictive and soul draining mobile apps like TikTok and Instagram come out with viral proffee hack each week. For this episode's Mocha Moment Presented by Ghirardelli, we took the proffee world we're all living in and made something truly delicious on this week on the Coffee Sprudgecast. That's right, it's a count your macros mocha that's as protein-packed as it is rich and decadent. It's a cottage cheese and milk based beverage we're calling The Mocha Fromage. Heck, call us proffee purists. And before you wince at the idea of cottage cheese in your coffee, make it yourself! Trust us when we say: cottage cheese milk is going to be huge. This episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast is sponsored by Baratza, Dripos, DONA, noissue, Ceado, Pacific Barista Series, and La Marzocco. The Mocha Fromage Ingredients 1/2 cup cottage cheese 1/2 cup milk 1 tbsp Ghirardelli Sweet Ground Dark Chocolate and Cocoa Powder Double shot of Joe Coffee Waverly Espresso 1. Create the cottage cheese milk base. Place a cup of cottage cheese and a cup of milk in a blender. Pulse until all of the chunks have been blended out. Pour the frothy cheese milk mixture into a vessel and refrigerate for an hour, or until the bubbles have dissipated. 2. Place a heaping tablespoon of Ghirardelli Sweet Ground Dark Chocolate and Cocoa Powder into a pre-heated 8-10oz vessel. 3. Add espresso to the powder and whisk until combined. 4. Steam and lightly aerate cheese milk to 140-150ºF. 5. Plop a little cheese milk into the espresso/chocolate mix and stir again before pouring the rest of the milk into the mug. Refrigerate remaining cheese milk and use within a day. 6. Sip your Mocha Fromage, perhaps with a piece of funky soft cheese to really kick it up a notch.

Perusing the cookbook sections at thrift stores can be a real treat. While digging through well worn copies of Dump Cakes and other Cathy Mitchell classics, we absolutely screamed when we discovered a pristine third edition copy of The Ghirardelli Cookbook (1986). We've worked with Ghirardelli for a number of years, and on the Coffee Sprudgecast here in 2026 we are teaming up to dive deep into the rich and chocolatey world of all things mocha with a segment we're calling Mocha Moments. This forty-year-old cookbook, released in the height of the 1980s San Francisco specialty chocolate boom, is chock full of inspirations for this episode's mocha. We decided to adapt the "California Cappuccino"—a playful mix of chocolate, brandy, and foam—to create something we're calling the California Sober Mocha Cappuccino. By omitting the brandy and subbing out instant coffee with freshly pulled shots of La Barba espresso on our Sprudge HQ Linea Mini, we keep it NA while still leaning in on the psychotropic and mind-altering caffeine buzz, in true California Sober fashion. Before you begin writing your stern letter scolding us for the misnomer, we recognize mocha cappuccino is confusing, redundant, and perhaps, yes, an abuse of the english language. But we're coffee purists, purely having fun with coffee, and to be quite honest, mochas that are one third coffee and chocolate, one third steamed milk, and one third microfoam (the traditional cappuccino rule of 1/3s) is absolutely stunning. Who needs whip when you've got sweet, sweet gently warmed and textured Pacific Barista Series pistachio milk (btw, pistachios sourced from California last time we checked!) Before sliding into our DMs, perhaps give this recipe a shot: The California Sober Mocha Cappuccino Adapted from The Ghirardelli Cookbook by Phyllis Larsen (Third Edition, 1986) 1 heaping tablespoon Ghirardelli Sweet Ground Chocolate & Cocoa Powder 2oz La Barba Espresso 4oz frothy Pacific Barista Series Pistachio Milk Warm a diner mug with hot water to keep things nice and toasty. Place a heaping tablespoon (Phyllis Larsen insists on heaping and who are we to say no?) of Ghirardelli Sweet Ground Chocolate & Cocoa powder in the mug. Pull a double shot of espresso directly into your mug and mix until the chocolate powder and espresso have combined. Steam milk, cappuccino levels of froth, so that it almost doubles in volume. No soap sud bubbles, please—we're looking for micro-foam here, people. Add a bloop of that textured milk in the mug, stir it up, and add the rest. Bonus points if you can make a pattern in the shape of the state of California. Enjoy! Show Notes We talk about the whole dang world of coffee in this episode—guides from across the globe published right here on Sprudge. We also talk about World of Coffee, formerly SCA Expo, taking place next month in sunny San Diego. Check out the articles mentioned below. https://sprudge.com/hey-san-diego-sprudge-wants-to-hear-all-about-your-plans-for-world-of-coffee-2026-777438.html https://sprudge.com/in-hanoi-roaster-retailer-cafes-offer-a-glimpse-into-vietnams-changing-coffee-culture-468966.html https://sprudge.com/the-sprudge-guide-to-coffee-in-kigali-rwanda-378657.html https://sprudge.com/the-sprudge-guide-to-coffee-in-seongsu-dong-seoul-559102.html https://sprudge.com/the-sprudge-guide-to-coffee-in-ipoh-malaysia-457591.html https://sprudge.com/the-sprudge-guide-to-historic-cafes-in-tangier-morocco-489099.html Also worth checking out: Old Town Tequila in San Diego Boom Boom Room in San Diego Listen to the whole episode right here: This episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast is sponsored by Baratza, Dripos, DONA, noissue, Ceado, Pacific Barista Series, and La Marzocco.

On this episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast we go on decidedly delicious deep dives. It's *all* about proof of taste—and we're here to prove that taste is what matters above nearly all else. Listen in our as intrepid founders glide over the modernity of romance in 2026, subject listeners to an Orwellian abuse of the word "purist", and enjoy Caffe Umbria Bizzarri Blend (how Bizzarri, how Bizzarri) as an espresso. Like the mighty I Ching, like the collected works of Shakespeare, this episode contains multitudes, so please expect all that and truly, so much more. Hosts Jordan Michelman and Zachary Carlsen, no stranger to drink building as evidenced by their 2023 text But First, Coffee, create a signature drink worthy of a barista competition inspired by Stumptown Coffee's new seasonal Valentines Day offering. It's all part of a new feature Mocha Moments produced in partnership with Ghirardelli. You'll hear us whip it up and go all out on mochas mochas mochas throughout this feature series, so buckle up, chocoholics: you're in for a treat. It takes a Gear Garden to make a mocha, and this episode's mocha was made with espresso pulled from a Flair Espresso 58 Plus, milk steamed by a La Marzocco Linea Mini, ingredient components weighed using a handy Acaia Lunar scale, and coffee ground using the Baratza Encore ESP Pro. As promised, we offer to you, the listener, who is us, our very first Mocha Moments recipe so you too can dazzle your sweetheart (or sweethearts!) at home: Cardamom Rose Dusted Chocolate Covered Strawberry Rhubarb Mocha 1 tbsp Ghirardelli Chocolate & Cocoa Sweet Ground Powder 1 tsp Cardamom Rose Spice Dust from DONA 1 1/2 tsp Oregon Growers Strawberry Rhubarb Jam 2 shots of espresso Caffe Umbria Bizzarri Blend 4-6oz steamed Pacific Barista Series Pistachio Milk Put the dry ingredients, jam, and espresso at the bottom of your mug. Using the espresso, gently mix all the ingredients together. Pour a bit of steamed (or cold) milk in and stir again to ensure everything is pleasantly blended. Add the rest of the milk to taste and sprinkle with a little more Cardamom Rose Spice Dust. We mention our mocha mugs are from Miir, a special edition tumbler, and here they are: ALSO ON THIS EPISODE, Zachary whips up a Lotus Biscoff yogurt "tiramisu" in the style of the popular TikTok trend. Unlike the popular TikTok trend which merely uses any old flavor (or unflavored) yogurt, we kick it up a notch by actually involving coffee in this "tiramisu" using Tillamook Stumptown Cold Brew yogurt. Much munching and tasting ensues and yes, it's actually quite good. Special thank you to all of our fabulous podcast listeners, the sponsors that make this all possible, and everyone else out there in Sprudgelandia. This episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast is sponsored by Baratza, noissue, Ceado, Pacific Barista Series, La Marzocco, and DONA.

In the year brew thousand… in the year brew thousaaaaand! The new year is upon us and, as such, there has never a more relevant time to look into the future. Fueled with pour-overs of Loyal Coffee's Mountain Melody Blend brewed using an appropriately futuristic brewer, Sprudgecast hosts Jordan Michelman and Zachary Carlsen make their startling predictions for 2026. Did someone say futuristic brewer? Yes, that's right. Live on the show, the hosts try out the Melitta Senz V, a high-tech pour-over brewing kit that pairs with the Wabilogic phone app. The brewer is loaded with sensors (two scales, temp probe, and TDS) that send data in realtime to the app—providing temperature, brew time information, and TDS measurements. The TDS (total dissolved solids) data is sent to the app, giving the user an analysis that predicts the overall extraction level (strength) of the brew. On the device itself, it displays a simple interpretation of that data with nine built-in taste profiles (e.g. "strong", "acidic"). Measuring coffee's TDS using laboratory-grade refractometers have been part of professional specialty coffee toolkits for over a decade, and the Melitta Senz-V brings this useful technology to the casual home coffee brewer—especially to those who are experimenting with their brew water. The coffee brewer has been "out there" since 2022, with availability really ramping up in 2025, and the app is connected to an active community of users sharing their data and even rating their roasted coffee's quality, offering a useful database of highly rated coffee roasters and brew recipes. For our Loyal Coffee Mountain Melody blend, we gave it five stars. Predictions abound on the episode—but to find out what we really think you'll need to listen. Or read the transcript. You do you! It's 2026—we're just thirteen buttons in, 352 to go! This episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast is sponsored by Baratza, noissue, Ceado, Pacific Barista Series, La Marzocco, and DONA.

It's officially Holiday Blend season here at the Sprudge Headquarters. To celebrate, we conducted an epic coffee cupping with exceptional Holiday Blends from 24 coffee roasters. Once properly overly caffeinated, Coffee Sprudgecast hosts and Sprudge co-founders Zachary Carlsen and Jordan Michelman hopped on the mics to unpack and share notes. 'Tis the season, so brew up a hot cup of holiday blend, fix yourself a plate of speculoos, and have a listen! This episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast is sponsored by Breville, Ceado, Pacific Barista Series, La Marzocco, Ghirardelli, and DONA.

Barreling into November—this podcast needs a drink! At the top of the latest episode we rip a generous glug of State Line Distillery's new Coffee Liqueur with coffee from Madison, Wisconsin's Kin-Kin Coffee. The reaction? "Oh." "Oh?" "Ohh." The unique flavor sensations don't end there—hosts Jordan Michelman and Zachary Carlsen Ceado Hoop Brew a special offering from Deadstock Coffee and Portland, Oregon's renowned Haitian restaurant Kann. To round things out, the hosts taste Partners Coffee's Colombia Chiroso limited release—a beautiful cup to carry them through the episode. Check out the latest coffee offerings from Partners Coffee at our Roaster's Village portal. Stay tuned to Sprudge and @Sprudge on Instagram for the very latest. This episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast is sponsored by noissue, Ceado, Pacific Barista Series, La Marzocco, Ghirardelli, and DONA.

The days are getting shorter, the leaves are falling, the pumpkin spice latte recipes are influencing—and for us? It means big European coffee events, awards season, gift guides, and an extra helping of tea in the moody afternoons. Much tea is talked about on the Coffee Sprudgecast thanks to our continuation of the DONA Tea Library deep dive, including a tea sourced from the Wah Estate featured in a recent article from writer Navdeep Kaur. We always take a moment to cherish coffees from our Roasters Village and on this episode the hosts drink a fine cup of Penrose Espresso Blend from Blueprint Coffee out of St. Louis, Missouri. While an espresso blend by name, the coffee itself makes a delicious cup of filter. The hosts locked the coffee tight in a new Miir Airlock Coffee Canister—a piece of Coffee Gear we're playing with at the Sprudge HQ. Coffee canisters aren't the only thing fresh out of the box—that's right, the hosts dialed in the coffee on the Timemore Chestnut C5 Pro. How much futzing was required? Tune in to find out. Later in the show, Jordan Michelman talks about our future travel to Milan for HostMilano, The World Barista Championship, and La Marzocco's big Out of the Box. The events are all happening October 17-21, 2025. Michelman also hints at a very screening of The Rise of Espresso happening in New York City in November. More on this soon! Put in a pin in it, we'll circle back. Until then, enjoy this trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ir_3yeDlGg Stay tuned to Sprudge and @Sprudge on Instagram for the very latest. This episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast is sponsored by Ceado, Pacific Barista Series, La Marzocco, Ghirardelli, and DONA.

We're in the middle of a very busy Build-Outs of Coffee Summer, that time of year when Sprudge spotlights new and exciting projects from near and far. To celebrate, we chose four to highlight on the newest episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast. To keep hosts Jordan Michelman and Zachary Carlsen in tip top form, the two sip espresso on the show. It's a little daring, a little different—most shows will find the hosts sippin' drip but this episode needed something a little more robust. Find out how the YesPlz Coffee (release #346—Nice Things Blend) tasted from the Sprudge HQ La Marzocco Linea Mini (we'll give you a hint: it tasted delicious.) Show notes available here. This episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast is sponsored by Ceado, Pacific Barista Series, La Marzocco, Ghirardelli, and DONA.

It's that time of the year again, where the days are long, the coffees are flash chilled, and cafes show up and build-out! On the latest episode the show we explore new cafe build-outs from Bradley Beach, New Jersey, down to Springdale, Arkansas and all the way to Ventura, California. It's all part of our annual Build-Outs of Coffee series, a humdinger of a program focusing on the hard work, dedication, craftsmanship, and the community it takes to build something great. On the Coffee Sprudgecast this week, hosts Jordan Michelman and Zachary Carlsen ring in the summer season with a very special Sightglass Coffee Summer Solstice Limited Series Seasonal Blend. Summer blends are really great. We spend a lot of time during long winter days talking about Holiday Blends but it's never been a better time to tap into the well of summertime offerings and dive deep. This episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast is sponsored by TerraCycle, Ceado, Pacific Barista Series, La Marzocco, Ghirardelli, and DONA.

We've got a special bite-sized episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast this week, featuring an interview with 2025 World Roasting Champion Mikaël Portannier. Liz Chai caught Portannier on stage moments after announcements to learn more about his epic win. Host Zachary Carlsen sips Passenger Coffee's India Bhadra while thumbing through a copy of their 2024 Transparency Report. "In addition to prices paid for every pound of green coffee contracted in the most recent harvest year, and cup quality data," says Passenger, "our 2024 Transparency Report also includes dispatches from our green buying team." It also happens to be beautiful—with rich photos and thoughtful design. Check out Bhadra and their transparency report on their website. This episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast is sponsored by Ceado, Pacific Barista Series, La Marzocco, Ghirardelli, and DONA.

On this very special episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast, hosts Jordan Michelman and Zachary Carlsen list off all the incredible things to see, do, and experience at this weekend's SCA Expo in Houston, Texas. On the show we also try out the new double-the-size AeroPress XL and make not one but TWO delicious YesPlz "Soft Power" Blend coffees in one pump! It's a genuine flavor journey and testament to the size and girth of one of specialty coffee's favorite brew methods. To celebrate coffee history's final SCA Expo we make ourselves elevated coffees with the convenience of a Keurig. We recently partnered with a company called BestCup who crafts Keurig compatible "Hi-Fi Coffee Pods" using quality coffees roasted by respected roasters like Amavida and La Barba (just to name a few). It marks the first time Sprudge has had a Keurig machine in its podcast studio. Did our hosts enjoy it? Listen along to find out! This episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast is sponsored by Ceado, Pacific Barista Series, La Marzocco, Ghirardelli, and DONA.

On this episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast, hosts Michelman and Carlsen drink Partners Coffee's limited-edition Valentine's Day "Be Mine" specialty instant coffee and the 4th Place Guatemala Cup of Excellence coffee—a natural pacamara from the Ponderosa farm roasted by Proud Mary. It's Sprudgies Season! Lots of discussion is had about the Sixteenth Annual Sprudgie Awards. Nominations are open through the end of Presidents' Day weekend—submit a nomination today! This episode of the Coffee Sprudgecast is sponsored by Ceado, Pacific Barista Series, La Marzocco, Ghirardelli, and DONA.