Madison Craft Coffee

COVID-19 Impact:
In order to be consistent with the emerging sentiment of limiting unnecessary public gatherings, we are postponing future meetups for the time being. We look forward to resuming as soon as it is appropriate to do so!

Madison's community of craft coffee enthusiasts. We frequent local cafes, host educational events, and slow down enough to deliberate over the more meaningful things of life. You are welcome to join us if you are either interested in the art and science of great coffee, or if you just appreciate all the effort that goes into a delicious pour-over or a well-balanced shot of espresso. Some call this third-wave or specialty coffee.

What you can look forward to as a member:

• Each month we will organize a Meetup at a local specialty coffee shop. The time, location, and day for these events will fluctuate to allow people on different schedules in different parts of Madison to attend.

• Three to four times a year we will host educational events such as coffee/espresso tastings, brewing workshops, and roaster tours.

• At least once a year we will plan a day trip to a city or general area with a concentration of specialty coffee shops, and do a "tasting tour" of them.

Things that are unique about this group:

• We are striving to create a culture that values meaningful discourse and quality coffee. Certainly mirth and frivolity are welcome, but we are mindful of not hiding behind them to avoid other important aspects of meaningful relationships. <br>

• Members are individually reviewed and approved. This is to protect the privacy of existing members, prevent spam and solicitation, and ensure the quality of the group for its members. <br>

• We love introducing new people to specialty coffee and sharing our knowledge and resources with one another. You do not have to be an expert to join us!

What is Craft Coffee?

Craft Coffee means there is attention given to the complex and meticulous process required to preserve and complement the variety of interesting flavors present in a coffee bean. This involves the cooperation of farmers, roasters, and baristas. To fully appreciate the result of these efforts, coffee and espresso should be tasted "black." Most people do not enjoy this because they are not tasting coffee that received this kind of attention. <br>

Mainstream coffee is typically over-roasted, transforming unique flavors into a more generic coffee taste that most people are familiar with. After coffee is roasted it begins to rapidly decline in flavor after about three weeks. Ground coffee, once exposed to air, starts losing its flavor within minutes. Water quality, grind size, extraction time, and a number of other factors must all be properly governed, or even the best grown, perfectly roasted, freshest coffee beans, will dramatically fall short of their potential.

Member Responsibilities:

You do not need to be a regular attendee to join. But there is a firm expectation about following through on events that you RSVP for. This is out of respect for hosts and their ability to plan accordingly. Of course, you may withdraw from an event if needed, but please recognize the responsibility you have to ensure that the host is aware of the change in a timely manner. <br>

Group History:

This group was formed in 2016 and quickly grew into a small community of coffee enthusiasts. There are very few Meetup groups like it across the country and none in Wisconsin. Due to life circumstances, this group was dormant over the course of 2018, but now we're back up and running! <br>