Issue 39: Raves, revels & coffee

We begin in West Africa, where our origin profile explores Ghana, renowned for its cocoa, but lesser known for its coffee. We ask: can it hold its own in the cup? From there, we head east to Kenya, diving into the tangled history of its coffee’s genetic diversity and what’s at stake for its future.

With Japan entering peak tourist season, chances are some of you have a trip on the books. Our city profile takes you to Kyoto for a coffee-soused wander around the quintessential Japanese city.

Back home, we sit down with British Olympian Jodie Alicia to talk sprinting, reinvention, and the small but mighty role coffee plays in her next chapter. Her medals aren’t the only things gleaming in this issue, as we showcase one of the world’s most enviable vintage espresso machine collections by Henk Langkemper.

Roaster Kat joins us to bust one of roasting’s biggest misconceptions, while regular contributor Lance Hedrick pens a personal essay on what he owes the enthusiast community that shaped his approach to coffee.

Of course, no proper celebration is complete without the clink of a wine glass. Our deep dive into tannins leads us into the world of low-intervention wine, told through the journeys of four coffee professionals who’ve swapped beans for grapes.

But the night is still young, and a few pages later, we trade the vineyard for the bar and serve up the origin stories of some of the world’s most iconic coffee cocktails.