🅢 = Story: A Bigger Table 

 

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to speak on two panels at CoffeeFest Chicago. On paper, they were completely different conversations.

 

One focused on drink trends, menu development, and what consumers are gravitating toward today. The other focused on inclusivity, belonging, and who gets to feel seen in coffee.

 

As I sat through both discussions, I realized I kept coming back to the same idea: I'm less interested in fitting into the existing definition of specialty coffee and more interested in expanding what specialty coffee can be.

 

For years, specialty coffee has done an incredible job elevating quality and craftsmanship. Those contributions matter, but sometimes industries become so focused on defining what belongs that they stop asking what else could belong.

 

Many of the questions I was asked were framed in a way that could have invited a defensive response or required me to justify my perspective. Instead, I found myself acknowledging and appreciating the people, traditions, and innovations that helped shape coffee into what it is today, while also celebrating the many new ways it's continuing to evolve.

 

As I've built this company, I've become increasingly interested in creating entry points rather than gatekeeping them. I want consumers to feel invited into coffee, not intimidated by it. And I especially want cultural traditions to be viewed as contributors to specialty coffee, not exceptions within it.

 

The future of coffee won't be built by everyone agreeing on one definition of quality, one flavor profile, one species, or one experience. It will be built by making room for more of them.

 

— Lan Ho, Founder of Fat Miilk

 

🅘 = Insight: Expecting the Unexpected

 

At Fat Miilk, we roast to order, which gives us an intimate understanding of the beans and the process. With 10+ years in the specialty coffee industry, working in quality control, sourcing, sample roasting, and now production, I’ve never been more excited to share what we’re discovering with Robusta — Kim Nguyen, Head of Coffee Quality and Sourcing

 

After almost two years of working exclusively with Robusta, one of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is to expect the unexpected.

 

Years in specialty coffee taught me that coffee is always capable of surprising you, but not to the degree that I’ve experienced in my current role. Robusta has humbled me, and in many ways, the coffee industry as a whole.

 

Unexpected Flavor

 

CoffeeFest Chicago took place this past weekend, and there was plenty of excitement around some of the most interesting coffees being showcased. I tasted a fruity Pink Bourbon and an experimental coffee that had undergone thermal shock processing. These terms were nothing new to the coffee professionals walking the show floor.

 

What surprised me most was hearing, over and over again, from coffee friends and new acquaintances that the Robusta I served at a kickoff event completely blew them away, in the best way possible.

 

The compliments were consistent: clean flavors, sweetness, balance. All of them were describing a Natural Robusta that I roasted and brewed for the event. That coffee continues to impress me with every roast, and hearing others recognize its qualities was incredibly rewarding.

 

Unexpected Reception

 

I’ll admit, I was surprised by the overwhelming amount of positive feedback from colleagues I’ve long admired and, at times, felt knew far more than I did about certain aspects of the industry.

 

I had friends working as coffee traders asking me questions about sourcing Robusta. After tasting the clean cup of Natural Robusta I presented, people wanted to know how I approached roasting and profiling these coffees.

 

It made me realize that I’ve developed a niche of my own. More importantly, it reinforced my desire to share what I’m learning so others can better understand Robusta for what it is, not for how closely it can resemble something else.

 

Unexpected Resiliency

 

Lately, I’ve also been thinking about the resiliency of Vietnamese Robusta. Its natural resistance to coffee leaf rust and other plant diseases helps protect both the health of the trees and the livelihoods of the communities that depend on them.

 

Season after season, I’ve watched Robusta thrive despite challenging and unpredictable growing conditions. It’s a reminder of how sustainable and dependable this coffee can be for the people who cultivate it.

 

That resiliency reminds me of Vietnamese people.

 

Every trip I take to Vietnam reminds me of the sacrifices my parents made for my siblings and me, and the strength it took to build the lives we have today. The ability to adapt, endure, and move forward despite uncertainty is something I see in both the people and the coffee.

 

Robusta will always bring me back to family - and that is something I never expected.

 

 

🅟 = Pulse: Curiosity is Reshaping Coffee

 

For years, specialty coffee has been driven by a relatively narrow definition of quality: higher elevation, brighter acidity, and increasingly complex processing methods. While those coffees continue to push the industry forward, we're starting to see a broader conversation emerge around what consumers actually enjoy drinking.

 

At events like CoffeeFest Chicago, one thing became clear: curiosity is expanding. Coffee professionals are becoming more willing to challenge assumptions about origin, species, and flavor. The question is shifting from "Does this fit the traditional specialty mold?" to "Is this coffee delicious?"

 

That shift creates space for coffees that have historically been overlooked, including Robusta.

 

As more roasters, importers, and producers explore high-quality Robusta, the industry has an opportunity to evaluate these coffees on their own merits rather than through comparisons to Arabica. Flavor, sustainability, resilience, and consumer preference are all becoming part of the conversation.

 

The future of coffee may not be about replacing one species with another. It may be about expanding our understanding of what quality can look like.