Brian Webb, Roasting Department Manager at Daylight Mind Coffee Company. He has worked in specialty coffee since 2007, is an SCAA Certified Instructor, and has had many years of experience in the coffee industry.

Daylight Mind Coffee Company is a restaurant, cafe, bakery, coffee school, and roasting company located in the heart of Kona, Hawaii. .Daylight Mind Coffee Company speciatly is coffee. The company offers training classes in coffee for everyone from novices to expert barristas.

How do you take your coffee?

Espresso is my first love, but I also enjoy a carefully made drip (Bonmac Pro is my device of choice).

How many coffee cups do you drink on an average day?

3-5 drip, 2-4.

Do you enjoy having your coffee with pastry alongside, and if so, what is it?

When I’m drinking coffee to taste it, I usually drink it alone. If it’s just for the caffeine, a sweet scone or a chewy chocolate chip cookie goes well with an espresso drink.

Do you have a favorite Single-origin coffee?Counter Culture sourced a particularly great natural from the Idido co-op in Yirgacheffe (In Ethiopia) a few years ago. I think that one still wins for me. No coffee is the same from one year to the next, so it’s difficult to pick a lasting favorite.

What was the most unusual or experimental coffee you tasted?

I was given a sample of a Yemen Mokka that that tasted like Chinese five-spice. That was kind of fun.

What is your favorite coffee shop and what makes it enjoyable?

I have many favorites for different reasons. For coffee quality, Victrola Coffee Roasters in Seattle. For people, Bauhaus Books and Coffee Seattle (now closed). For comfort and coffee-shop ambiance Cup-a-Joe in Raleigh, North Carolina.

From your experience, what is the most important factor when it comes to making good coffee?

Love.