Dallas, Fort Worth - The Next Coffee Mecca?

Three years ago, had someone said Dallas would be the next big thing in Texas coffee, they would have most certainly been looked at with a raised eyebrow. When you think Texas coffee, Austin, Houston and San Antonio most naturally come to mind.

With it's "hippie clad" culture and numerous powerhouse coffee companies, such as: Cuvee Coffee (home of widely respected industry leader Mike McKim and South Central Regional Barista Champion, Clancy Rose), Caffé Medici (home of another Barista Champion, Lorenzo Perkins), Houndstooth, Once Over, and Thunderbird; Austin, for the most, part has a monopoly on the Texas coffee scene. Following closely in trail is either San Antonio, with Local Coffee and Brown Coffee Co. or Houston with Catalina Coffee and Greenway Coffee & Tea. Even College Station - not from the coffee shop perspective, but from the Global Coffee Quality Research Initiative hosted in the Norman Borlaug Institute at Texas A&M University. (Texas A&M has made it known that they want to be to coffee, what UC Davis is to wine!)

So, Dallas? Really?

There may be a Starbucks on every corner of the Dallas, Fort Worth Metroplex, but DFW is quietly turning into a breeding ground for small artisanal shops and roasters eager to make their mark on the regional culture. There is most definitely a buzz brewing in this market. A number of quality coffee companies, and talented baristas have been rapidly appearing over the past several years and the momentum seems to keep on building. Are we on the verge of a formidable new Texas coffee culture? It is beginning to look like it!

Coffee has been a hot topic in all sorts of local Dallas media lately. D Magazine, Yelp, You Plus Media, Daily Candy, The Dallas Observer, Dallas Morning News and numerous local news networks have all been ramping up their coverage of the emerging Dallas, Fort Worth coffee culture. Companies like Oddfellows, Stir Coffee, Coffee Lab and my own Texas Coffee School are just several of the businesses the cities' medias are buzzing over. Why so much coverage all of a sudden? Put into simple terms - the idea of "Third Wave Coffee" has finally hit the Dallas, Fort Worth Metroplex.

What is Third Wave? According to definition and numerous industry veterans "The Third Wave of Coffee is the genesis and establishment of coffee growers, coffee roasters and coffee retailers that are focused on achieving the highest form of culinary appreciation of coffee." Trish Rothgeb of Wrecking Ball Coffee Roasters first wrote about the Third Wave in a November 2002 article of The Flamekeeper, a newsletter of the Roaster's Guild, a trade guild of the SCAA. Nicholas Cho (@NickCho) of Murky Coffee further defined the Third Wave in his often-referenced online article " The BGA and the Third Wave ". More recently the Third Wave has been chronicled by publications such as the New York Times, LA Weekly, Los Angeles Times, LA Opinion and The Guardian.

Third Wave Coffee is on the upswing in Dallas. It's not in effect in majority, by any means. It's nowhere near Seattle, Chicago, New York, North Carolina or even Austin for that matter - but, the Third Wave is quietly and quickly catching on with shop owners and small batch coffee roasters alike. More importantly, it's catching on with the public!

It's for this reason that I opened Texas Coffee School in the Dallas Metroplex. The Third Wave is still in it's infancy in this market and it gives us a colossal opportunity to help shape the emerging culture through quality oriented coffee business workshops, and barista training. The timing is right from all angles. There is a demand, and the companies out there providing Third Wave Coffee AND the experience are being handsomely rewarded! I look forward to being apart of this emerging culture and I look forward to sharing my experiences!



To find more from Tom Vincent or to learn more about Texas Coffee School coffee business workshops, barista training classes, professional and consumer coffee education, or coffee shop consulting check out - http://www.texascoffeeschool.com and follow us on Facebook and Twitter (@TXCoffeeSchool). Our training centers are located in the Dallas, and Austin, Texas areas.

(Texas Coffee School was formerly known as "Texas Coffee College".)

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tom_Vincent

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/3906814