The Coffeewoman Is Coming to Houston

The Coffeewoman, an event discussing issues of marginalization and celebrating the myriad voices in the coffee industry, is coming to Houston this weekend.

BY ASHLEY RODRIGUEZ
BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE

Cover photo by Lindsey Shea

The Coffeewoman, an event series that has traveled to Seattle, Portland (Ore.), Providence (R.I.), Puerto Vallarta (Mexico), Berkeley, Calif., Amsterdam, and now Houston, celebrates the women, gender non-conforming, gender queer, and transgender members of the coffee industry. The Houston event, which will take place on Saturday, March 31, at A 2nd Cup, a café that operates as a nonprofit and refuge for victims of sex trafficking, will see coffee professionals from all over Texas come together to talk about issues of gender equity, marginalization, and empowerment across the specialty-coffee supply chain. As with every previous U.S. Coffeewoman event, this Houston installment is being generously supported by Hero Sponsor Pacific Foods, which is well loved throughout the coffee community for its Barista Series Rice, Almond, Coconut, and Soy nondairy beverages that are specially formulated to steam beautifully and taste amazing with espresso.

The Coffeewoman invites all members to talk about issues affecting women, transgender, gender queer, and gender non-conforming members of the coffee community. Photo by Lindsey Shea.

The event will be part educational gathering, part competition, and part celebration. The keynote speakers will be Elle Jensen of Amethyst Coffee and Kristyn Wade of Dandy Lion Coffee Co., founders and hosts of Cherry Roast, an alternative coffee competition exclusively for women, transmasculine, non-binary, and gender queer folx, born out of the Denver coffee community in 2015. “I’m excited to be heading back to my birth city of the coffee industry,” Kristyn says. “I want to reconnect with all the people that have directly inspired me to move in the direction of leadership and empowerment for coffee folks everywhere. I was there this time last year for the first satellite CR [Cherry Roast] general assembly, and one year later we are hosting the first HTX competition.”

The event will be hosted at A 2nd Cup, a café and nonprofit that provides a safe space for victims of human trafficking.

Before Elle and Kristyn speak, attendees can participate in a mini-Cherry Roast competition. From 4 to 6 p.m., folx can pour drinks made with Pacific Barista Series Rice, and the top six pours will move on to a triangulation competition, which will take place after the keynote speech and panels.

Elle and Kristyn will be tackling issues big and small during their keynote speech. “Elle and I will be breaking down the speech into two parts: She’ll focus on macro coffee industry and I am focusing on barista self-awareness. And looking forward to growing as humans from the panels and discussions.”

The Coffeewoman continues to travel the globe—this shot is from an event last year in Amsterdam. The event in Houston will also host a mini-Cherry Roast competition. Photo by Sarah Allen.

The Coffeewoman is a free to attend and is open to anyone. Here’s a schedule of events—if you can’t be there, you can keep up with the action on the Coffeewoman Instagram.

4–6 p.m.: Attendees are invited to pour drinks with Pacific Barista Series Rice. The top six (to be determined by a panel of judges) will move on to the second round of competition to take place after the keynote speech and panels.

6 p.m.: Introduction by Sarah Allen

6–6:45 p.m.: Keynote speech by Elle Jensen and Kristyn Wade

6:50–7:40 p.m.: Panel #1: How Did I Get Here (Exploring Careers in Coffee)

Moderated by Sarah, including panelists:

Savannah Childers

Aida Batlle

Ashley Lai

Stacy Wright
Camila Topkea

7:45–8:35 p.m.: Panel #2: Sexual Harassment in the Coffee Workplace

Moderated by Elle, including panelists:

Oodie Taliaferro

Niken Prabanto