COFFEE CONVOS
LEARNING SESSIONS FEATURING
LEADING TEXAS COFFEE LEGENDS
2026 COFFEE CONVOS
Saturday
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Saturday 〰️
SATURDAY
11:30AM - 12:00 PM
In a world of apps, AI, and instant everything, coffee still tastes better when there's a human story behind it. This panel explores how roasters, café owners, and producers are building trust, loyalty, and real connections that no machine can replicate. From farmer relationships to café counter conversations, discover why the future of coffee might just depend on keeping it personal.
2:45pm - 3:15pm
Somewhere along the line, specialty coffee decided which drinks were serious and which ones were embarrassing. Hazelnut syrup: gauche. A thirty-dollar bag of fruit-fermented Colombia that tastes like a Jolly Rancher: innovation. Oat milk: fine now, apparently. Three sugars: please don't. Meanwhile roughly three out of four young coffee drinkers are ordering the flavored thing anyway, and enjoying it enormously. We're putting the purists and the experimenters at one table to sort out which of coffee's sacred cows are genuinely protecting quality, which ones are just snobbery in an apron, and whether anybody has the standing to yuck somebody else's yum.
Moderated by Alex Hernandez of Ethos Syrups
Sunday
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Sunday 〰️
SUNDAY
12:15-12:45pm
Cafe-quality coffee, minus the cafe. You don't need a professional barista (or a $3,000 machine) to make delicious coffee at home - you just need a friend who knows the ropes! Miranda Haney of Barista Friend is here to demystify the home setup, from choosing the right equipment to the little moves that separate "just okay" from whoa, all with Sightseer Coffee in the cup. Bring your questions, your bad habits, and your curiosity! You'll be making five-star worthy lattes in no time.
2:45pm - 3:15pm
Anybody can roast coffee. Buy a machine, push the beans around a little bit until they turn brown, hit the stop button, and put them in a bag with a nice label. How hard could it be? Join us as we sit Austin's long-haul roasters down with the new shared roasteries handing beginners the keys, and hear what it actually takes, what these pros learned the hard way, and what's changed now that the door is open to everyone.
*Speakers and topics subject to change and depending on availability.