CoffeeCon facts for kids

CoffeeCon is a super fun festival for anyone who loves coffee! It travels to big cities across the United States. It was started by Kevin Sinnott, who is a coffee expert. He wrote a book called The Art & Craft of Coffee and made a video about how to brew coffee.

The Story of CoffeeCon

Kevin Sinnott noticed that there were many coffee events for businesses. These events were mostly for people who work in the coffee industry. But there were not many big festivals just for regular coffee lovers. He wanted to create a place where everyone could learn about and enjoy coffee.

So, Kevin decided to turn his book and video into a live event. He created CoffeeCon as a place where coffee fans could:

• Taste samples from different coffee roasters.
• Learn about coffee from experts.
• Attend classes on how to make coffee in many ways.

He calls the event a "coffee meet-up."

The very first CoffeeCon happened on February 25, 2012. It was in Warrenville, Illinois. Over 1,000 people came to this first event! The second one was also in Warrenville in 2013.

In 2014, Kevin Sinnott decided to take CoffeeCon to other cities.

• The first stop was Chicago in April 2014. He added art to the event to make it feel more like a coffeehouse.
• Next, CoffeeCon went to San Francisco in July 2014.
• CoffeeCon also visited Los Angeles in November 2014. This event was held at Mack Sennett Studios. Mack Sennett was a famous silent movie director. Kevin Sinnott felt it was like "coming home" because of the studio's history.
• In 2015, CoffeeCon went to New York City and returned to Chicago.
• In 2017, CoffeeCon held its first event over two days. This big event was in Seattle, Washington.

What You Can Do at CoffeeCon

CoffeeCon is full of exciting things for coffee lovers! You can learn a lot from experts.

• Taste Like An Expert: Special classes teach you how to taste coffee like a pro. You learn new words to describe coffee flavors.
• Meet Coffee Growers: Sometimes, people who grow coffee teach about how to grow coffee in a good way for the planet.
• Learn to Brew: There are many popular classes. You can learn about grinding coffee, using the right water, and different brewing methods. This includes hand-pour methods and even Turkish Coffee.
• Meet Inventors: Designers of coffee makers, like Alan Adler (who invented the AeroPress) and Joe Behm, teach you how to use their machines.
• Home Roasting: People who roast coffee at home sometimes show how they do it.
• Future of Coffee: There's often a panel discussion about what's next for the world of coffee. This started in San Francisco in 2014.