STiR coffee and tea magazine

30 STiR coffee and tea / Issue 5, 2020 (October / November) The science "We've identified the compounds that define coffee," Stopforth says. "Now we're taking all potential upcycled plant-based ma- terials and selecting those ag waste streams that provide us with the same specifications as coffee. There has to be a match on the specification standpoint. "And then, as the second part of that screening, it has to have precursor compounds that can be converted through bio- chemical reactions and roasting which happens when you fer- ment, roast, and extract coffee," he explains. "We're just induc- ing it. We are forcing it right onto other upcycled plant-based materials that typically wouldn't go through that process." Through molecular wizardry, those extracted compounds are mixed and tested. "We were just dialing things until we have something that is both sensory and analytically analogous to coffee," he says. The research Stopforth's experimentation could not advance to the consumer market without extensive research and development. For that, Atomo Coffee contracted with Yeretzian's university research center in Switzerland to help. Atomo finances full-time research by Yeretzian's three-person team. "I have also been very interested in creativity and thinking out of the box and people who take risks, people who do things new, who challenge," Yeretzian says, "Whenever you work at the border you better understand the product itself." Yeretzian, a member of the Atomo Coffee advisory board, likens the research to specialty coffee's embrace of the cold brew innovation years ago. "This is an essential project because it is a challenging proj- ect in terms of science," Yeretzian continues, "but also in terms of putting in question things that are kind of traditionally taboo to the world of coffee. In a way, we are breaking the rules." The taste Atomo Coffee calls its molecular coffee less bitter. A taste test by the American CNBC television network indicated 70% of consumers sampled preferred Atomo's drink over conven- tional coffee. "I think it's good. It tastes like a good, filtered coffee," Yeretzian says. "It is definitely not specialty coffee, like from Guatemala, but it is a good coffee that is liked by many people." That's not to suggest the current flavor profile is a final product. Yeretzian emphasizes the research is only beginning. "At this stage, we want to prove that we're able to reproduce a good coffee," he says. "I would say that's the major objective at this stage." Supporting sustainability Combine the growing consumer demand with global warming, deforestation, and leaf rust, the future of coffee is in crisis, Stop- forth says. "We've got to really protect coffee because we're running out of it," he says. "We [US consumers have no line of sight to that. We're one of the largest coffee-consuming coun- tries in the world, yet we don't see the impacts. We don't under- stand the threat. So, part of our mission is showing people. We want to alleviate the severe impact of the demand by providing an alternative that is as good and gives you the choice." Working at the Atomo lab. Beta grounds.

• Cover