La Taza Habla

Coffeehouse Crossroads - 20 Years of Bean to Cup Equity

In the final installment of our coffeehouse trilogy, host Don Cox of Bald Guy Brew takes us behind the scenes of specialty coffee and the accidental birth of a community staple. What started as a simple passion for coffee roasting—the straightforward act of "making green beans brown"—evolved into a profound lesson in community-led design. Following a devastating fire, the roastery was rebuilt not through a grand corporate vision, but through repurposed materials and the kindness of neighbors who decided to stay.

This episode transitions from the local "third space" to the global farm and origin, challenging the colonial history and extractive financial models that have long marginalized the people behind the coffee. By focusing on equity for growers. we explore how every cup can be an act of resistance against a legacy of inequity. Join us at the crossroads as we discuss how to ensure the bean to cup journey reflects the same kindness found within our own cafe walls.

• Check out the Bald Guy Brew Youtube Channel
• Stay Connected: Get exclusive coffee stories & tips delivered to your inbox
• Fresh Roasted Coffee delivered to your door: Bald Guy Brew Coffee Roasting Co.

Five Takeaways

1. Community over Design: A true "third space" isn't created by a design philosophy; it is born when a community decides a space is safe enough to stay.
2. Resilience in Repurposing: Limitations—like having "no pennies to rub together"—can lead to more authentic spaces built with friends and salvaged scraps.
3. The Ethics of Origin: The specialty coffee industry must move past its colonial roots where land was displaced and producers were pushed to the margins.
4. Kindness as Resistance: Choosing equitable financial models is a deliberate stand against the historical "bullies" of the global supply chain.
5. The Power of One Cup: Small choices in what we consume can spark movements of change that stretch across centuries.

Part 2 - Boston: The Patriotic Origins of Specialty Coffee

In this episode of La Taza Habla, we dive into the origin of America’s caffeine obsession, tracing it back to the cold waters of Boston Harbor. While many know the Boston Tea Party as a political protest, few realize it was the moment specialty coffee began its journey toward becoming the patriotic drink of a new nation. We explore the "paradox" of the tea boycott: how Parliament actually lowered tea prices, yet the Sons of Liberty rejected it because a cheap cup became too expensive to drink morally.

Drawing on 20 years of experience, I discuss how the Green Dragon Tavern served as the headquarters for revolution, transforming coffee houses from simple gathering places into engines of social change. From John Adams’ personal sacrifice to the modern supply chains and farmers we support today, this episode examines why what is in your cup still matters. We aren't just coffee roasting for flavor; we are roasting for a legacy of freedom and human dignity.

• Check out the Bald Guy Brew Youtube Channel
• Stay Connected: Get exclusive coffee stories & tips delivered to your inbox
• Fresh Roasted Coffee delivered to your door: Bald Guy Brew Coffee Roasting Co.

5 Takeaways

1. Conviction Over Comfort: Resistance in 1773 required colonists to give up familiar rituals like tea because they became symbols of submission.
2. The Price Paradox: The cheapest option isn't always the one that costs the least; sometimes low prices mask a high moral cost.
3. Coffee as Participation: While tea belonged to the refinement of the Empire, coffee became the drink of participation and the common people.
4. Habit vs. Values: In the 1770s, "taste followed conviction," proving that people can and will change their habits for their beliefs.
5. The Coffee House Ideal: Beyond the building, a coffee house is a place where neighbors can disagree on politics but still share a table.

Part 1 - Coffee Houses: The Drink of Defiance

In this episode of La Taza Habla, we draw on 20 years of specialty coffee expertise to explore the dangerous and defiant history of your morning brew. We journey back to 15th-century Mecca and 17th-century Istanbul, where coffee roasting and consumption were once capital offenses. Discover why rulers like Sultan Murad IV personally hunted coffee drinkers in the streets and why King Charles II of England tried—and failed—to shut down the "Penny Universities" of London.

This isn't just a history lesson; it's an exploration of coffeehouse culture as a catalyst for revolution. From the birth of the London Stock Exchange at Jonathan’s Coffee House to the Sons of Liberty planning the Boston Tea Party at the Green Dragon Tavern, we examine how coffee became the ultimate "drink of independence". Join us as we discuss the true cost of trading community for convenience and why the conversation in your cup still matters today.

• Check out the Bald Guy Brew Youtube Channel
• Stay Connected: Get exclusive coffee stories & tips delivered to your inbox
• Fresh Roasted Coffee delivered to your door: Bald Guy Brew Coffee Roasting Co.

Five Takeaways

1. Coffeehouses as Political Threats: Historically, rulers feared coffee not for the caffeine, but for the unregulated, democratic conversations that happened in coffeehouses.
2. Economic Powerhouses: Many modern financial institutions, including the London Stock Exchange and Lloyd’s of London, originated in 17th-century coffeehouses.
3. Social Equality: The "Penny University" model allowed people of all social classes—from lords to shoemakers—to sit together and debate for the price of a single penny.
4. The Power of Resilience: Despite severe penalties, including execution and beheading, the demand for coffee and community consistently outlasted the tyrants who tried to ban them.
5. Community vs. Convenience: Modern coffee culture risks losing its "dangerous" revolutionary spirit to the ease of convenience.

Part 4 - Life of a Javapreneur: Leaving a Legacy of Good

Legacy, Community, and the Java-preneur Life

In this concluding episode of our four-part series with Explore Boone, Don reflects on his personal legacy, moving from a past of "rage and dysfunction" to finding a "wired different" life through faith and community service. We dive into his vision for the High Country, lamenting the loss of the unified "Old Boone" spirit while celebrating the "Mountain Strong" resilience that emerges in times of crisis.

As a veteran Java-preneur, Don shares the mission of his podcast, La Taza Habla, where he uses a non-conventional approach to storytelling to explore everything from global dynamics to the intricacies of the olfactory system. Whether he’s at the "bougie" Blowing Rock store or sitting by the wood stove in Boone, Don’s goal remains the same: connecting people through coffee, Jesus, and shared stories. Join us for this "unhinged" take on why what is in your cup truly matters.

• Check out the Bald Guy Brew Youtube Channel
• Stay Connected: Get exclusive coffee stories & tips delivered to your inbox
• Fresh Roasted Coffee delivered to your door: Bald Guy Brew Coffee Roasting Co.

5 Takeaways

1. Legacy is Service: A meaningful legacy is built on being a "friend of sinners" and a faithful servant to one's community.
2. Resilience is Internal: Being "built for the climb" means using past struggles—addiction, anger, or dysfunction—as raw material for a transformed life.
3. Community Over Agenda: True community strength ("Mountain Strong") is found when individuals lay down their political or social agendas to help their neighbors.
4. The Art of the Olfactory: Understanding coffee goes beyond the bean; it involves developing your palate and olfactory system to appreciate global dynamics.
5. Storytelling Connects Us: Sharing personal stories of how "coffee, Jesus, and community" intersect can change lives and foster deep connections.

Part 3 - From a Fire In Boone to Lessons of Trust in Rwanda

In this powerful third installment of our series on La Taza Habla, we go behind the scenes of coffee roasting to explore the "faithful finish". This episode dives deep into the raw reality of starting over after a devastating fire destroyed a local Boone, NC roastery. We discuss the 20-year "long obedience" required to grow as a business person and the resilience needed when you lose everything.

Whether you are a fan of specialty coffee or someone navigating a difficult life pivot, this episode offers a profound look at how community support and global perspectives shape the soul of a roaster.

• Check out the Bald Guy Brew Youtube Channel
• Stay Connected: Get exclusive coffee stories & tips delivered to your inbox
• Fresh Roasted Coffee delivered to your door: Bald Guy Brew Coffee Roasting Co.

5 Key Takeaways

1. Identity is Internal: Your value as a person and an entrepreneur is not tied to your equipment or your "stuff".
2. The "Faithful Finish": Success isn't just starting; it's the consistent work you put in between the beginning and the end.
3. Community is the Ultimate Safety Net: In moments of total loss, the support of your local community can be the bridge to starting over.
4. The Power of Forgiveness: Lessons from the Rwandan genocide teach that the capacity to forgive and trust is a transformative "tribal thing".
5. Perspective Over Poverty: If people can build businesses with ducks in a dump in Peru, there is always a path forward through God's calling.

Part 2 - Faith, Fire, and the Art of Roasting

In this episode of La Taza Habla, we explore the 20-year journey of specialty coffee roasting in Boone, NC . Our guest on Explore Boone, the founder of Bald Guy Brew Coffee Roasting Co., shares the raw reality of entrepreneurship—from the early days of the "Bald Guy Buggy" mobile espresso van to surviving the devastating 2016 arson in Valley Crucis and the recent impact of Hurricane Helene.

We dive deep into how a bean to cup business is more than just a transaction; it is a reflection of faith-integrated leadership and a commitment to a "faithful finish". Whether you are interested in the technical side of coffee roasting or the mental grit required to keep a small business alive through economic crashes and natural disasters, this conversation offers profound insights into the coffee culture of Watauga County. Discover why "properly roasted coffee sells itself" and what it truly means to stay "built for the climb" when the bottom falls out

• Check out the Bald Guy Brew Youtube Channel
• Stay Connected: Get exclusive coffee stories & tips delivered to your inbox
• Fresh Roasted Coffee delivered to your door: Bald Guy Brew Coffee Roasting Co.

5 Takeaways

1. Integrity is the Foundation: Success in business requires being 100% integrated—treating customers, employees, and brokers with the same high standard of character.
2. The "Faithful Finish" Matters: A creative start is exciting, but the key to longevity is the work put in between the beginning and the end.
3. Ownership Requires Humility: Being a business owner means being willing to work on the "bottom floor," handling everything from high-level creative content to taking out the trash
4. Quality Speaks for Itself: Focus on the craft of roasting; properly roasted beans don't require aggressive advertising—they prove their own value.
5. Built for the Climb: Entrepreneurship is a continuous uphill journey; you must develop the faith and resilience to keep moving even when you don't feel "ahead"

Part 1 - The Journey Begins: Built for the Climb

In this episode  Don Cox—better known as Bald Guy—takes us behind the scenes as a recent guest on the Explore Boone Podcast where he shares how he went from the pulpit to the roastery. Discover how a history student at App State transformed into an artisanal coffee roaster after a life-altering Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) shifted his path from a PhD to the pursuit of the perfect cup.

Don shares his deep-rooted connection to the coffee lands of Mexico and Rwanda, explaining the philosophy of La Taza Habla (The Cup Talks). This episode explores the technical and spiritual sides of roasting coffee, emphasizing a "low-tech" approach that relies on the five senses rather than computer algorithms. Whether you are interested in the grit of Watauga County history, the ethics of socially responsible coffee, or the mechanics of making green beans brown, this episode offers a rich look at what it means to honor the hands that pick every bean.

• Check out the Bald Guy Brew Youtube Channel
• Stay Connected: Get exclusive coffee stories & tips delivered to your inbox
• Fresh Roasted Coffee delivered to your door: Bald Guy Brew Coffee Roasting Co.

5 Takeaways

1. Honor the Origin: The role of a roaster is not to make coffee special, but to avoid "buggering up" the hard work already done by the farmers.
2. Sensory Roasting: You don't need a computer to roast world-class coffee; you can achieve excellence through time, temperature, sight, smell, sound, and taste.
3. The "Wreck Your Truck" Rule: Evaluate your work-life balance by asking if the risk of the "commute" (physical or emotional) is worth the reward.
4. Bivocational Resilience: Career pivots—even those forced by injury—can lead to a "stinking awesome" life if you are built for the climb.
5. Socially Responsible Sourcing: True artisanal coffee requires knowing the cooperatives and ensuring they align with eco-friendly and social priorities

 

Remembering Bill Kennedy - Mentor, Teacher, Friend, and His Legacy

In this heartfelt tribute episode of La Taza Habla, host Don Cox honors the life and legacy of Bill Kennedy, CEO and founder of San Franciscan Roaster Company, who unexpectedly passed away in December 2024. Over two decades of friendship, Bill transformed specialty coffee through American-made coffee roasting equipment, education programs, and unwavering mentorship.

This deeply personal episode recounts their first conversation in the early 2000s when Bill refurbished Don's 25-pound roaster—his very first customer—sparking a partnership that would impact coffee professionals worldwide. From his background as an educator and principal to becoming a coffee industry pioneer, Bill embodied servant leadership, faith-driven values, and commitment to excellence in coffee roasting. The episode explores Bill's role in creating coffee roasting curriculum, launching the Coffee Roasting Legends podcast, establishing Telegraph Coffee & Tap in Fallon, Nevada, and supporting countless entrepreneurs through equipment sales and personal mentorship.

Bill's legacy lives on through his family, six grown children, and the thousands of roasters whose lives he touched. A moving remembrance for anyone in specialty coffee, entrepreneurship, or small business ownership seeking inspiration from a true industry gentle giant.

I'll add more links as they become available

1. Daily Coffee News Official Obituary (Must-read industry tribute)
   https://dailycoffeenews.com/2025/12/11/bill-kennedy-san-franciscan-roaster-owner-and-educator-dies/