The Best Coffee Blogs of 2018
What Are the Most Successful Coffee Blogs of 2018?
For the fourth consecutive year, Market Inspector is proud to present the winners of the Best Coffee Blog Award 2018!
This year, like all the previous ones, has been extremely hard deciding between all the compelling, stylish, and resourceful coffee blogs that can be found on the web. However, after a month of putting ourselves through the daily coffee grinder that is the Internet, we are confident we have the best 25 coffee blogs of 2018.
We have grouped the blogs into five distinct categories, with five blogs under each grouping. The categories are:
These categories are relevant because they represent the most distinctive characteristics that differentiate coffee blogs. Believe us when we say this, as we went through hundreds of nominees prior to making the groupings. Regarding the blogs themselves, they are within their respective categories not because we reduced them to one defining feature, but because we concluded that the best way to present the blogs is through showcasing their most compelling features. All blogs stand out in their own unique ways, and are not ranked in any particular order. So, grab a tall cup of coffee, make yourself comfortable and read on to find out what the best coffee blogs are.
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These are the blogs that are the most informative in regards to what is happening within the coffee community and industry overall. They cover such topics as coffee news, how-to guides, and the history of coffee and its people. The blogs awarded here are the ones with the most incisive, timely, and global content. Reading any one of these can help you keep up with the latest trends within the coffee world. However, the blogs below each bring something new to the way that they present news, and that is why they are awarded within this category.
| I Need CoffeeI Need Coffee provides some of the most timely and helpful step-by-step guides to brewing gourmet coffee from home. Because of their detailed explanations, even the most complex coffee recipes are accessible to coffee experts and novices, alike. Moreover, their passion for the dark deliciously tasting drink shines through in all their postings. “The goal of INeedCoffee is to not only celebrate excellent coffee but to empower the coffee fan to make better coffee at home. This site hosts many tutorials related to coffee brewing and home coffee roasting.” - Michael Allen Smith from INeedCoffee What you will find: great guides and educational posts to satisfy your daily coffee needs. Follow them: |
| Veneziano Coffee RoastersMixing coffee with businesses acumen, Veneziano bring a distinct identity to their blog, one that succeeds in combining coffee culture and art with industry insights. The way that they do this is through reporting passionately and eloquently on a variety of topics: from local cafe reviews, to discussions of conferences, coffee competitions, and training sessions. “Veneziano Coffee Roasters is a specialty coffee roaster based in Melbourne, Australia. With roasters, training studios and espresso bars in Melbourne, Brisbane, Sydney and Adelaide, our dedicated team is driven by pushing boundaries, challenging what makes coffee great, and sharing our knowledge with café partners, the industry and coffee lovers alike.” - Veneziano Coffee Roasters What you will find: quality content on cafes (including food and art), coffee brands, and various events, like conferences, championships, and training. Follow them: |
| Coffeelands by CRSCoffeelands by CRS is an heartwarming NGO aimed to assist the poor and those in need who are involved within the coffee industry. On their site they actively deal with everything from issues of water scarcity to farmers’ safety to legislation, and the effects of climate change. While technically an NGO, they do all their reporting on their blog section and that is why they are included in this category. Also, through its reporting, Coffeeland is invaluable as it sheds a much needed light on the issues they uncover. “Faith. Action. Results.” - Coffeelands by CRS' Motto What you will find: news, reports, and highlighted issues from the coffee world that are often overlooked or neglected. Follow them: |
| Quills CoffeeQuills Coffee started from two brothers’ passion for coffee and desire to construct a community of coffee lovers in Louisville. After years of hard work they succeeded in their dream and, today, their blog is a meeting place for coffee enthusiasts looking for information on the best coffee types, cafes, shopping advice, and great articles on new coffee delicacies on the market. “The magic of a coffee shop is that once that environment is created, it becomes not just what the staff makes it, but what the customers make it. A true community happens. Quills creates this with three simple staples: great coffee, great service and great spaces.” - Quills Coffee What you will find: delicious coffee brews, cafe presentations, coffee culture blogging, and a community passionate about the accessibility and attractiveness of the blog. Follow them: |
| Blueprint CoffeeBlueprint Coffee functions both as a blog and as a coffee producing company. The way that they do both is by reporting and documenting on the relations and issues within the coffee farming community. They prioritise the wellbeing of the growers above all else, and make it their policy to make their lives better. But this is not all that they do. They also have interesting content on on coffee, culture, and its people. “Blueprint Coffee seeks a mutually beneficial relationship loop among our producers, vendors, wholesale partners, and customers. Good coffee must be good from the start, so we dedicate a tremendous amount of time selecting a few coffees that are fresh and exciting.” - Blueprint Coffee What you will find: articles on coffee types and purchases, projects on bettering the lives of coffee farmers, how to guides, opinion and travel pieces, staff and member profiles. Follow them: |
This category is for the coffee blogs that have been created by and for the experts within the coffee world. Because of this, the articles may be harder to grasp for casual readers as they contain highly technical comparisons of machinery and brews, coffee growing debates, conference discussions, and barista training information. The blogs below have not only managed to compile all this relevant information on their pages, but they have also created communities for people that want to make coffee their life and this is why they are exceptional within all the guru coffee blogs to be found on the Web.
| Perfect Daily GrindSince their creation in 2015, Perfect Daily Grind have become an established source in the world of specialised coffee making, coffee news, and everything worthy of attention within the coffee world. In fact, their articles are so comprehensive and filled with relevant bits of information that it is hard to summarise it in a few lines. Suffice to say, if you decide to peruse their blog you will surely find something that will attract your interest and add to your love of coffee. "We're thrilled to be included in this list. We want to make specialty coffee accessible to everyone, from latte-lovers to coffee farmers across the globe, and further debate about how we make coffee better – by which we mean more delicious, more equitable, and more environmentally friendly. We publish articles that anyone, whether they're a World Barista Champion or your great-grandmother, would find interesting and informative. In doing so, we hope to make it easier for people around the world to enjoy great coffee, produce and brew great coffee, and receive sustainable prices for great coffee." - Tanya Newton from Perfect Daily Grind What you will find: guides and insights for your daily coffee that you will actually use and enjoy. Follow them: |
| Bean GroundBean Ground describe themselves on the blog as “a coffee blog for aspiring home baristas,” but the community that they have created on their blog make it much more. They provide varied information so that anyone going through their posts can undoubtedly find something of interest about coffee. Add to this the extremely helpful product reviews and the sheer enthusiasm they put into their writings, and we are sure that Bean Grounded is a delectable reading experience which will, undoubtedly, put a smile on your face. "I’m an avid home-brewing enthusiast who loves trying different types of coffee, testing the latest coffee gear, and experimenting with various coffee brewing methods. From seed to tree, hands to machines, green to roasted, and finally shop to the consumer – I’m interested in it all" - Mark from Bean Ground What you will find: tips, suggestions, recipes and everything you need to know to brew your own great coffee; reviews of coffee products and machines to help you pick the best one and great courses for every aspiring home barista. Follow them: |
| Barista HustleBarista Hustle is made of a team of baristas and communication professionals. They write on their blog that they are the only coffee subscription ran by a world champion brewer and—as impressive as that may be—what made us choose them as one of this category’s winners is that we are very impressed by the way they use their blog as a tool to gather a community and tell their stories rather than considering it a mere marketing tool. The blog is filled with specialised information useful to baristas and coffee experts alike, so it represents a valuable resource for all people aspiring to reach that level. "We’re here to help the world make better coffee." - Barista Hustle What you will find: educational posts for aspiring baristas or just coffee lovers that are looking to improve their brewing skills. Follow them: |
| The Way to CoffeeThe Way to Coffee is a coffee blog dedicated to discovering specialty coffee shops and roasters across the globe. They do this by providing speciality coffee information combined with traveling and coffee guides. As such, the blog is a must read for fellow coffee experts or casual lovers alike who are looking to broaden their horizons by traveling or learning more about the culture and people behind the exquisite coffee that they love. "The way to coffee is a journey taking us from little, unknown, corner shops to well established specialty coffee places and from artisan micro-roasters to leading specialty roasters" - The Way to Coffee What you will find: posts on the coffee shops around the world that the blogger, Resi, has visited—each has a unique story and unique coffee. Follow them: |
| Jim SevenJimSeven is a blog that discusses in detail coffee. The creator, James Hoffmann, has been blogging about coffee since 2004 and his passion and experience shows. What makes JimSeven a great addition to this list is that besides the guru-level of information provided, the blog is also accessible to casual coffee lovers. This is because James often uses short article formats and also posts YouTube videos on his website in which he answers coffee related questions that are posed to him on social media. “Coffee has never been better, or more interesting, than it is today.” - Jimseven What you will find: brewing guides, food and coffee science, photographic guides to green coffee, podcasts and videos on coffee issues and how to’s, and general coffee articles. Follow them: |
The blogs (and the people) awarded in this category are acknowledged here because of their ability to tell a different and unconventional story about coffee. Through their articles and their unique style, these blogs make their readers look at an object so well known (the beloved coffee) and find new and wonderful things to love about it.
| Coffee MuseumCoffee Museum is an innovative project that displays stories and moments from the coffee world like a real museum. They aim to elevate coffeism to an art movement at the level of surrealism, cubism, and the like. In order to explain their artistic views, the blog have invented or repurposed the concepts of ‘coffee ba’ (a Japanese word that refers to a place) and ‘coffeeism’ (symbolising the ‘art’ of coffee). By doing this, the blog wants to make its virtual space home to the art of coffee by bringing together coffee memories of artistic performances and their dedicated community. “Telling you stories about coffee and coffee people.” - Cátia Biscaia from Coffee Museum What you will find: Temporary and permanent exhibitions of coffee, stories of people involved in the coffee world, and tantalising brews. Follow them: |
| Atlas Coffee ClubAtlas coffee club is born from the union of passion for travelling and love for coffee. The people behind the blog are in a never ending but always fun and fulfilling search for the best coffee to be found in the different countries of the world. Through their extensive compiling of data and testing of the best brews, the Atlas Coffee Club also make comparisons between different local brews. The community that they have created is on the basis of shared coffee sampling, so you can imagine that the communication happening on the site is very animated! “Atlas Coffee Club was founded to tell the story of coffee from around the world. Exploring a new country each month, our coffee subscription is a journey of exotic discovery, highlighting the regional differences in every cup.” - Atlas Coffee Club What you will find: discussions of coffees from around the world with subscriptions to sample them, coffee gear information, brewing guides, coffee culture, and travel articles. Follow them: |
| Kicking Horse CoffeeWith more than 20 years in the business of coffee making, the folks at Kicking Horse Coffee are not showing any signs of slowing down. In their blog, they have many creative, amusing, and even surprising ways that they write about coffee. This is what has placed the blog within this category, as the writers’ boundless creativity, sense of humour, and the visually striking style of the articles make their site a must-read for any coffee drinker that is in the mood for an uplifting and heartfelt coffee story. It is also admirable that they manage to do all this while also keeping their core values of sustainability and fair trade intact. “Our mission is to stimulate the planet with the ultimate wake-up call. We have some big ideas — ideas that go way beyond mere profit. These ideas govern everything we do, from buying only Fair Trade, organic beans to helping sustain our own community” - Kicking Horse Coffee What you will find: basics (coffee 101), current company-and coffee-related news, how-to's, interesting stories about blends, lifestyle topics, and coffee production. Follow them: |
| Home GroundsHomeGrounds is a place suited for coffee-holics and coffee snobs. The authors teach us how to make gourmet-level coffee from home. Additionally, they have a positive and infectious attitude that is focused on learning more about the wonderful world of coffee by any means possible, including from their readers. With their effective step-by-step guides you will learn how to brew “darn good coffee” to satisfy your caffeine needs. “Because life’s too short to drink shitty coffee.” - Home Grounds What you will find: guides, guides, and more guides about coffee grinding, brewing, beans, and recipes to try at home. Follow them: |
| Coffee Loving CardmakersThis blog won’t give you detailed insight about the coffee world––it will bring a slice of the coffee world directly into your homes with their awesome coffee-related cards. The colourful, positive, and funny cards are guaranteed to bring a smile to your face or serve as a thoughtful gift for the coffee enthusiast in your life. But that’s not all, as the blog writers don’t limit themselves only to cards, they also have creative guides to making coffee albums, tea bag holders, and other DIY fun craft ventures. “Home of all coffee-loving PAPERCRAFTERS! This is where we share coffee, tea & /or cocoa cards + discuss all things coffee, tea and/or cocoa. Let's keep our feed caffeinated!” - Coffee Loving Cardmakers What you will find: cheerful and beautiful collections of cards for fellow coffee and craft enthusiasts; other original crafting coffee projects. Follow them: |
Making sense of coffee brews, cafes, and machinery is a must for any coffee lover. The websites below have taken their time and experience and put it into some of the most detailed and helpful coffee reviews out there. The criteria on which the blogs were chosen was that their reviews are clear and objective; they cover a wide range of important topics and products; and that they have managed to attract a strong readership.
| HasBeanHas Bean Coffee has one of the best communities of all the coffee blogs we have analysed. We can see that their posts bring value to readers, and we love the broad selection of articles that the creators present. The blog employes a network of 70 coffee journalists who write from their different locations, cultures, and personal experiences. This is why, through their many initiatives and their global grasp of the coffee world, Has Bean has managed to keep the content fresh and enjoyable to read over time. “Intrigued by coffee at the young age of seven, Stephen Leighton first opened Hasbean’s doors in 1999 and its online doors in 2003, where it continues to be at the forefront of the web age of coffee.” - Has Bean Coffee What you will find: quality coffee subscriptions, knowledgeable posts regarding the process of roasting, growing, and especially drinking great coffee. Follow them: |
| Good CoffeeGood Coffee is a blog dedicated to speciality coffee stands primarily in Japan, but also other countries around the world. The writers combine in their articles their love of coffee culture with apt reviews of cafes and different coffee brews. Add Japanese coffee recipes and a slick, stylish presentation and this blog becomes a must-read for any person passionate about delicious coffee and the people that make it happen. “Good Coffee introduces specialty coffee stands in Japan and all over the world. We provide information about the cafe including the operation hours, location, wifi availability, whether it’s pet-friendly, and useful in business situations.” - Good Coffee What you will find: focused primarily on coffee and cafe reviews, they also provide news, coffee recipes, and general information coverage. Follow them: |
| Coffee ReviewCoffee Review is a very successful platform that started from a very simple concept many years ago: to try different kinds of coffee and coffee products and share the experience with anymore who was interested. Their reviews are always objective and accurate, as they help educate fellow coffee lovers about how to get or make the most delicious cup of coffee. “Our goal at Coffee Review is to entertain and educate coffee drinkers, food service professionals, and the coffee trade with a credible and easy-to-use coffee guide based on objective, blind reviews from Kenneth Davids and other experienced individuals in the specialty coffee industry.” - Coffee Review What you will find: as the name suggests, all kinds of reviews about everything coffee related. Follow them: |
| Coffee DetectiveThe creator of the blog, Nick, started it from his desire to share his passion for coffee with others. Throughout the years, as his success grew, he discovered that from an amateur coffee lover he became an expert. Now he receives new coffee brews to review on a weekly basis. However, successful as he may be, the Coffee Detective has remained as passionate and down to Earth as ever about his love for coffee. “That’s what drives the growth of the site today – feedback and questions from coffee lovers all over the world. Without those conversations, the site would read more like an encyclopaedia. It’s our readers that give it life and keep it growing. Not to mention the great discussions we get into with coffee growers, coffee roasters, coffee shops and the makers of coffee equipment. I’m loving it, and hope that Coffee Detective continues to inspire conversations about coffee for many years to come!” - Coffee Detective What you will find: all manners of coffee makers and grinders reviews, gourmet coffee reviews and recipes, coffee questions and pictures, coffee surveys and the latest community news. Follow them: |
| The Coffee ConciergeThe Coffee Concierge started with one man’s passion to learn more about how he could make high quality coffee from his home. As he describes it, the creator had officially “fallen down the rabbit hole of the coffee world” and he has never looked back. On the blog you can find an extended list of reviews of coffee makers and coffee brews. However, they also do coffee guides, recipes, and coffee experiments. “I am not a coffee professional, and I am definitely not a coffee connoisseur. I’m just another one of many millions of people who is passionate about coffee.I created The Coffee Concierge as a way to share my passion for coffee with other aspiring home baristas. Hopefully you learn something new about coffee as you browse the site. I also hope to learn something new about coffee from you, so feel free to drop me a line!” - The Coffee Concierge What you will find: coffee and brewing machinery reviews, how-tos of coffee making, recipes and coffee experiments. Follow them: |
With a stunning design, beautiful photographs and overall trendiness, the blogs in this category will elevate your enjoyment of coffee even further. The coffee blogs which have won in this category are awarded because of their unique aesthetics and charming personality, which they have successfully combined with quality articles. Basically, the blogs bellow do double the work a normal blog does by generating must-read content, while, at the same time, they always let the blog’s visuals take center stage.
| Taylors of HarrogateThere’s something special about how a simple family from Harrogate, Yorkshire, managed to open and grow a business for more than 130 years, revolving around coffee and tea, but based on family values and bonds. While on their website you can find out more about their coffee and how it is produced. On the blog you can enjoy reading about sensible problems within the coffee world and keep up with everything coffee. “We've had a deep fascination with flavour for 130 years – and we think you can taste the difference.” - Taylors of Harrogate What you will find: everything from coffee (and tea) to insights about its production and journey around the world from grower to consumer. Follow them: |
| Coffee StylishCoffee Stylish is the place on the Internet where you will find all things connected to the style of everyday coffee. Danijela, the creator of the blog, has made it for the casual coffee lover, but she has also successfully infused style throughout all her articles, whether they’re coffee tutorials, guides or recipes. She does this by combining beautiful pictures with trendy topics. Because of this, the blog is a delightful, light-read perfect for a coffee break. “I love to play with different flavors, roasts, ingredients, but I always keep my recipes fast and simple.” - Coffee Stylish What you will find: accessible and trendy coffee recipes, DIY tutorials and guides. Follow them: |
| Five SensesThe founder of the blog, Dean, started it from his desire to do something to positively impact the coffee-loving community. The blog combines on-trend topics with stunning photos and beautiful graphics to create one of the most stylish blogs on the list, which also has a grasp on the pulse of the coffee world. “We strive to grasp these opportunities that allow us to impact across each set of hands in the journey of specialty coffee; from producers to our own staff, our family of cafe owners and baristas to the coffee loving community that nurtures them.” - Five Senses Coffee What you will find: coffee articles and reports on conferences and reports; information on barista training; coffee making equipment and purchasing questions. Follow them: |
| The CoffeetographerAlthough the Coffeetographer does not describe their website as a blog, but as a webzine, we include them here because they maintain the charm, personality, and unique voice that are distinct to the blogging world. Through the way that the creator combines gorgeous photographs of coffee and people in cafes, with articles on the local culture of coffee, she is able to impart to the reader the unique sensation that they are physically present in those locations. This is why the website is a winner within this category. “The Coffeetographer is an independent web-magazine devoted to covering, documenting and curating the revolutionary culture of specialty coffee. as a webzine, its driven by photo essays, interviews and short form posts.” - The Coffeetographer What you will find: great photographs of coffee, coffee shops, coffee lovers surprised in candid pictures at coffee shops; think pieces and coffee culture articles. Follow them: |
| Joyride CoffeeJoyride Coffee started from three brothers’ shared passion for coffee. Their love for the trade showed as, through their hard work and dedication, they managed to grow their business from a coffee van to several shops in the USA. The blog that the brothers manage reflects this love for coffee, for modern style and beautiful pictures, and for meeting new people. Through this they have gathered a community of readers who are interested in what they do. “The Joyride Mission is to create a healthier and more sustainable world with revolutionary beverage.” - Joyride Coffee What you will find: news from the coffee world, fresh initiatives, coffee analyses, fun facts and coffee musings. Follow them: |
Take a look at last year winners: The Best Coffee Blogs of 2017.
We appreciate your dedication if you succeeded getting to the end of the list! We hope you enjoyed reading about this year’s winners of the Best Coffee Blogs as much as we took pleasure in working on this topic that has become a staple for our website. Hopefully you’ve discovered something new about coffee or found a new favourite blog.
We update this list annually, and have just released the list of the Top 10 Coffee Blogs of 2019. Check it out!
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