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McCarthy: Totally. I think it all comes back to selling coffee, to buy more coffee to support the farms and continue that whole cycle. If people are buying bags of coffee and taking them home and are enjoying it, and are learning new information and feeling confident and getting into it, then that only helps specialty coffee in general. Meister: What are you most excited about when you imagine being the ambassador to specialty-coffee brewing for this next year? McCarthy: Having a platform to talk about coffee in a relatable way, and being able to get people excited about brewing coffee better. I'm not sure exactly where I'm going or what I'm doing, but I know I'm going to taste amazing coffees. I hope I get to go to a coffee farm! I've never done that. Meister: Is there anything else that you want to tell the coffee people of the world? What is one tip you can offer someone who is interested in competing in the Brewers Cup? McCarthy: Read the rules! [Laughs] You'd be surprised the kind of points you can lose and mistakes you can make. PHOTO BY LAURA DANDY Meister: If you could talk to one famous coffee person from history, who would it be, and what would you talk about? McCarthy: Erna Knutsen! She's a coffee buyer in San Francisco, and one of the first woman cuppers. I want to say thank you to her. I think she is really brave and rad, and she's someone I'd definitely want to hang out with. Probably get a coffee and then go get a whiskey. McCarthy: [Laughs] It's true! But when everything else is getting overwhelming with your presentation and everything, just remember that you need to brew an excellent cup of coffee. Meister: "Read the rules" is something only a Virgo would say. www.baristamagazine.com 67