Chris is a seasoned coffee quality specialist, writer and researcher, and the Lab & Education Manager at The Crown: Royal Coffee Lab & Tasting Room. Formerly a QC manager, cupper, educator, green coffee buyer, and roaster at Intelligentsia under the guidance of Geoff Watts, Chris logged thousands of miles across the coffee lands in East Africa and Brazil. His published work can be found in Roast Magazine, Daily Coffee News, Perfect Daily Grind, Coffee T&I, Tea and Coffee Trade Journal, and the Royal Blog, and his research and lectures are a regular fixture at events such as SCA Expo, the Roasters Guild Retreat & Sensory Summit, the Academic Agenda for the Café de Colombia Expo in Bogotá, and Hotelex Shanghai. However, his favorite teaching environments are next to humming roasters and slurping coffee tasters worldwide. On weekends, Chris can be found helping at his partner's Improv Theater in Oakland. He rides a 1986 Schwinn Prelude, loves chilling outdoors with his cat and dog, and plays classical guitar, banjo, and trumpet. In addition to coffee, he can be found sipping Saisons and Oolongs, and fermenting hot sauces.