For those of you that don't know me, I am Ronald Cortez (also known as Ron). 
I was born in the hearthland of the coffee growing region in Costa Rica and 
throughout my life I have developed an attraction to all things coffee. 
Being the son of a plantation worker, who was also the son of a plantation worker, 
has given me the inside scoop on the coffee industry. 
Since that cold morning were my mother went into labor right in the coffee field, 
I have picked beans, spread fertilizer and worked in all the different aspects
of a coffee plantation. I also have founded and managed a very succesful 
coffee roasting company (Cafe Cortez) in US for the last 15 years. 
This site is dedicated to the understanding of coffee; this drink that has 
traveled around the world and is tied so closely to our evolution as a society. 
My main focus is to contibute to coffee education, without hidden agendas, 
to people that are looking for answers to the simple question: 
What makes a good cup of coffee? Here you will learn from myself 
and our contributors about green beans, espresso and all the other brewing methods, 
as well as help me drink and rate a cup of coffee (this is called "cupping coffee", by the way). 
After all, this is what is all about - to learn the truth about coffee and to make more 
sense of it for all of us. I know you will enjoy it even more if you know what is inside your cup.