The Coffee Culture Fest Cometh

As organic molecules go, C₈H₁₀N₄O₂ is a winner two thumbs up green light all systems go punch that pedal is it warm in here oh I really like your shoes where’d you get those drapes my uncle carl had a Buick that color – ahem. Chemistry as a subject brought some of us low in high school, had us crawling naked through fire (not as reckless an exaggeration as it seems). But as grownups we pour a quantity of the proper chemistry into a porcelain mug – one with a 6–12 oz capacity and rounded interior for aroma concentration – and voilà, All Is Forgiven! You have all the roasted richness your aching soul desires, a stream of conversational eloquence that pleasantly overruns its banks, and surprisingly warm memories of Mrs. Settlemoir and her once-damnable beakers. It’s just a Cup o’ Joe, but holy Toledo!

Now, imagine a community mob giddily convened around the stuff (which I will here formally identify as “coffee”). G’head. Tastings from local and regional roasters, live music, breakfast tacos, interactive art… Elly Iverson imagined that once, to our common good fortune. Her imaginings are nearly upon us. 

“Anyone who knows me knows I’m incompetent without that small roasted bean powering my systems,” she confesses with little prompting, and enters into a summary soliloquy detailing her formative java epoch. “I grew up here in Santa Barbara, seeing my first concerts at Muddy Waters, working on school projects at Jitters, seeing my friends host art shows and sing open mics at Reds… for me, coffee is a strong enabler and connector for all things creative and community driven.” 

Given the centrality of coffee to Elly’s sense of Us, it should come as no surprise she and a gang of accompanying organizers (many of the X chromosome persuasion, as it happens) are mounting Santa Barbara’s first annual Coffee Culture Fest on Saturday, March 28, from 9 am – 3 pm. Where? The address is 721 E. Cota St., but locals will immediately recognize the sprawling Spanish Colonial Revival compound there as Santa Barbara Junior High School, whose copious front lawns and plush Marjorie Luke Theatre will be the Fest’s binary ground zero. 

Elly’s event-conjuring outfit – called eji [pronounced exactly as you suppose] is spearheading the inaugural fuel-fest. What exactly is this thing, Elly? {the event Maestra has little trouble painting a picture…}

“The Coffee Culture Fest is our love letter to the cup, the buzz, the ritual, the simple communion that brings us together – or the cafecito where all the chisme comes out. The festival will feature a little of all of that – the roasters, the makers, the connectors – it’s an open invite to the community to get together and find the joy in the small things that surround coffee.” Preach it, Elly! “The fest will also feature coffee-adjacent vendors, a VIP lounge, cafecito conversation tables, interactive art, a poetry writing tent, coffee ground seed bomb tutelage, onsite screen printing, breakfast tacos…”

Whew! It’s a cultural festival alright, minus the papier-mâché Eiffel Tower or guy in baggy pants dancing with a table clenched in his teeth – though once the caffeine gets flowing, we’ll see. While the town is happily motor-mouthing, high-fiving roasters, sampling the sunrise bean, and generally partaking of sunstruck community joy on the lawns, the cozy Marjorie Luke Theater will be hosting featured events around the coffee theme.

“Our featured events will be free in the Luke – a women’s panel moderated by MJ’s own Gwyn Lurie at 9:30 am, and a regional central coast Latte Art Throwdown with competing baristas at 11 am. Think of it as Top Chef meets Parks and Rec – talented baristas with a ridiculous cast of emcees and judges. Plus we are livestreaming it all to make it that much more dramatic.” Do tell. Any other indoor jams that day? “Actually, yes. We’ll have a couple education workshops featured in the smaller Globe Theatre in the afternoon – because we’re truly hoping the all-in coffee nerds will be there in force. Those
workshops will be announced soon.” Yes, yes. I see, I see. And this business about the Montecito Journal…?

Gwyn Lurie is CEO and executive editor of the Montecito Journal Media Group. On this day she’ll be representing Giving List Women, a national publication and thought leadership collective elevating the practices of trailblazing leaders across diverse sectors, featured nonprofits, and impact companies – those dedicated and enviably organized souls moving the needle for women and girls locally, nationally, and globally. 

Likely clutching a cuppa, Gwyn will moderate a conversation with other local female entrepreneurs and leaders, including Carpinteria Councilmember Julia Mayer, philanthropic strategist Rebecca Benozer, Santa Barbara Independent Publisher Brandi Rivera, Santa Barbara City Councilmember Wendy Santamaria, and Culinary leader at Acme Hospitality Emilie Sandven. Elly Iverson thusly summarizes the theme of the conversation, titled “Women Setting the Table for Local Action, Global Impact.” 

“The conversation will bring together women who are influencing business and community through purpose-driven leadership and collaboration. Of course it will all play out over a shared cup of coffee.” 

The fest itself will have a tiered access that maps to one’s degree of desired immersion in the delirious bean feast. “We’re able to offer a coffee tasting pass for $15 for students, which includes a limited-edition reusable clay cup that’s going to be provided by the festival as well as tastings. A General Coffee Pass is $30. And then bumping up from there is our VIP Lounge Pass, which is going to be pretty fabulous. Solera & Co is actually going to do a really amazing spread that’ll be complimentary snacks for anyone with that VIP Lounge pass.” Um…what else, Elly? Surely you –

“– and there are so many folks in this town doing cool things with coffee, and the fact of the matter is – a lot of these are small businesses working their butts off that don’t have the bandwidth to dial in to a full-day fest right now. So this gives them an opportunity to catch a little spotlight and show their stuff, so later folks can visit them where they really work their magic.” Elly pauses. The sudden silence is disorienting. Not to worry.

“The thing we always keep coming back to is the opportunity to sit down with neighbors over a shared cup of coffee,”she says with what we’ll simply call enthusiasm. “THAT’s the magic!”