I know a lot about coffee roasting and can say that your wankery meter is on point. Calling someone "likely the best coffee roaster" is like calling someone "likely the best wine maker". It's something that people reach for via wankery to get clout. It's not actually something you can asses via reasonable metrics.
He knows a lot about roasting yes, he's not anywhere near some consensus god in coffee roasting no one can touch
Everything is subjective, but the most prominent restaurant ranking is "The World's 50 Best Restaurants", which polls many chefs to get a ranking every year and does a decent job.
Roastful is trying to apply a similar methodology to coffee roasting, by polling 32 industry experts.
And, the #1 roaster in their rankings this year is Tim Wendelboe.
You can debate the method, but it's not total wankery.
Taste is indeed subjective (see what I’ll do next ;)), but even with a panel of 32 experts, this list is limited to a handful of OECD countries in their spotlight, with one exception.
I’ve tried a good number of roasters on this list, and only a few come within batting distance of Father Coffee (not to be confused with Fathers) in Johannesburg and Rosetta Roastery in Cape Town. Those two roasters, the former more experimental and the latter more traditional, are doing wonders and punching well above their weight in the South African market. Both could easily be in the top 25, and Father is surely top 5.
Seriously, if you care about coffee and find yourself in Johannesburg, go to Father and grab as many beans as you can carry.
He knows a lot about roasting yes, he's not anywhere near some consensus god in coffee roasting no one can touch
Wankery abounds in coffee.