Our Board

Tim Taylor, Pedestrian Coffee, USA - Board Chair

In 2009, Tim Taylor founded Chicago's Ipsento Coffee — a farm-to-table coffee roasting and retail operation. He has since sold the company and now remains in the coffee sector as an independent contractor. Tim has been working in specialty coffee since 2007 when he began importing coffee directly from producers. Tim's vision has always involved sourcing exceptional coffees from quality-minded producers who receive sustainable pay premiums for their efforts.

In 2011, Tim served on his first Cup of Excellence jury and has been committed to serving on juries and bidding on auction lots ever since.

Noelia Villalobos, Asociación de Cafés Finos de Costa Rica - Vice Chair

Noelia Villalobos is the Executive Director of the Specialty Coffee Association of Costa Rica and of Sintercafé (International Coffee Week, initials in Spanish) since 2009. Both associations work hard to promote production and consumption of specialty Costa Rican coffee, in and out of Costa Rica. Sintercafé is an annual event recognized worldwide which incorporates both sides of the coffee value chain. SCACR has coordinated COE since its beginnings in Costa Rica, being also the in-country partner for CQI and the WCE counterparty. Noelia holds a Master's degree in Promotional Marketing from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid.

Maryna Gray, Bean Box, United States - Board Member

Maryna Gray is a founding partner and the Director of Coffee for Bean Box, a leading direct-to-consumer brand for Specialty Coffee experiences at home. Since 2014, Gray has run all coffee selection, curation, and purchasing operations; grown a nationwide network of more than 40 coffee roasting partners; and personally curated over 1,200 unique coffees. In this role, she oversees all coffee-related content development—from packaging to marketing—and her curated coffee experiences reach hundreds of thousands of consumers every year.

Gray sees her professional mission as bridging the gap between the refined palates of the coffee industry and the burgeoning demand for Specialty Coffee among a broad consumer audience. Her products are designed to increase the national appetite for Specialty Coffee, and make the world of high-end coffees relevant, accessible, and fun.

Gray earned her B.A. from Amherst College in 2005, with a major in Law, Jurisprudence, and Social Thought. She lives and works in Seattle, WA.

"Before I moved to Seattle, I enjoyed coffee, but I didn't appreciate it, and I certainly didn't understand what I was drinking. Now, a decade later, I'm in deep, but I still remember what it was like to discover the impact that coffee has: first the personal impact— as part of your routine, your buying habits, your culture, your palate, your lifestyle— but then all the global, environmental, human impacts. My involvement with the ACE and the COE program was crucial in helping me understand the extent and power of that impact, and it's changed how I think about my own consumption, and what our business is doing/can do/should do, within the wider coffee industry.

I know that what the ACE can accomplish ultimately relies upon coffees finding buyers, consumers who want to drink that coffee, recognize the difference, and understand why it's worth their time, money, and attention. So much of my work at Bean Box has involved utilizing technology, creativity, and my own personal experience, to help more coffee drinkers discover what Specialty Coffee is all about— to understand all those impacts for themselves and feel motivated to do more with that knowledge. I'd be excited to use what I've learned to help ACE with their mission, broaden their scope and name recognition, increase the footprint of their coffees across the U.S., connect with more buyers, from importers to roasters to consumers, and help more coffee drinkers see all the positive impacts their cup of coffee can have on the world."

Raphael Braune, Comandante, Germany - Board Member

I am one of the founders and Senior Vice President of COMANDANTE Grinder Technologies and of German specialty coffee pioneer SUPREMO COFFEE located in Munich, Germany as well as Finca Dona Elsa in Costa Rica.

My original background is in marketing and graphic design.

I have been working in Specialty Coffee since nearly two decades and been involved with ACE almost just as long. I have served on numerous COE juries since 2008 and this year our Lab served as GCC. I love coffee and truly do believe in the Cup Of Excellence program. I would be happy to support the board and help promote ACE & COE around the globe to get more people involved!

Silvio Leite, Association of Coffee Producers of Bahia - Board Member

A specialist in coffee grading, tasting and quality control, Silvio Leite has more than 30 years of experience in the coffee business. During the twelve years in which he worked for the Bozzo group, Silvio Leite dedicated himself to coffee grading and tasting. He developed and implanted coffee controls in the firm and was responsible for the quality control of all branches of the Bozzo group, based in Geneva, Switzerland.

During his fourteen years with Agribahia, a company of the Espírito Santo group, Silvio came to prominence as a specialist in coffee processing and quality control at all stages of post-harvest processing. He was Commercial and Industrial Manager, and as a Director took an active part in the administration of the group's two farms.

An expert coffee taster, Silvio Leite is a cupper certified by the Brazil Specialty Coffee Association (BSCA) and has participated as a judge in many coffee quality contests, both in Brazil and abroad. He is the president of the international jury of the Cup of Excellence quality contest, one of the most prestigious in the world coffee market, which recognizes the best coffees produced in each country.

Silvio is a reference in the Brazilian coffee scene, especially in the state of Bahia, where he holds the posts of President of the Bahia Coffee Trade Center and of the Association of Coffee Producers of Bahia. Silvio Leite is a founding partner of AgriCoffee and AgriCafé.

Satoshi Ito, Wataru & Co., Ltd., Japan - Board Member

Satoshi Ito graduated from the University College of Cariboo in 2000 with a business degree. His career started with Wataru in 2000. He has developed relationships with specialty coffee exporters/producers over the world and contributed to the expansion of specialty coffee. He is a specialist of international trade. He has done logistics of Cup of Excellence coffee nearly 150 times (almost all competitions). He also serves as a committee member of sustainable coffee association of Japan.

He has over 20 years of coffee business experience and has served on Cup of Excellence juries 2 times. He is 45 years old and the General Manager of the Import Department of Wataru & Co., Ltd.

David Griswold, Sustainable Harvest Coffee Importers - Board Member

David Griswold is a social entreepreneur and sustainability coffee expert with over three decades of experience in the specialty coffee industry. As the founder and former CEO of Sustainable Harvest Coffee Importers, David pioneered the Relationship Coffee Model. This alternative business approach redefined the traditional coffee supply chain by fostering direct connections between producers, importers, and roasters. It emphasized transparency, fairness, and long-term partnerships, ensuring all stakeholders were valued and fairly compensated.

His leadership has been instrumental in the widespread adoption of sustainable practices within the coffee sector. He received the 2023 Specialty Coffee Association Sustainability Award and the 2018 Coffee Quality Institute Leadership of Merit Award.

Anne Valdez - Board Member

Anne earned her bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Central Florida. She began her career in coffee in 1986 working for Barnie's Coffee and Tea, over the years her expertise in coffee has involved all aspects of specialty coffee from seed to cup.

She has been a fourteen-time judge for the Cup of Excellence, three-time judge for the Best of Panama, three-time Rainforest Alliance Cupping judge, a regional barista judge and a SCAA craft roasting instructor. She is currently the president of Amrita Certified Pure, owner of Florisbella Coffee Consulting and managing director for Lucky Hills Coffee.

Having lived in Brazil for sixteen years she is fluent in Portuguese and has an understanding of working with different cultures.

Peter Jones - Board Member

Peter N. Jones is an emerging figure in the coffee industry based in Boulder, Colorado. With a deep-rooted passion for specialty coffee, Peter has spent over two decades refining his expertise as a roaster, business owner, green buyer, educator, and mentor.

His innovative approach to sourcing, building long term partnerships, and commitment to sustainability and equity have earned him recognition among his peers as a voice in coffee quality and ethics. As a dedicated advocate for the craft, Peter actively contributes to industry forums and workshops, shaping the future of coffee with a blend of tradition and forward-thinking practices.

Geoff Watts, Quality Engineer at Azahar Coffee Company, USA - Emeritus

Geoff Watts is the Quality Engineer at Azahar Coffee Company. He has served as an official judge in over 30 international coffee competitions and was a pioneer of the Direct Trade approach to coffee sourcing, which uniquely suits him for his position with ACE. Mr. Watts is the past-chair of the ACE Board and a member of the Executive Committee.

Susie Spindler, Founder, USA - Advisory to the Board - Emeritus

Susie Spindler was instrumental in creating the Cup of Excellence (COE) competition and auction in 1999 and was the Founder and Executive Director of The Alliance for Coffee Excellence-the non-profit organization that owns Cup of Excellence. From its beginning Spindler managed, molded and expanded this renowned global program and directed ACE with a small staff until 2015. She was asked to return to its helm in 2016 and has once again stepped back as advisor and board treasurer. Spindler began her career in coffee more years ago than she will admit but at a time when soft drinks were more popular and coffee was barely identified by country and almost never by farm or variety. At that time she created several successful coffee programs for the International Coffee Organization that helped jump start specialty coffee in the USA. She has also been a founder and marketing director of an endangered wildlife facility, president of a small advertising agency and heavily involved in consumer product marketing research. She holds a graduate degree in international marketing and management.