Michelle Powell

Michelle grew up in Huntington Beach, CA, at 19 made her way to Humboldt County, and eventually found a middle ground in Santa Cruz. At UC Santa Cruz she earned a B.A. in Cultural Anthropology and laid the foundation for a thorough, objective, and highly analytical work approach. Michelle has over a decade of experience in Food Service, specifically within the Specialty Coffee industry, having trained with the likes of Blue Bottle and Four Barrel Coffee, and competed twice in the Southwest Regional Barista Competition. Furthermore, Michelle managed an artisanal bakery in Santa Cruz, California for four years. This range of experience has uniquely situated Michelle to objectively evaluate a variety of products with a nuanced understanding of what the ideal, professional quality result would look like.

After finishing school, she traded the waves for Sierra granite in Lake Tahoe. She currently lives in South Lake Tahoe with several furry creatures and is somewhat of a dog whisperer. When she's not testing the latest tech gear, Michelle can be found climbing, surfing, baking, geeking out about espresso, doing yoga, buried in animals, or indulging in a good book.