OP, sounds like you have an axe to grind yourself perhaps? Want to start us off?

This isn't "name and shame", but more a general complaint. And that is "specialty decaf".

Due to a heart condition, all I can drink these days is decaf.

And the predominant bean for this, due to the economies of scale, is the same bland Swiss water decaf Columbia used by roasters from Starbucks to many many specialty coffee roasters. And the result is the bland, ashy, muddy decaf we all lothe.

Thankfully, some specialty roasters have started switching away from the awful water process to EA and CO2, though still mostly using the same tired Columbia strains.

Of the two newer decaffination methods, EA is significantly better at keeping the flavors faithful to the original bean (tested with several blind tastings), but roasters still tend to roast the results to medium / medium dark to bow to the greater market, which is really a shame.

There are a handful of roasters that have been attempting EA decaf at a light/medium-light roast level and the results are finally something I'd classify as "specialty decaf", but my rotation is still only about 5 total bean/roast/roasters combos.

Hopefully the new caffine-free coffee cherry strains gets to market soon, I really really want to explore specialty coffee like I used to.

when the coffee is mid, make the best of it. it's still a rare luxury in the grand scheme of things. use it to practice latte art or brew it for your friends during book club.

Give 'em a break!

They're necessarily small businesses, and if they get say, a bad sack of raw beans, or the roast doesn't come out right for one reason or another, they still have to make a living.

Not a fan of the Melbourne roaster St Ali. It's local, but not a small roaster anymore - can find them in supermarkets. From all reports the owner sucks. Tried some beans before I found that out and they were 'meh'. So yeah, it's a no from me.

I always buy from code black in Melbourne and they have ways been really good. They also have a cafe which is a great way to try before you buy.