Reinventing the Role of the Barista
March 19th 2009 | Posted by Josh Longsdorf
The past couple decades have seen an evolution among coffee growers, roasters, and importers, with changes occurring faster than they themselves can keep up with. The industry as a whole is seeking a means to decommoditize coffee, to create a truly sustainable coffee infrastructure - one that is sustainable for the land, the growers, the customer, and everyone involved in between.
In the industry I think sustainability can be likened to a cup of coffee. While many agree coffee should be enjoyed black – or, in it’s natural state, if you will – this doesn’t always work for everyone. To some black coffee is an acquired taste that they have to work hard at enjoying. Others may never be able to enjoy it at all. The same is true of sustainability. Each farmer, each importer, and each roaster has their own cup of sustainable measures that make the relationship between them taste good. While each of these relationships is unique, the one thing common to all of them is the importance of transparency. This is where the barista comes in.
Baristas must do their best to keep this cup of sustainability black and clear – transparent – and garner as much appreciation as possible from our customers. To do this, we must reevaluate our role in coffee. We can no longer limit ourselves to just preparing it. We must also act as its representative to the consumer. We must provide them with the knowledge of what makes each cup of coffee so unique.
Things to know when representing the coffees:
• Where does your coffee come from?
There are currently more than 30 countries that grow the Coffea arabica plant; within each there are usually several growing regions and within each region there are hundreds of farms and some of these farms are even broken into several different micro lots. Therefore it is no longer a matter of whether your coffee comes from Brasil or Ethiopia. We also need to know the growing region, farm or co-op, and even the lot number in some cases. Every coffee has its own story to tell, and that story is reflected in the cup. Whether it’s from three separate micro-lots from the same farm or three farms from the same region, each coffee will be unique, and the barista should be able to explain that to the customer
• Who is the grower or producer?
1 in 10 people in the world work in a job some how related to coffee. With this fact it is then not surprising that there are more than 25 million coffee growers in the world, many of them go unrecognized. A lot of the growth in cup quality that we have seen throughout the years is attributed these growers.
• What is the cultivar or varietal?
Simply put in biological terms, varietals are naturally occurring and cultivars are produced or cultivated through selective breeding. In coffee however the two are often used interchangeably. With more than 40 cultivars stemming from the two varietals Typica and Bourbon, along with Mocha in Yemen and Ethiopia, and wild plants of Ethiopia there are more than 50 varietals and cultivars of Arabica coffee. Many producers grow more than one varietal or cultivar of coffee, all of which will have their own unique characteristics. A Bourbon will have different characteristics then a Pacamara will from the same farm.
• How was it processed?
The easiest way to think of processing is how was the fruit removed from the seed. Today we are seeing many exciting methods of processing, but generally are three major categories; wet or washed, dry or natural, and semi or pulped natural.
• Elevation?
Usually represented by a number followed by ‘masl’ (meters above sea level). Higher elevations mean less atmosphere, thus slower growth, which generally equates to a denser bean.
Of equal importance to properly representing the coffees is involving the customer.
Consumers generally want to know what they’re consuming, and we often fail to help them much in this regard. Edwin Martinez of Finca Vista Hermosa Farms in Huehuetenango, Guatemala says it best: “If more of us can taste and experience coffee we can begin to uncover the layers and become intimately familiar with it’s origin. Decommoditizing coffee hinges on ensuring the farmer is not anonymous.” By creating situations for customers to ask questions we can involve them in a way that is comfortable and educational for them. So how do we spark their interest?
• Cuppings-Traditionally, cuppings have been used for greens purchasing and quality control. These days, many are finding cuppings useful for educating consumers and introducing them to new coffees. Cupping allows the consumer to explore the fragrance, aroma, mouth feel, and taste of several coffees side by side.
• Flights-Taking a cue from an industry that does well in educating their customers; the wine industry has used flights to both educate and sell to customers for centuries. Whether we’re talking varietal/cultivar, origin, producer, or three completely different coffees all together, flights can be a fun way to compare and contrast coffees with customers. Remember to use small servings for flights, possibly with the option of taking a cup of their favorite with them afterwards.
• Single Origin Espresso-Ditch the ol’ blend, grab your favorite coffee and offer it up as espresso. Many roasters are now roasting some of their coffees specifically for single origin espresso; however, if your roaster doesn’t roast single origin espresso, you should be able to pull shots with most coffees as long as they were roasted well to begin with. S/O espresso gives the consumer the chance to see a coffee in a new light, and gives you a chance to introduce each unique bean to espresso drinkers.
To some this information may be a second language, and to others second nature. Either way, every barista could be doing more to educate the world about coffee. Remember in educating the consumer it is not the knowledge you have that matters, rather it is the experience they walk away with.
If this information isn’t available to you, a good place to gain it is to talk with your roaster.
If you like this then check out his website at rootcoffee for more stuff, I am sure he will be posting more of his stuff soon.
