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Hello again and Sorry Guys!
As you may or may not have seen, my absence on the net has been somewhat apparent. In the last three months I haven’t Blogged, TMC’d, Barista Exchanged, Flickr’d or Facebooked to any great extent. Have I fallen of the earth? Well, you’d be excused for thinking that but I am in fact alive and well if not a little tired and stressed. The climax of the Rugby season, the tax year end, a UKBC hangover and the acquisition of an XBox 360 all contributed to the to my lack of bloggage. Also, thinking back, I didn’t actually have anything of interest to blog about, probably a good job I didn’t.
I blog today baring news of a mini success in the UK Latte Art Championship. Cafe Culture 08 was on last week at Olympia in London, an excuse for a holiday down to see my ever patient girlfriend and a chance to compete in some competition, glutton for punishment I Know. More than anything it was a chance to meet up with all the guys I’d had the pleasure of spending the few months before UKBC stressing with. I wasn’t intending to attend but I had a last minute e-mail badgering me from Paul ‘Squeaky’ Meikle-Janney.
It was nice to see Hugo (current UKBC Champ) on the La Spazialestand pumping out espresso to the masses for the two days. I also finally met up with the ‘Dirty Makem’ Steve from Hasbean who I’m amazed I hadn’t met sooner than now. I do love these sorts of event, there is defiantly a bit of a barista scene developing and I had a lot of support from like minded coffee geeks and barista buddies in the comps.
Back to my mini success, which to be honest I’m a little embarrassed about. The competition in the preparation room was of a great standard and there were some fantastic rosetti being poured, myself included, this didn’t translate to the stage very well at all and I think I only saw 5 rosetti poured, 4 of which were Phil from Origin’s who won the Comp. This was the first competition of this type that I’d entered and I think there was very little competitive experience on show. I buckled under the eyes of about 70 of my peers and almost threw my cappuccinos away after my first pour, decided against it as time is so tight and bashed out some solid hearts on my machiattos. I had I hurriedly prepared a triple heart cyclical etch in the prep room which seemed to go down well with the crowd. I sculked off the stage my head down, so disappointed. Why can I pour so well on my bar but then as soon as I’m on a stage collapse so dramatically. Luckily everone else had done the same if not worse and I ended up coming second equal with a girl called Estelle, who was really nice.
The second day saw me take on some cuppersin the Cupping Championship. I love this event. Its like fast drinking penalty shootout. I was gutted when I was drawn against the World Barista Champion James ‘The Hoff’ Hoffmann who was nipping in and out of seminars to compete. I lost 5-4 tasting some fantastic coffees from Steve at Hasbean. James went on to beat Se Gorman of Cafe Krem and Guy from Green Mountain coffee in the final and will represent the UK in Copenhagen.
This week I will be mostly preparing training material, and trying to make the most of my competition results this year with promo material for Pumphreys.
Great to see you again Tristan, Hugo, James, Steve, Will, John, Helen, Matt, Lance, Se and Norton.
Ohh it was nice to get that out, the blogging bug is back!!!!!
Hello everyone. Sorry I’ve been a bit quiet of late my attentions have been somewhat skewed due to my entry into the UK Barista Championships Finals last week.
First of all Congratulations to Hugo Hercod of Relish who was a deserved winner of the title ‘UK Barista Champion’
Good Luck in Copenhagen
I’m delighted to tell you that I finished 14th with my first attempt and indeed first finals of a coffee competition.
I have learnt so much in entering the UKBC that I can hardly recognise the person who started the journey 8 months ago. If you are thinking about entering next year, DO IT. I’ve made some great new friends, pulled some great shots and made some horrible signature drink combinations which turned the stomachs of many of my friends. I can’t recommend it enough.
The Championships were set in amongst the hustle and bustle of Hotelympia at Exel near Canary Warf in London. The SCAE had a fantastic little corner set up with staging and workshops surrounded by a multitude of café related stands, espresso machine suppliers and scantily clad cake stalls!
24 competitors were whittled down to 6 over 2 days. Unfortunately, this included myself which I was initially a bit peeved at. I think the emotion of the event got to me a bit and with hindsight my placing was correct if not a little high. The competition this year was apparently of a lot higher standard than last year and competitors were just not making the technical mistakes that they have done in previous competitions. Great news for the industry! We are defiantly making some inroads. This competition, thanks to ‘The Hoff’, SCAE and sponsors is defiantly getting some weight now.
A great big thank you to everyone who was involved!
One thing I would recommend which would (in my opinion) create more interest and give the general viewing public a little bit more insight into the passion and dedication of the barista is to mic up the competitors. Speaking from a spectator’s point of view the only interesting part of each performance was the pretty table set up and the fantastically knowledgeable compares who took us through what they managed to hear of each performance. A set of radio mics can’t be that hard to get a hold of, can they? Maybe a little bit of a better back stage area for competitors to store and prepare all their kit before, during and after their performances. I know there was a little bit of grumbling about that.
They are the only little niggles from the three days and I only mention them in the pursuit of pushing the Championships forward over the coming years. Just because people are volunteering to organise UKBC doesn’t mean that they should be immune to any criticism or not take any advice. Having said that, everyone who was involved did a fantastic job and it all went very well.
After the Semis we all had an opportunity to let ‘what hair we had left’ down at Square Mile Coffee Roasters in Bethnal Green. The home of Anette, Steven and James’s new venture played host to the UKBC Barista Party. A charity Latte art Smackdown inevitably raised it’s ugly head and I duly choked under the pressure of the ‘whooping’ crowd. See here (Thank you very much Tristan, you swine).
Thank you to everyone I finally met down there. It’s always a bit funny meeting people who you’ve only had ‘cyber’ relations with, the mutual recognition of Hugo and I on the first day was testament to this. Special thanks to Tristan, Will, Lance, Jonathan, Barry, Helen and Matt who have all become good mates over the last few months. Thanks for making this such a fantastic event for me. I have every intention of competing again next year and indeed for several years into the future as I really want to represent the country on the ‘World Stage’.
Before I finish I must thank my family and Pumphreys Coffee for their support over the past few months. Paula, Stuart, Malcolm, Georgie and Jill, thanks for the support and for putting up with my moods. Above all thanks to my beautiful girlfriend Lorna, without whom I’d have been lost at the competition.
To finish, a little bit of a tease:
I have heard rumblings of a barista ‘boot camp’ weekend which I cant see myself missing, more information will follow here soon I’m sure.
Thanks for reading
Yesterday a great man in coffee history died.
Dr Ernesto Illy passed on February 3rd at the age of 82.
He was one of the coffee world’s most respected scientists, inventors and businessmen.
Thank you and rest in peace Sir
More information Here
Top 3, originally uploaded by Espresso Warehouse.
I just spotted these photos of the UKBC event at the Edinburgh Uni Debating Chamber.
We were just about the smallest people competing and I’m 6ft 1in. Check out the Group Photo – giants all of them
Maybe we’re rebelling against all the tall gangly World Barista Champions we’ve been having recently
By way of Mr Tom Handiside Esp Warehouse
Pics from the event
All 13
Agnes of Kilimanjaro
Andrew Mundy – Pilgrims coffee
Daniel Grimshaw – Good taste
Daniel Grimshaw of Good taste pours his capps
David Fraser – Fantoosh Glasgow steams
GILL tinderbox EDINBURGH 08
Gillian Campbell of Tinderbox – Winner
Jamie Grant of Redz Paisley – first up
Leo Ventisei – Tinderbox
Paolo Tanzillo – Little Italy Glasgow
Ryan McHugh Fantoosh Glasgow – last years champ
Se tries out the Blue cheese, caramel & lemon juice sig bev
Se, Rebecca, Stuart & Angus – sensory on the day
Stuart Archer in action
Its become apparent to me that I, along with other people I’ve watched in competition, do not know the score sheets as I perhaps should.
Uploaded on October 31, 2005
by astepintothedark
We’ve all seen the score sheets but have you looked at it from the judges perpective. Ok so you may be thinking, ‘Why did I get a 2 in that section and a 4.5 in the other section?’. Here’s why:
TECHNICAL EVALUATION PROCEDURE
The following is an explanation of the technical score sheet. Seven judges will evaluate each competitor, including one head judge, two technical judges, and four sensory judges. The head judge’s points are not included in the competitors total score. The two technical score sheets will be averaged together for a single technical score. The technical score will then be added to each of the four sensory score sheets. The competitors final score will be comprised of the total of all four sensory score sheets.
EVALUATION SCALE
The following is an explanation of the score sheet. It is best to review this while also looking at a score sheet – technical and sensory. The evaluation scale is the same for both technical and sensory judges.
There are two types of scores: the Yes/No score, and the Zero to Six score.
Yes = 1 No = 0
Unacceptable = 0 Acceptable = 1 Average = 2 Good = 3 Very Good = 4 Excellent = 5 Extraordinary = 6
Yes/No Score The barista receives one point for a score of ‘Yes’ on this item, and zero points if ‘No.” Zero to Six Score
With the zero to six score, it is acceptable to use half point increments between 1.0 and 6. The half points are written using a decimal point (not a fraction). For example 1.5, 2.5, 3.5… The lowest score with value is 1. (The score of 0.5 may not be used.)A score of Zero is used when something is totally unacceptable.The WBC Rules and Regulations state that a competitor is not allowed to change anything on the competition machines (such as the dispersion screen, spout, gasket and/or the portafilter). At the start of competition, the technical judges will verify that the equipment is in accordance with WBC guidelines.
I intend to follow this up with detailed reviews of each section of the judges guide to not only help me understand more but also maybe raise everyones standards before the semi-finals and beyond.
Information taken from published material on The World Barista Championship Website
EDIT 4.2.08 Jim Hoffmann’s post on something similar…. spooky
WARNING VERY LONG POST
As before: I just thought I’d get this in before I start mentioning loads of other Coffee companies, Roasters, cafés and trainers that I don’t work with. I work for Pumphreys Coffee as a barista trainer and showroom manager in Newcastle and I’m taking Part in the Scottish Regional heat of the UK Barista Championships on the 23rd.Jan 2008. It didn’t seem fair to Pumphreys to mention everyone else apart from them seeing as I’m putting in the effort of writing this up for everyone.
The venue for the event was the Tobacco Factory in Bristol.
‘The Tobacco Factory is one of the few survivals from the great Imperial Tobacco site on Raleigh Road, Ashton, Bristol. It was saved from demolition by Bristol architect George Ferguson who has turned it into a model of urban regeneration. It is now a multi use building housing the Cafe Bar, Teohs oriental bistro, creative industry work space, live/work loft apartments, animation and performing arts schools and one of the most exciting small theatre venues in the country.’
I think I’ve spent more time inside this building than anywhere else in Bristol as the Beyond the Bean/SCAE/Clifton Coffee Crew put a Jam on there in October. Report here
It seemed that there were a lot of good competitors here I think because of the cancellation of the London heat. My view from the crowd was that this was a stronger heat than the Northern one at the Sculpture park, although rumors and mumblings of points scores might suggest otherwise.Can I say before I start that this review is my view through the dim light and noisy area of competition. If you spot any glaringly obvious mistakes please alert me in the comments and I shall endeavor to put them right.
No 1 John Drysdale
Performance: 10.30
Unfortunately I just caught the last part of John’s performance but I was assured by Jon from Beyond the Bean that it was a ‘solid shop barista Performance’. He looked very confident and relaxed, which was surprising as I have been told since that it was his first time competing. I remember spotting him at the Jam. Definitely a good event for bringing people on. Well done everyone! Please fill me in and I’ll edit this John/crowd members.
No 2 Lance Turner – Lavazza
Performance: 10.50
Drink order: Capps, Espresso, Sig.
Lance had a fantastic presentation in my opinion. I’d heard mutterings that some folk had regarded Lance’s entry as a bit of a laugh but he soon put them in their place. As a rep I’m sure he is used to giving presentations and it showed.
I was fascinated by his silver espresso cups which fitted in perfectly to his black and silver set up. I’ve since been told that they caused a small problem with the life and consistency of his crema and he didn’t get the points he should have due to a wider rim than normal. Still I’d have them in my collection any day. Lance if your throwing them out throw them my way.
Lance’s blend consisted of coffees from Brazil, Peru, Honduras and a Sumatran Robusta. (Lance further clarification in the comments if you want) His capps looked good but I think I may have put him off by ramming a camera lens pretty close to him when he was pouring. Oh I’m sure I’ll get my comeuppance as everyone gets their own back. The signature drink was entitled ‘Hot and cold Spiced Macchiato’ consisting of Lemon grass, Galangal (I think) infused into syrup and the combined with rose water and milk over espresso. It was a good use of Thai spices and made for a tasty drink.
No 3 Emma Chapman – The Bottle Kiln, Ilkeston.
Performance: 11.15
Drink order: Espresso, Capps, Sig.
Emma had a great set up and had obviously picked up a lot from fellow Bottle Kiln’er Maxine who has competed several times. (To follow) She had a lot of support and there seemed to be people from the Bottle Kiln just about everywhere you looked.
Emma’s blend consisted of Coffees from Brazil, Honduras and India which created a nutty, chocolaty tasting espresso. Her capps were will poured well and she went down the latte art route. A slight mis-pour on one capp but she rescued it very well. Her signature drink was a short raspberry and chocolate affair which was served in shot sized glasses.
I felt a little sorry for Emma as she was belittled a bit by the compere who suggested that she got her inspiration for the signature drink from all the tequila slammers she’d drunk. It was an uncharacteristic comment from the MC. I would have been fuming at if anyone had said anything like that during a performance I had trained for and researched for months. Nevertheless, she carried on unflustered to complete her performance.
No 4 Sindy Kamcheong – Ritazza
Performance: 11.40
Drink order: Capps, Espresso, Sig. Sindy was the set up star of the day with a rose theme echoed even on the lapels of those supporting her. Fresh from her win in the 2007 Caffè Ritazza WorldBarista Championship, Sidney oozed self confidence and composure. Her blend consisted of coffees from Guatemala, Brazil (Daterra) and Sumatra. She opted for traditional capps with milk foamed in ‘the old enemy’, the belly Jug. They looked great and must have tasted just as good as I’m assured she scored well.Sidney split up her drink into components and engaged the judges.
A chocolate Turkish Delight signature drink made with melted organic Ecuadorian chocolate which she offered to all the judges at the start of her performance. The drink was topped with delicate rose-flavoured milk. She finished well within time although there was nearly a disaster when she knocked one of the espresso parts of her signature drink over when they were served. Quick hands saw to it that it wasn’t.
No 5 Will Thornborough – Cardiff Coffee Company
Performance: 12.05
Drink order: Capps, Espresso, Sig. I’ve become quite good friends with Will since the Barista Jam in October and I was very much looking forward to his performance.
I kept sneaking in to the prep room and pinching capps while he set up, which was much appreciated after the slight excess of the night before with everyone. I do love coffee events as I can chat over a beer about the things I’m doing all day everyday within coffee. I envy the guys who can go into a bar at the end of the week and chat about the little intricacies’ of their job without someone looking at them as if they have two heads. Anyway back to Will.
Will chose to use two grinders and also two single origin coffees something that I’m a little scared of if I’m honest. I would be too nervous in my first competition to deal with the variables of dialing in two grinders. Maybe next year for me, but fair play to Will for the punt.
Will’s set up was plain but elegant and he featured a digital photo frame with scrolling pictures taking the judges from Plantation to cup. This was something quite novel that I hadn’t seen before and gave the judges something to do in between tasting the drinks. Wills Capps were served in a wider rimmed cup as opposed to the tulip which is seen so much in competition. He presented with latte art hearts which looked full in the cup. A ginger Macchiato signature drink followed with a ginger syrup which he created himself. (Coffee clarification my old Mate?)
Lunch break for spectators and judges (and well needed)
12.25 to 1.00 pm
This is where I get a little hazy as The Tobacco factory was open as usual for lunch and the background noise almost totally drowned out the competitors. Mics would have been a definite help at this juncture. God knows I was close enough to the action.
No 6 Meagan Donouan
Performance: 1.05
Drink order: Espresso, Capps, Sig.
Meagans’s set had a Guatemalan feel and she benefited from the refreshed judges. She coped well with having to re-pull some shots for her capps and it didn’t seem to fluster her too much although as soon as she’d finished you could see the relief on here face.
Her signature drink was served in opaque white wine glasses and featured a mango and cinnamon compote with coconut milk and espresso. She finished in good time and had a very clean and tidy station.
No 7 Ben Townsend – Independent
Performance: 1.40
Drink order: Capps, Espresso, Sig.
Ben’s set up featured specially made wooden blocks on which he served all of his drinks. They featured concentric rings cut out of the wood to fit each of the cups in his performance.
The first thing that struck me about his performance was the extra bit of equipment A candy floss maker. My mind boggled and I was very much anticipating its use. Due to the background noise I couldn’t catch anything Ben was saying but he managed to get everything across to the judges. I’m very interested in his blend if anyone can help. He poured some great Capps from what I could see. And his espresso must have been equally as good.
Ben engaged the judges in the signature drink by serving some pomegranate ‘sorbet’ and getting the judges to vigorously stir the espresso and syrup concoction with the end of their candy floss stick which as beautifully served in its own stand. I haven’t seen so much concentration from the judges, I had a little titter to myself and snapped away to capture the moment for posterity.
I’m quite peed off actually as before the event Ben was the one competitor I would have chosen to see if I could only pick one to get info on. I need more information on Ben’s performance!!
No 8 Simon Buckingham – Tinto
Performance: 2.05
Drink Order: Espresso, Capps, Sig.
Simon was a first time competitor and had been gently pushed by Ed Buston his coffee supplier I think. He summed up the whole feel of the day when he said that he had learned a tremendous amount from the day and wanted to compete again next year.
We need more guys like this! His set up was very minimal and he would have defiantly lost a lot of points for not having teaspoons, an apron and napkins and he didn’t address the judges much at all until his last drink.
His signature drink was honey, Belgian Chocolate, espresso and cream and was one on my favorites of the day. I would have drunk another one, which is always a good test. I’m not sure if he would have scored well with it as he undoubtedly lost point technically. But still….tasty.
No 9 Maxine Beadsmore – The Bottle Kiln, Ilkeston
Performance: 2.30
Drink order: Capps, Espresso, Sig.
Maxine is a seasoned competitor and you could tell straight away from her set up. She again, like Ben had individual wooden blocks on which to serve all her drinks and matched the set up with some soft African music and as Sindy had done before, went with a rose theme.
Her blend contained some Tanzanian AA, Indian Robusta, Bourbon (?) and some Ethiopian. She poured some great capps and didn’t follow the majority opting against splitting her milk for each capp.
Her signature dirk was a rose syrup espresso and Turkish delight with pistachio foam. I was a little surprised when Maxine finished seeing her get very emotional. She must have thought that she had done something badly wrong but I thought she put in a solid well researched performance.
No 10 Lauren Card – The good Eating Company
Performance: 2.55 Drink Order: Capps, Espresso, Sig.
Lauren had a fantastically green set up with a bespoke badge on her apron. It was a very refreshing take on what had been a very repetitively clean and crisp set of table settings up until now. She used granet bowls for the sugar and put ‘eco’ products to good use throughout the performance.
She decided to present her blend to the judges as they would be cupped, letting each judge spell the aromas of each component as they would no doubt be very used to in their various roles within the coffee industry. I thought this was a great touch as it engaged the judges.
Her blend consisted of some Colombian, Guatemalan and some Finca La Fany, El Salvador coffee. Unfortunately in her hast she poured the water into wrong cups to start and had to re-pour so as not to upset the rest of the performance. This seemed to put her a little on the backfoot to start but she soon got into the swing of things with her capps.
Her signature drink consisted of a mint and mocha frappe in which she used fresh mint leaves. It was a very clean refreshing taste but I was still thinking about trying to get another of Simons drinks and it didn’t dissuade me.
No 11 Fabrizio Liverani – Drury Tea and Coffee
Performance: 3.20
Drink order: Espresso, Capps, Sig.
Fabrizio immediately got the crowds attention as he started to set up when he brought on to stage some raw eggs. His table set up was a cloth made from hessian sacks of various origins which looked as though it had been cobbled together. I can’t help thinking about Sế’s performance last year and how much better he presented the same idea.
Fabrizio started well with his Espresso and moved swiftly on the his capps. He foamed his milk at his station and then set up to pour infornt of the judges. I’m not sure this was a very good idea for him as he put an unnecessary amount of pressure on himself. A very sold performance turned into a nervous one as he started to shake while pouring his traditional capps. They all came out great and were served to the judges and a relieved Fabrizio started on his signature beverage.
He immediately got back in the groove and looked confident as he described the traditional Italian drink his grandmother used to make. He then skillfully cracked eggs and separated the yolks out and combined them with almond syrup, sugar and the espresso. A good performance but I think he made it difficult for himself.
No 12 Elliot O’Mara – James’ Gourmet Coffee
Performance: 3.45
Drink Order: Sig, Capps, Espresso.
The one comment that I could have about Elliot is that I thought his presentation was a stereotypical English performance. He was very clean, organized and accurate. I almost wanted to get my stiff upper lip out. It was an enormous contrast to Fabritzios passion and nervousness. He almost seemed removed from himself from his performance.
Elliots coffee was a Finca Siberia from El Salvador, reputed to be run by a relation of the more famous Finca la Fany estate. The coffee undoubtedly had cranberry notes that carried on through all the drinks.
Interestingly Elliot started with his signature drink which was a cranberry juice foam over the espresso. The eagle eyed amongst you will spot a mistake there. Cranberry juice doesn’t foam very well at all. To remedy this he added some protein powder and areolatte’d it up to create a foambable liquid. For me this drink didn’t work. It was overpoweringly acidic and I didn’t think it worked too well. You could tell that the coffee was oozing cranberry through all the drinks built but I think it would have been scored a little better if he had maybe started with the capps and finished with the Signiture drink. IMHO. I bet the combination worked a lot better in practice sessions.
His capps were good and defiantly had that cranberry taste although it was much more present through the milk the acidity was dulled just enough.
Results
3rd
Maxine Beadsmore
2nd
Ben Townsend
1st
Sindy Kamcheong
Well Done Sindy!!
Congratulations to everyone who entered, judged and supported it truly was a great day out!
Judges for the day
I think I’m going to have to live blog Scotland as writing this up while preparing for competition became a chore rather than a pleasure. More templates required for a quick completion I think.
Helen From beyond the bean has asked me to help her with a piece for Barista Magazine, so I’ll no doubt be badgering all of you for finite clarification on your drinks.
I hope you enjoyed it.
To bed…….
Stu
This came out Quick!
There has been a lot of talk in the media this-morning about the risk to pregnant women that Caffeine causes.
I have just received this statement from the British Coffee Association and I thought anyone who reads this blog would find it quite interesting
Media coverage:
British Coffee Association Response
The British Coffee Association read with interest the study by Weng et al which was published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology regarding maternal caffeine consumption during pregnancy.
This was a population-based prospective cohort study of 1,063 pregnant women that concluded “high doses of caffeine intake (200 mg/day or more) during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage, independent of pregnancy-related symptoms”.
The British Coffee Association offer consistent, substantiated advice on coffee consumption during pregnancy in line with The Food Standards Agency (FSA) guidance which recommends 300mg of caffeine per day as a safe upper limit for pregnant women1. This equates to four cups of instant coffee or three cups of brewed coffee. This position is further supported by the Royal College of Midwives and the Centre for Pregnancy Nutrition.
A further study published earlier this month by Savitz et al, also investigated caffeine and the risk of miscarriage. These researchers concluded that “there is little indication of possible harmful effects of caffeine on miscarriage risk within the range of coffee and caffeine consumption reported”2.
Zoë Wheeldon from the British Coffee Association said, “Current guidance issued by The Food Standards Agency recommends a safe upper limit for pregnant women of 300 mg of caffeine per day. Whilst this study by Weng et al is a well designed, robust cohort study, this evidence must be reviewed in conjunction with existing research and it is important to review all the available data rather than taking one study in isolation.”
Please contact Lizzie Lockett at Red Door Communications on 020 8392 8063 if you require any further information or wish to discuss the study with an independent healthcare professional.
References 1 Food Standards Agency guidance on caffeine consumption during pregnancy. Downloaded 10/01/08. Website at: http://www.food.gov.uk/news/pressreleases/2001/oct/caffeinepregnant
2 Savitz, D.A, et al; Caffeine and Miscarriage Risk; Epidemiology; Volume 19, January 2008
Right then guys. There are just too many opinions on the barista craft to take in at once. Sites like www.home-barista.com, www.coffeegeek.com and www.toomuchcoffee.comhave done a great job in recent years at increasing the knowledge of the barista, the home enthusiast and even the guy at home who just wants to know how much coffee to put in his cafetiere. I think it is time to take this on to the next stage and create a wiki site for the barista. A place where everyone who has ever used a grinder or machine can write about the problems, benefits and little nuances that it has. I would like a wiki site to be a place that people come when they are wanting to know how to get the best espresso from a certain machine or how to operate a certain grinder to get the most out of their beans. The information that could be in a site like this could be endless. Tasting notes for espresso blends as tasted by baristi could be included. All machine manufacturers and models, cups, tampers, coffees, techniques, caffeine stats….anything that a barista might know.
To this end I have created a Wiki site called http://wikibarista.wikispaces.com/ which we could all start our quest from. (now disbanded- See EDIT)
A site like this would be totally independent of any branding it would be the opinions of all the baristi worldwide.
What are the thoughts on this? A good Idea?
EDIT – 19.12.07
My post on TooMuchCoffee about this has seemed to force the issue and the new Wiki for the TMC site is now online. As TMC is an independent group of coffee enthusiasts, baristi and others this will work fantastically well. I whole heartedly support them and have deleted the wiki site I created last night. Cheers Phil and the TMC team.
I’ve just found this site which I think anyone who might read my blog may have an interest in. It seems to be a social networking site for baristi, coffee shop owners and other enthusiasts. It was set up by Matt Milletto from The American Barista Coffee School (or ABC) and I think it is a great concept. From what I understand the intention is to create relationships between baristi and coffee shop owners and perhaps starting some kind of exchange program. This appeals greatly to me as I’m sure it will to a lot of baristi who would like to travel the world and meet lots of new coffee friends all of whom have the same ideals.
Join up and we’ll see what happens!
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