A barista is an artist, salesperson, coffee expert, and exceptionally quick on the uptake. Becoming a barista takes practice. Becoming a professional barista takes skill and ongoing training. The expertise of a barista can make or break any coffee shop, stand or drive-thru.

Last year you may have read my two-part series on basic barista techniques for the beginner. Since then I have been approached countless times when conducting barista training seminars at specialty coffee trade shows. The most common request is to take those basics to the next level, providing deeper insight concerning barista techniques.

With those requests in mind, I am pleased to write this two-part series which offers recommendations to turn baristas into professional baristas.

Advanced barista techniques will go in depth into coffee knowledge, how to taste coffee, a troubleshooting bad tasting coffee guide, and grand finale, latte art. The second part of the series is a detailed guideline for employee performance focusing on. Customer service for the barista, a frequently forgotten part of the barista training package.

Coffee Bean Overview

Although all the coffee in the world originated in Ethiopia, its main growing regions have expanded to include Central and South America, Africa and Indonesia. Each main growing area tends to produce a broad but similar profile regionally.

Generally, the African coffees tend to have a lot of body, are high in acidity and tend to taste winey or fruity. The Indonesian coffees contain a heavy body, with low acidity, and Central and South American coffee tends to have a medium body, with medium to high acidity.

All of these main growing regions lie within the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn. This region basically has the right temperature, humidity and rainfall to commercially produce and harvest coffee. It is a no-freeze zone, or an area that is less prone to reaching a freezing temperature that will potentially damage a coffee crop.

Coffee is quite a complex fruit. The structure of a coffee cherry contains many layers. The outer layer is comprised of skin, followed by fruit, then mucilage-a slimy mucusy membrane. Moving inward, you will find parchment, which has a silver skin, resembling the light papery skin covering a peanut in the shell. In the center are the coffee seeds (similar to a pit).

Sometimes coffee seeds fuse together to form what is called a pea berry. The pea berry is usually sorted and sold separately, as some believe it to be unique and a higher quality product.

There are two main types of coffees. Robusta and Arabica: Robusta coffees are usually grown at elevations under 3,000 feet. They have higher caffeine content, are typically larger in size, and considered commercial coffee. Robusta coffee has a lower density and is sometimes picked with commercial picking equipment. Since coffee ripens at different times on a single tree this picking method is focused more on obtaining quantity than individual bean quality.

Arabica coffee tends to be grown at elevations above 3,000 feet, are hand picked, contain only half the caffeine content of Robusta coffees, and are considered to have a higher grade of quality than its counterpart. Arabica coffee is traditionally used to roast specialty coffee.

Coffee trees can grow up to 30ft., but are typically groomed or pruned to 7 to 9ft., which makes handpicked harvesting easier and more productive. A coffee tree can take three to four years to mature, and still produce only one to two pounds of coffee per year. Considering that most coffee trees are replanted every five to six years to maintain quality soil content, it gives you a good idea and scope of the massive size and impact coffee has on the world economy.

Coffee is processed in one of two methods: wet or dry. The wet method takes the freshly picked coffee, removes the skin through I pulping method, and is then washed and stored in vats of water to ferment. From there it is spread out on to a drying patio before it is scooped up, bagged and sent to the coffee importer.

The dry method takes the freshly picked coffee straight to the drying patio where the coffee seeds actually ferment within their own skin. When a roaster receives green coffee dried in this fashion, it tends to look dirty and rough. This is the preferred method used for most Indonesian coffees.

After these processing methods are conducted the coffee is separated and sorted by defects and size, and then sold to coffee importers all over the world.

The Fun Stuff : Smelling and Tasting Coffee

To grow beyond the basics of "l like" or "I don't like" a certain coffee, it is vital to learn how to properly smell and taste coffee. That knowledge gives you an insight as to how roasters select the beans that they roast. Understanding these processes will allow you to start recognizing and picking out certain odors or flavour elements that make up your favourite brew.

The smelling process takes place by drawing in aromas. When odor molecules enter through the nostrils and mouth, they stimulate nerve cells located at the top of the nasal cavity. This stimulation shoots impulses to the brain and works with our memory, telling us what we smell. The best way to smell coffee to capture all the flavour nuances is to lean over the cup and to breathe in deeply through both your mouth and nose-similar to cats when they are checking out something interesting.

When tasting, coffee is typically rated in five different categories. Aroma, flavour, acidity, body and aftertaste. When testing coffee, you sip it very abruptly, purposely misting it in to your mouth followed by chewing on the coffee or swirling it around. This gets the coffee into every part of your mouth, affecting all the different sensation areas of your tongue.

Aroma is rated by preference and is how you prefer the scent, and how pleasing it is to you.

Flavour is rated by preference and is basically the flavours that shoot into your mind, such as chocolate or blueberry.

Acidity is rated by intensity. Basically, it's the sharpness on the sides of your tongue, or how it makes you squint.

Body is rated on intensity and how thick it is, how it sits on the tongue and whether or not you can feel it on your teeth.
Aftertaste is rated by preference and is what is left over, what lingers in your mouth after you swallow.

Knowing How to Troubleshoot is Vital

Troubleshooting bad coffee is a skill needed by every barista. When you notice your espresso is off, it helps to develop an idea or clue as to what caused the alteration or damage to the coffee. When you understand how to troubleshoot, you can quickly rectify the problem.

The first step you want to take is to ask yourself what is different than "normal".

How do the coffee beans look? Are they oily or discolored? Excess oil excreting to the outside of the beans may be caused by improper storage; temperature fluctuations, or age. Don't discount the possibility that the wrong coffee may have been delivered. The next step is to determine what is bad about the coffee's taste.

Burnt flavour: The espresso machine water temperature may be too high, the machine group heads may be dirty, the grinding burrs may be dull, or the coffee may simply be over-extracted.

Bitter : May be caused by old coffee, dull grinding burrs, or an improper dose.

Sour: Bad coffee may be caused by poor or improper rinsing of the group heads, or the pump pressure may be too high.

Bad Body: The water temperature may be too low, or the pump pressure may be too high.

Grinding Burrs: You should be changing your espresso grinding burrs on a regular basis. Depending on the type of grinding burrs, they should be changed out every 600 to 800 pounds of coffee that runs through them. Check with your espresso machine provider to find out the type of burrs your grinder has, and how often you should be changing them. When grinding burrs get dull, they no longer finely cut and slice the coffee. They will break and smash the coffee bean, affecting the extraction, and this will cause the coffee to taste burnt or bitter.

Cleanliness: When was the last time you back-flushed your espresso machine? How often do you back flush? It cleans out the inside of your espresso machine by forcing a mixture of hot water and a cleaning detergent from the group head into the inside of the machine. This cleans out the corrosive elements and residue that coffee will leave behind. This buildup of coffee oils and residue, if not cleaned out, will contaminate the screens and group head, causing a burnt or bitter flavor. This affects extraction.

Water Temperature: Have you noticed an increase or decrease in water temperature? An increase will cause the coffee to be over extracted, resulting in a burnt or bitter flavor. A decrease in water temperature will cause under-extraction, resulting in a weak or watery flavor.

Water Quality: Bad water makes bad coffee. Has the water going into your espresso machine been properly filtered? Proper water filtration will not only improve the flavor quality, but will also help to prevent scaling. Scaling is the result of a build up of calcium and minerals, which coat the inside of the boiler and the heating element. This coating will lower boiling capacity. By coating the heating element, it will cause heat to take longer to radiate through, causing a performance problem as well.

Latte Art : The Frosting on the Cake

So now that you have learned a little more about the industry, tasting and troubleshooting, what would be left to add to your skills? The thing that can take a barista from just a barista to a true professional is presentation. The icing on the cake is learning and practicing latte art!

Customers like to receive value, as well as something "extra" that latte art offers. Latte art is the creation of designs and images made from steamed milk. By maintaining a proper steaming technique and controlling the pour, a talented latte artist can produce beautiful leaves, hearts and rosettas.

Latte art is quickly growing in popularity and has really become a spotlight at the industry trade shows. Coffee Fest's Latte Art Competition attracts promising baristas from around the world to compete for cash prizes and ultimate bragging rights. The new creations are creative and unique, and are fascinating to watch and practice. I will focus on the two most popular designs, the leaf and the heart.

The first step in creating latte art is to have properly steamed milk that has the right consistency, texture and density to pour the intricate designs.
Milk steaming or "foaming" is the process of injecting air into the milk. Blending mixes the foam with the milk to create a creamy texture. The final result should be a creamy dense texture with no visible bubbles. Injecting air should be done only up to 1000 F. Blending should only be done after 100° F.

Pour milk into the steaming pitcher, being careful not to over fill. Purge your steam wand to expel any standing water. Completely immerse to wand into the milk.

Turn the steam valve on and quickly raise the wand to where it is just below the milk surface. You should hear a very slight hissing sound as the air is introduced into the milk body. Keep the wand at this level until the milk temperature reaches 100° F.

At this point, lower the wand back into the milk while tipping the steaming pitcher at a slight angle. This will cause the milk to circulate, combining the introduced oxygen with the rest of the body. Continue until you reach your desired serving temperature (140° - 160° F). Turn off the steam wand, keeping the tip immersed in the milk.

Tap the pitcher firmly on a flat surface to burst any large bubbles that may have risen to the surface. Swirl the milk to combine the foam and milk.

Latte Art - The Leaf

Begin with properly steamed milk.

Firmly tap the pitcher on the counter to break any large bubbles that may have collected at the surface. Swirl the milk in the pitcher combining the foam and milk together while maintaining the same speed, slowly pour a steady stream of milk into the center of the espresso shot(s).

Once the cup is about half full, start rocking the pitcher from left to right in a tight controlled motion. This should produce a wavy fine seperation of colour.

As you near the surface, slowly start backing the picture toward one side of the cup. As the stream moves, tighten your rocking motion. Right before the cup is full, cut back across the milk surface with a quick steady motion, creating the leaf stem.


Latte Art - The Heart

Begin with properly steamed milk.

Firmly tap the pitcher on the counter to break any large bubbles that may have collected at the surface. Swirl the milk in the pitcher combining the foam and milk together.

While maintaining the same speed, slowly pour a steady stream of milk into the far side of the cup directly over the espresso shot(s).

Create a growing white circle in the rising surface by very slightly rocking the pitcher from left to right.

As the surface is just below the top of the cup, draw the stream of milk toward and over the opposite side, creating the heart.

There is much more involved in being a barista than taking beverage orders,
preparing drinks, and serving them. Understanding where coffee comes from, how it is processed, and how to troubleshoot challenges is vital in the growth process of an advanced barista. It is fascinating, fun, and a profession to be envied.

Keith Hayward is vice president - sales & marketing for Dillanos Coffee Roasters, located in Summer, Washington. He travels the country facilitating barista-training seminars. Whether teaching a class at an industry convention, such as Coffee Fest Seattle, or for Dillanos clients, his attendees walk away with a much richer knowledge of the coffee industry. Keith Hayward can be reached at : Tel : (l) (253) 8261807 or
keithH@dillanos.com