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I love sharing. I can’t help it. Maybe that’s why I have this blog. To share things with the rest of the world. Lately I got a bit disappointed by the way of sharing specialty coffee. With which you can call ‘normal’ coffee consumers. Wouldn’t it be better to share. ‘Cause sharing is caring. And I care about coffee.
A very good friend of mine, with a perfect customer service, use the sentence ‘sharing is caring’ a lot. From the first time she said it to a customer and I was around, I got it. It is true you know. If you share you care about the other person. Which makes the world a better place to be.
Okay you can call me an optimist, a love & peace hippy, a buddhist. I live with the intention of being good to others, compassion. And yes I believe in karma. Karma can be a bitch and I try to avoid this bitch. And too be honest good things are coming my way lately, so I consider Ms. Karma as my friend. Well, I am getting lost now, let’s go back to sharing.
The thing I love the most when working as a barista, next to making coffee, are the customers. Every customer is different. Has their own story. Comes from a different place in the world. Likes their coffee their own way. I don’t like stereotyping, but it’s true. It matters where they are from and what they drink. Working for a few years as a barista in different countries, I kind of know what people like. The Germans like a latte macchiato and mostly with some caramel syrup inside. If an Italian guy ask for cafe he probably means an espresso or a ristretto, while people from the north or Europe expecting to get a big cup of black coffee. Spanish people love their cafe con leche and cortado, while Asian people go crazy for a large iced americano without sugar. This is what is so interesting about working as a barista.
I don’t care that much about trends, what other people do or what I ‘suppose’ to do. I want my customer to be happy. Happy with their drink and happy with me. I want them to come back, for me. You can call me commercial, part of the consumer society. After almost 12 years of experience in hospitality and a bachelor in Textile Management & Engineering, I may have a commercial, business-oriented attitude.
There are coffee places that don’t do syrups, sugar or decaf. But why? I get that you don’t want your coffee to be ruined with additional tastes. That you want to do your own thing. Like hate it or leave it, but wouldn’t it be better to explain instead of just saying no? If people ask for a syrup, why not just explain that you have awesome coffee, full of flavor and some sweetness inside. Play with the coffees you have. Let them try your coffee and than let them decide if they want sugar inside. You get a bigger crowd, more people get to know the specialty coffee culture and a part of it can become coffee lover or freaks. Isn’t it cool? Isn’t that what we want? More knowledge and respect for the coffee?
Why avoid people that don’t really know the difference yet. If someone loves coffee, but can’t handle a lot of caffeine why not offering a shorter extraction (caffeine comes at the late flow). If they like sweet why not using a middle-short extraction (sweetness comes in the middle flow), use some perfectly made textured milk (with the right technique and temperature it is lovely sweet) and let them try. I bet some of them don’t want any sugar anymore. If you know the coffees you are using you know what works and what doesn’t. This is what I love about being a barista. Find the right coffee for every customer. And ofcourse some won’t like it or walk away, but at least we’ve tried.
This is something I do with my friends all the time. One day I took a friend to a coffee place were they didn’t had syrups. She decided not to take anything, so I let her try my filter coffee. She was impressed. This isn’t strong and bitter, this is like a tea. I like this, she said. With another friend I went to Valencia and I ordered a V60. This friend is a no sugar, but milky coffee consumer and she can tell the difference between a good and a bad coffee, but a filter coffee was a next level. She was surprised by the flavors. She told me that she understands my passion and love for coffee now. This is why I love sharing.
Maybe you’ve read my blogpost about my youth and roots. I am telling here that I wasn’t a big coffee consumer. I started with a caramel macchiato and now I am sipping filters all the time. It can’t be crazy or weird enough for me. Try me. I am a lover, a freak. Anyway what I try to say here is that you have to help other people a bit to find the love for specialty coffee. Share, explain, customize and we will have new lovers every day.
Don’t get me wrong. I have a huge respect for every barista, owner of a coffee place, roastery. I understand that people want to do their thing. And that you need to stand behind your product. It’s just that we have to help everybody a bit to care about good coffee. Mostly with baby steps.
Maybe I am a love & peace hippy (barista) after all. Just in the name of love for coffee. Peace.
Let other people explore..
