When 2012 World Brewers Cup Champion Matt Perger made a speech about his involvement in the development of Eversys’ new machine at Host Milan 2017, he spoke about the consumer mentality of ‘guilt’ that harmed the sales of 1950s US brand Betty Crocker.
The promising product took a dive when home cooks were unable to admit to partners they baked a cake from a packet mix instead of taking the time to make the product from scratch. Matt told audiences that the coffee industry had experienced a similar ‘guilt trip,’ with industry members conditioned to look at a superautomatic machine and think of “low quality”, and a “non-player” in the market, which has held back consumer support.
“It’s a psychological issue that’s been holding us back,” Matt says. “Most baristas think that their job is the manual component of work, but that’s just a small part of it. There’s a massive opportunity for cafés to reinvent the service model if they can look past the stigma associated with superautomatics and see the potential in automation.”
Matt first presented the idea of automation at Host Milan 2015 when he talked about the ‘controversial’ idea of superautomatic coffee machines eventually wiping out the role of the barista.
Eversys Chief Commercial Officer, Kamal Bengougam, heard Matt’s speech and saw an immediate alignment with his vision. He chased Matt for 18 months to become an Eversys ambassador and be involved in a new product development.
“We knew that Matt was a great barista and a great guy, but also that he is very curious about coffee,” Kamal says. “Even as a young barista Matt was already looking at evolution in our industry and what it would mean for the barista profession.”
Three years on from that ‘controversial talk’, innovation has become Matt’s job.
“I’m glad my job – or cameo role –with Eversys is focused on innovation. Innovation and automation is not a matter of the barista becoming extinct, it’s about a shift of role. A barista does not grind or brew, machines do that. They froth milk and add a squiggle of latte art on top. That’s it,” he says.
“In 10 years time traditional baristas will cease to exist. Maybe they’ll become artistic directors or the equivalent of wine sommeliers. Their role will go from creating a product to creating an experience for the consumer. Sommeliers don’t make the wine from scratch in front of you, they pop a cork, and I think baristas will go in the same direction.”
Just as people who drive a car trust Google Maps to get them from A to B, Matt says all that’s needed now is for baristas to trust a machine to make them a quality coffee. Its authenticity is now being tested with the launch of the Swiss manufacturer’s most advanced superautomatic machine to date, the Eversys c’2 Cameo.
At Host 2017, BeanScene watched one customer question where the hopper and milk supply was in the c’2 Cameo, convinced the unit was a traditional machine until Matt told her otherwise.
“That’s when you know we’ve done our job,’” Matt says. “The truth is, not one barista in the four days of the show argued that they could make any of the elements of coffee preparation better than this machine can.”
C’2 Cameo really does have all the bells and whistles you’d find in a traditional machine, and that’s largely due to its development phase.
“We wanted to produce a machine that delivered a product that tasted like it came from a traditional machine and looked like one too, but was not,” says says Eversys Co-Founder, Jean-Paul In-Albon.
“We want to compete with traditional machines around the world. For so long, the superautomatic market has had the technology, but hasn’t had the visual style that so many customers look for.”
The challenge from day one was how to reduce the gap between traditional Italian coffee equipment and the speed and innovation of superautomatic machines without sacrificing quality.
“Our approach was different to others. We wanted to perfect the coffee first, then built the automation around that, not the other way around,” Jean-Paul says.
The result is a machine with a unique C shape – a lower chassis which is 13 centimetres narrower and 15 centimetres shorter than the Eversys e’2.
In the past, Jean-Paul says most superautomatic machines were ‘tall, clumsy monoliths’ because it’s hard to make quality coffee in a small unit, but Eversys technicians have been able to use their expertise and experience to fit all of the proven technology from their previous machines into a smaller, shorter shell.
Jean-Paul says the result is a machine that allows baristas to relinquish mundane tasks, to be more creative in their work, and for businesses to be more profitable.
“People forget that business is about profitability and if you have high overheads, you need sales, momentum, and consistency. The Cameo is an instrument for high-volume businesses to be profitable,” Kamal says.
“Convenience is changing the game. Office coffee sales will go up, and the quick service market will have to up their game to the point of coffee shops being threatened. If I have equal if not better coffee available to me at half the cost via a superautomatic machine, why would I go join a long line at a specialty coffee shop?”
Jean-Paul says the reason no one has tackled a machine in the same direction as Cameo before, is simple: “Because you put yourself in danger,” he says. “If we said we were going to do it, we’d have to prove it. We had to go and do it first before announcing it to the world.”
From grinding to brewing, hydraulics to steam, water boilers to milk, all internal components in the c’2 Cameo are modular and can be easily removed and replaced.
“Simply take out a tray, swap it out for a new one, problem solved – it saves on servicing time and costs,” Matt says.
The machine features two 1.2 kilogram bean hoppers feeding two grinders incorporated inside the casing.
The Eversys early warning system alerts operators when to refill their hoppers. It uses flat burrs with a five-micron adjustment of precision, and computer settings can adjust grind base on previous shot time.
The grinder module is made up of two ceramic grinder discs, driven by a powerful yet quiet motor, by which heat is channeled away from the coffee beans via a set of fans. Electronic control maintains consistency of product throughout the day, ensuring optimal extraction at all times.
The c’2 Cameo’s electronic milk texturing (EMT) system allows operators to create “silky milk foam” thanks to an improved e’Foam system with micro air dosing (MAD). This feature allows baristas to create bespoke milk textures electronically, depending on the recipe requested. Milk can be textured with the in-built steam wand, with the use of a temperature probe, or by injecting steam with air or without.
This article features in the April edition of BeanScene. To read the FULL copy, subscribe now.
For more information, contact Service Sphere, Australian distributors of Eversys machines at www.servicesphere.com.au