Industry profiles

 Industry profiles

Cofinet introduces honey and natural processing to Colombia

Prior to 2015, Colombia produced coffees for quantity, not quality. All of the country’s coffees were washed processed due to a restriction imposed by the Colombian Coffee Growers Federation (FNC) to promote only cultivars that focused on volume. The aim was “balanced, elegant, and clean” coffee, not exotic. 

“The Federation checks every lot that leaves Colombia. If the coffees were found to be anything other than washed processed, it would be rejected,” coffee importing business Cofinet Co-founder and Director Carlos Arcila says.  Read more

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New Zealand
 Industry profiles

NZSCA’s returning champions

The end of July saw two returning champions crowned at great competitions held in Auckland. 

L’affare Melrose hosted a record number of 34 coffee cuppers for the New Zealand Cup Tasters Championship. With standing room only, the talented cuppers eventually whittled down to the final round.

Impressively, this was the first time that all four finalists scored eight out of eight cups correctly in the open round. This included Takahito Koyanagi of Toasted Espresso in Auckland, 2016 NZ Cup Tasters Champion; Woo Hyung Lee of Camper Coffee who entered at the last minute; May Chan of Story Coffee in Auckland; and Stu Hargie, representing Jacobs Douwe Egberts and 2011 NZ Cup Taster Champion. Read more

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Han Tran
 Industry profiles

2016 Vietnam Barista Champion Han Tran makes tracks

There are two traditional types of barista in Vietnam according to Han Tran: those that work in street vendors selling roadside coffee that’s “dark, dense, and bitter Robusta” or in male-dominated cafés that are attracted more to the female baristas than the overpriced beverage in front of them. 

When Han told her parents she wanted to pursue a career in coffee, naturally, she says, you can imagine their disapproving reaction. 

“They were against it,” she says. “Barista work had a bad reputation because of the stereotypes. A barista was not considered a profession in Vietnam. It was not respected. My parents were worried for my safety and that I would not earn a secure income.” Read more

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Australian Subtropical Coffee Association
 Industry profiles

Australian Subtropical Coffee Association on Australia’s home-grown history

“You grow coffee in Australia?” I’ve lost count the number of times I’ve been asked this question. 

For the record, yes, we do. The first coffee seed arrived with the First Fleet around 1788, but it did not survive in the harsh climate of Port Jackson in Sydney Harbour. However, there were many efforts to establish coffee in the warmer climates of the northern rivers of New South Wales and Queensland.

Back in 1889, almost 130 years ago, the North Coast of NSW actually exported 83,066 pounds or 37.71 tonnes of raw and prepared coffee, all picked by hand. Read more

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Zest Specialty Coffee
 Industry profiles

Zest Specialty Coffee on how each step in the chain contributes to flavour

In my early days as a barista, supply chain blame always came to the fore whenever there was a complaint from a customer about the coffee. An unskilled barista would blame the roaster, the roaster would blame the green beans.

Having trust in the production chain, however, is crucial. The end flavour of a coffee relies on the strong journey of skill and transparency throughout the chain. Each link has to trust every link before them. Trust that the green beans were bought with good faith on quality, trust that the roaster has the right profiles to get the best out of the coffee, and trust that the barista has the skills and equipment to extract the most flavour. Read more

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Milklab Barista Battle Series
 Industry profiles

MilkLab Barista Battle Series winner Victor Vu visits origin

Victor Vu has a talent for latte art. He’s used to thrilling large audiences with his original designs and creative abstract patterns. 

He proved his skill when he won the MilkLab Barista Battle Series final at the Melbourne International Coffee Expo in March. He crafted three designs using MilkLab’s range of alternative milks: soy milk, macadamia milk, and lactose-free milk.   Read more

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Cirrus
 Industry profiles

Cirrus about sustainability

If we time travel to the year 2020, what would the modern age café look like? Would there be robotic baristas, self-serving espresso machines, and Willy Wonka inspired installations? Many would argue this outlook is already underway. But what about an eco-friendly café?

According to Brendan Condon, Director of Cirrus Coffee and Australian Ecosystem, it’s likely that cafés will be operating with 100 per cent renewable energy generated at source or purchased over the grid. Chefs would be cooking on induction cooktops rather than gas, and coffee grounds and food waste will be cycled into cafés’ own pop-up farms. Single-use coffee cups will also be eliminated or at the very least, made of only 100 per cent compostable and sustainable materials.  Read more

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 Industry profiles

Steve Wrightson of Mocopan Coffee playing to win

Stepping out onto Sydney’s freshly manicured Allianz Stadium dressed in the Sydney Roosters’ iconic red, white and blue jersey is a memory few are lucky to share, but one Steve Wrightson recalls well.

“It’s electric. I just loved playing the game of rugby league,” Steve says. “I played half a dozen games as a professional rugby league player until injury forced me to retire early.”

Steve was a proud Roosters player, but his heart always stayed with his childhood team, the South Sydney Rabbitohs.  Read more

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 Industry profiles

ASCA says game on

It’s competition season once again.For the Australian Specialty Coffee Association (ASCA) Board, this is one of our favourite times of the year. We love feeling the excitement of our members and experiencing the passion of the competitors. 

The 2019 ASCA regional championships kicked off on 15 September with the Northern Region, followed by the Southern Region from 13 to 14 October, Central Region from 27 to 28 October, and Western Region from 3 to 4 November. 

If you haven’t already done so, I encourage you to head to your nearest championship to see what our incredible barista community is capable of. It’s impressive to see a new generation of talent coming through the ranks, and repeat offenders who believe that persistence pays off, and indeed it does. Read more

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 Industry profiles

Probat built to last

When business partners Theodor von Gimborn, Alex van Gülpen and Johann Heinrich Lensing started out in 1868, they envisioned making commercial coffee roasters that would stand the test of time, consistently turning out high-quality coffee for customers of all sizes. Today, longevity and quality are characteristic not only of Probat machines, but also of the company’s relationships – both within the family business and its employee network, and externally among its partners and customers.

During the past 150 years, the company based in Emmerich, Germany, has built an expansive product portfolio with 115 patents and loyal customer and employee bases spanning the globe.

“We’ve been making coffee roasters ever since and continue to provide the coffee industry with enduring solutions that are in step with the times, but that also continue to function beyond that time,” Probat CEO Wim Abbing says. “Our machines are built to last, but they are built first and foremost to produce perfect coffee.” Read more

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