When it comes to dairy alternatives, Australian café customers can feel confident that when they ask for a dairy substitute at their local café, most of the time they will be presented with a plethora of options to satisfy their needs.
Vitasoy has been making dairy substitutes since 1940. First came soy milk, then almond, coconut, and rice milk, and now Vitasoy is excited to release its new Café for Baristas Oat Milk product and have customers adding the new dairy substitute to their shelves.
Seven Miles Coffee Roasters opened its Coffee Science and Education Centre (CSEC) earlier in 2018, keeping the roaster on the forefront of developments in coffee science. From water composition to flavour experimentation, the team at CSEC is working to progress Australian’s knowledge of coffee by separating fact from fiction.
Leading CSEC is Dr Adam Carr, a chemical engineer who has forged a research career over the past eight years, working at Cornell University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Aerodyne Research.
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Danny Wilson is in high spirits following his third-place win at the World Coffee in Good Spirits Championship (CIGS) in November. Following the results, the Ona roaster celebrated with a glass of champagne before attending the official competition after party with his team.
“It’s crazy to think I only [had] about four months’ preparation in total. To end up third with so much talent in the competition is super inspiring. It’s a testament to the quality of Australian specialty coffee,” Danny says.
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The past year couldn’t have been more of a surprise to me. At the beginning of September 2017 I would have said I’m not interested in competing in coffee championships. Little over a year later, I placed 10th in the 2018 World Brewers Cup (WBrC).
The Brewers Cup is a platform that can mean something different to each competitor. For me, it was a way to challenge myself and grow personally by getting out of my comfort zone. Through doing it, I not only accomplished these goals but managed to push myself professionally and developed my coffee knowledge immensely in a short space of time.
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It’s been quite the year. I finally lived my dream of representing Australia at the World Latte Art Championships (WLAC) and the experience was everything I could have hoped for.
I may not have won the title I went there to win, placing fourth instead, but I met so many amazing competitors from around the world and had the most incredible time.
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Visiting Veneziano Coffee Richmond is a unique experience. Passing its roastery operations, cupping lab and a smaller interactive micro roastery, you are welcomed into its newly opened 80-seat dining space. But that’s not all Veneziano Coffee Roasters has to offer, with a state-of-the-art training studio upstairs.
Veneziano’s training school runs three sessions a day, covering everything from the barista basics to roasting and cupping.
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I love creating coffee cocktails. Experimenting with different recipes, ingredients, and techniques is super rewarding. It teaches you how many possible ways there is to serve coffee.
In July 2018 I won the Australian Coffee in Good Spirits Championship. For me, this win felt like the culmination of five years of competition.
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Sam Low says his two passions, specialty coffee and Chinese gastronomy, share more in common than is immediately obvious.
“[Gastronomy] is one of those topics you jump into, and the more you try to understand it, the less you understand,” Sam says.
Trends Sam says are gaining momentum in the coffee and food industries are traceability, and the flavour of terroir.
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Much like a car, espresso machines require regular check-ups from a trained professional to prevent potential issues and replace worn parts.
Service Sphere Director Maurizio Marcocci says it’s surprising how many café owners and roasters still don’t understand the benefit of regular maintenance.
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Competitions are one of the most rewarding growth experiences available to a barista. They’re scary, fun, tough, and competitive, but highly worth trying to benchmark your skills and putting yourself in a challenging position.
The hardest part about starting your competition campaign is knowing where to start. Competing can be quite a daunting process: standing up in front of a panel of judges, displaying your skills to professionals and in some cases, presenting a speech with the countdown clock and flashing cameras in your peripheral. The key to starting your competition preparation, however, is to do just that – start.
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