If any of you are in, or will be in the Seattle area at the end of the month - you owe it to yourself to go to the Northwest Regional Barista competition.
Yeah - there will be rock star baristas in action.
Yeah - there will be parties at Cyclops and Elysian Brewing and Zoka and and and.
Yeah - there will be cool people and tasty treats and chances to cheer for your favorites.
Yeah - the best barista in the Northwest will be crowned (and awarded $1k in cash!!).
But... there also are going to be a couple of amazing opportunities that you should not miss.
First - there is going to be an antique espresso museum machine. Various machines from the collections of Kent Bakke, John Blackwell, Duane Sorenson and John Sanders are going to be on display. These include most if not all of the seminal and key machines in the history of espresso machine development. Perhaps a once in a lifetime opportunity.
Second - during the competition, there will be periodic cupping events (2-3 per day). The coffees being cupped will be limited to those that are award winning. If you want to get a chance to taste coffees from the Cup of Excellence, Kenya and Ethiopian Auction Lot coffees and coffees from the Best of Panama (like the Esmerelda Especial and the Carmen Estate) then this is your chance. Again... the chance to see cupping tables like this... probably also a once in a lifetime event.
Oct 28-30.
MOHI (800 Pike, across from the Convention Center)
Seattle WA
9am-5pm.
10.11.2005
10.06.2005
B.W.A
I'm tired of this whole "4 star" silliness.
I'm tired of people wanting coffee bars to be restaurants, of whining about baristas not sucking up to customers - of the whole stupid idea.
There is a reason it's called a coffee bar.
"Barista" is a bartender.
Coffee bars should be like bars.
Baristas should be bartenders.
Is there a "4 star" movement in bars?
How many times have you heard people talk about "lovable surly" bartenders?
When I go to Toronado in SF do I get cranky about the fact that it's beat up? That there are no linen tablecloths? That it's kind of a dive? Do I refuse to tip because the bartender hasn't smiled at me and in fact has been a bit abusive.
No.
Why? Because they are the best beer bar in the US.
Why? Because the beer they serve is incredible, the bartenders know their beer, their selection is amazing and their commitment to (or even obsession with) these great beers is incredible.
Do they serve panini? Do they offer blended drinks?
Hell no!
They are a BEER BAR.
And this is the model we should be following.
Passion. Committment. Taste. Vision. Single-minded obsession.
So... with that...
I announce the formation of the B.W.A (Baristas With Attitude).
We're bastards, we're surly - but we know coffee, we're passionate about coffee and we're going to get you the best damn coffee you've ever had.
'Cause if what you want is someone to blow smoke up your ass there are a thousand places for that - but if what you want is to share a passion for great coffee and get a great coffee drink, then a crumb scraper isn't going to mean shit to you.
I'm tired of people wanting coffee bars to be restaurants, of whining about baristas not sucking up to customers - of the whole stupid idea.
There is a reason it's called a coffee bar.
"Barista" is a bartender.
Coffee bars should be like bars.
Baristas should be bartenders.
Is there a "4 star" movement in bars?
How many times have you heard people talk about "lovable surly" bartenders?
When I go to Toronado in SF do I get cranky about the fact that it's beat up? That there are no linen tablecloths? That it's kind of a dive? Do I refuse to tip because the bartender hasn't smiled at me and in fact has been a bit abusive.
No.
Why? Because they are the best beer bar in the US.
Why? Because the beer they serve is incredible, the bartenders know their beer, their selection is amazing and their commitment to (or even obsession with) these great beers is incredible.
Do they serve panini? Do they offer blended drinks?
Hell no!
They are a BEER BAR.
And this is the model we should be following.
Passion. Committment. Taste. Vision. Single-minded obsession.
So... with that...
I announce the formation of the B.W.A (Baristas With Attitude).
We're bastards, we're surly - but we know coffee, we're passionate about coffee and we're going to get you the best damn coffee you've ever had.
'Cause if what you want is someone to blow smoke up your ass there are a thousand places for that - but if what you want is to share a passion for great coffee and get a great coffee drink, then a crumb scraper isn't going to mean shit to you.
9.30.2005
Northwest Regional Barista Competition
So I've learned yet more about the comp.
It's going to kick ass.
There are so many cool things planned... I think this is going to set a new standard for these regional barista competitions.
Rumour has it that these have been filling up fast in all the regions - and the Northwest Region, as we all know, has tons of serious baristas. If you're interested in competing you need to fill out and send in your registration form ASAP. If you're interested in judging... same goes for you.
And if you have any thoughts of being in the Pacific Northwest the last week of October, well... you owe it to yourself to come check out the madness.
Oct 28-30. Seattle WA.
Be there!!!
I'm so excited.
It's going to kick ass.
There are so many cool things planned... I think this is going to set a new standard for these regional barista competitions.
Rumour has it that these have been filling up fast in all the regions - and the Northwest Region, as we all know, has tons of serious baristas. If you're interested in competing you need to fill out and send in your registration form ASAP. If you're interested in judging... same goes for you.
And if you have any thoughts of being in the Pacific Northwest the last week of October, well... you owe it to yourself to come check out the madness.
Oct 28-30. Seattle WA.
Be there!!!
I'm so excited.
9.29.2005
cool tools kick ass
Slowly slowly we're starting to actually learn about espresso.
Over the last week or two, I've had the chance to work more extensively with the so-called "Scace Thermofilter Device." This is a rig to scientifically measure espresso machine brew temp. It's being used to evaluate machines for use in the WBC; it's in use by various machine vendors for calibration purposes; and most top machine techs seem to have one for doing quick adjustments to the machines they maintain. It's not cheap - but it's very good at what it does.
As a result of the time I've spent with this device I have learned a number of things. Most importantly, I've had to radically re-evaluate my perceptions on optimal brew temps.
For example - using the old school methods (pioneered by Schomer et al) for measuring brew temp I had the idea that the Hairbender was best at around 199 or 200 F. Using the Scace, I've determined that the optimal brew temp is more like 197 or 198 F. This is a big difference.
Interestingly, this has lead me to discover that, when brewed at the optimal (for my tastes) brew temp, the Hairbender is actually better at a lower brew pressure than I'd thought. At brew pressures of below 9BAR the crema persistance becomes noticably weaker - but the flavour and mouthfeel improves. I'm really liking the results at around 8.5BAR right now.
And this has lead me to discover that, when brewed at this temp and pressure, the Hairbender tastes best (to me) at 3 days out of the roaster rather than at 4 days.
Very cool.
I've also been playing around with a super-fancy borrowed pH meter rig. I'm finding some unusual things about coffee.
Oh... and we're a month away and counting from the mighty Northwest Regional Barista Championship. This is always a fun event - but this year should be even better than usual. It's being hosted by Hines and Stumptown - so you can assume that it is going to be fun, wild, crazy, intense... all the usual stuff you'd associate with those two companies. I'm starting to hear about the plans and all I have to say is BE THERE. Seriously. 27-29 October. Seattle.
finally - on a non-coffee note - it turns out that i have to have ankle surgery after all. pretty much a total drag. so i'll be laid up and on crutches again. and then back to PT. seeming a bit never-ending right about now.
Over the last week or two, I've had the chance to work more extensively with the so-called "Scace Thermofilter Device." This is a rig to scientifically measure espresso machine brew temp. It's being used to evaluate machines for use in the WBC; it's in use by various machine vendors for calibration purposes; and most top machine techs seem to have one for doing quick adjustments to the machines they maintain. It's not cheap - but it's very good at what it does.
As a result of the time I've spent with this device I have learned a number of things. Most importantly, I've had to radically re-evaluate my perceptions on optimal brew temps.
For example - using the old school methods (pioneered by Schomer et al) for measuring brew temp I had the idea that the Hairbender was best at around 199 or 200 F. Using the Scace, I've determined that the optimal brew temp is more like 197 or 198 F. This is a big difference.
Interestingly, this has lead me to discover that, when brewed at the optimal (for my tastes) brew temp, the Hairbender is actually better at a lower brew pressure than I'd thought. At brew pressures of below 9BAR the crema persistance becomes noticably weaker - but the flavour and mouthfeel improves. I'm really liking the results at around 8.5BAR right now.
And this has lead me to discover that, when brewed at this temp and pressure, the Hairbender tastes best (to me) at 3 days out of the roaster rather than at 4 days.
Very cool.
I've also been playing around with a super-fancy borrowed pH meter rig. I'm finding some unusual things about coffee.
Oh... and we're a month away and counting from the mighty Northwest Regional Barista Championship. This is always a fun event - but this year should be even better than usual. It's being hosted by Hines and Stumptown - so you can assume that it is going to be fun, wild, crazy, intense... all the usual stuff you'd associate with those two companies. I'm starting to hear about the plans and all I have to say is BE THERE. Seriously. 27-29 October. Seattle.
finally - on a non-coffee note - it turns out that i have to have ankle surgery after all. pretty much a total drag. so i'll be laid up and on crutches again. and then back to PT. seeming a bit never-ending right about now.
9.22.2005
SCAA Moving Forward
In light of the recent discoveries at the SCAA, I think we need to start thinking about the future of the organization more seriously.
It seems as if the current issues are being addressed by the SCAA.
But getting through this current crisis is only the beginning. For the organization to survive long-term, a plan needs to be developed and actions taken to both restructure the organization and address the concerns of the membership.
First - I would strongly suggest that the SCAA bring in an external consultant to help restructure the organization and put in place best practices governance policies, procedures and structures. The organization truly needs this right now. Not only given the recent events -but also given the severe PR and trust hit the organization and the leadership of the organization have taken and will continue to take. The damage is far more likely to be significant at this level than at any (long-term) financial problems. This damage, if not carefully managed, could actually destroy the organization. Bringing in external assistance to help with this, and announcing not only that this person has been retained, but what they've been retained to do is going to go a long way towards easing tensions and preventing further damage.
At the risk of jumping the gun on this person's advice, I would tend to also suggest some changes in the organization.
First - move to a two board structure. The actual board would have to be not only free of any real conflict of interests but free even of the perception of conflict of interest. The advisory board could have people who were industry insiders on it, who would thus have a perceived conflict of interest. The advisory board would primarily function as a funnel for lobbying efforts, but would not have any vote. The true board would provide oversight and governance.
Second - The new executive director (or CEO) should not come from within the SCAA and should not come from within coffee, but instead should be brought in from a large, stable and successful industry non-profit. I would suggest looking for someone who had managed the stabilization of a large non-profit that had been experiencing significant membership churn and which had been traditionally weak in the areas of PR and Marketing.
Third - Move the SCAA from Long Beach to somewhere more likely to encourage on-site board and member involvement.
Fourth - Need to focus on building a long-term endowment for the organization.
Fifth - Obviously, need to rework the financial oversight. Suggest the obvious (yearly audits, total financial transparency to both the board and to members).
I truly believe that this can turn out to be a long-term positive event for the organization. I think many people have had problems with the organization. In particular, there has been terrible membership churn, there is a perceived sense of stagnation in the organization and there has been a noticable lack of transparency in the operations of the organization.
With luck, this could turn out to be the catalyst needed to move the SCAA into the 21st century.
It seems as if the current issues are being addressed by the SCAA.
But getting through this current crisis is only the beginning. For the organization to survive long-term, a plan needs to be developed and actions taken to both restructure the organization and address the concerns of the membership.
First - I would strongly suggest that the SCAA bring in an external consultant to help restructure the organization and put in place best practices governance policies, procedures and structures. The organization truly needs this right now. Not only given the recent events -but also given the severe PR and trust hit the organization and the leadership of the organization have taken and will continue to take. The damage is far more likely to be significant at this level than at any (long-term) financial problems. This damage, if not carefully managed, could actually destroy the organization. Bringing in external assistance to help with this, and announcing not only that this person has been retained, but what they've been retained to do is going to go a long way towards easing tensions and preventing further damage.
At the risk of jumping the gun on this person's advice, I would tend to also suggest some changes in the organization.
First - move to a two board structure. The actual board would have to be not only free of any real conflict of interests but free even of the perception of conflict of interest. The advisory board could have people who were industry insiders on it, who would thus have a perceived conflict of interest. The advisory board would primarily function as a funnel for lobbying efforts, but would not have any vote. The true board would provide oversight and governance.
Second - The new executive director (or CEO) should not come from within the SCAA and should not come from within coffee, but instead should be brought in from a large, stable and successful industry non-profit. I would suggest looking for someone who had managed the stabilization of a large non-profit that had been experiencing significant membership churn and which had been traditionally weak in the areas of PR and Marketing.
Third - Move the SCAA from Long Beach to somewhere more likely to encourage on-site board and member involvement.
Fourth - Need to focus on building a long-term endowment for the organization.
Fifth - Obviously, need to rework the financial oversight. Suggest the obvious (yearly audits, total financial transparency to both the board and to members).
I truly believe that this can turn out to be a long-term positive event for the organization. I think many people have had problems with the organization. In particular, there has been terrible membership churn, there is a perceived sense of stagnation in the organization and there has been a noticable lack of transparency in the operations of the organization.
With luck, this could turn out to be the catalyst needed to move the SCAA into the 21st century.
9.20.2005
SCAA Scandal
This was posted on another site, so I guess it's public now...
"Following the resignation and departure of the Specialty Coffee Association of America’s (SCAA) Chief Operating Officer on September 12th, a serious cash shortage was revealed. An immediate investigation by SCAA’s Executive Director uncovered serious accounting irregularities and a loss of SCAA’s cash reserves.
The association has reported this situation to the appropriate authorities, including insurers and the police. A formal investigation has been initiated and is ongoing.
The SCAA President, Secretary/Treasurer and Legal Counsel were immediately advised of the situation when it was discovered. They first informed the Executive Committee and then the entire Board of Directors. Following notification, the Board took the following actions: they 1) reported the nature, scope, and seriousness of the problem to the 125+ Committee members participating in the previously scheduled annual planning meeting; 2) restricted check signing authority to the Executive Director and Secretary/Treasurer of the Board of Directors; and 3) developed an action plan through the Committee structure to resolve the current cash crisis.
The elements of the plan for moving the association out of the crisis are three-fold. First, the SCAA has created a membership endowment fund to cover the association’s short-term loss of working capital. Second, it is continuing the normal conference planning process so that the SCAA’s Charlotte conference and exhibition is just as successful as the previous 17 events. Third, it is streamlining headquarters activities to operate within the current limits of available resources from membership dues.
The combined goodwill and determined efforts of the SCAA board of directors, staff, volunteers, members and business partners will ensure the timely and effective resolution of this situation. SCAA remains committed to its membership and is dedicated to ensuring the specialty coffee industry remains viable and strong . Rick Peyser, President of the SCAA Board of Directors, said, “The SCAA will continue to be the leading source of information and services for the rapidly growing specialty coffee community. We are moving forward with Executive Director Ted Lingle to achieve the plans we have developed and are looking forward to an outstanding annual conference that will be held in Charlotte, North Carolina April 7-10, 2006.”
The SCAA board will keep all association stakeholders informed regarding the current status of the situation and the full outcome of the investigation."
Needless to say, this is shocking and terrible.
At the same time, it was somewhat inevitable given the incredibly poor governance, cultural acceptance of "petty corruption", lack of accountability and culture of secrecy that was (and is) the SCAA.
Time for a revolution.
Official notice.
"Following the resignation and departure of the Specialty Coffee Association of America’s (SCAA) Chief Operating Officer on September 12th, a serious cash shortage was revealed. An immediate investigation by SCAA’s Executive Director uncovered serious accounting irregularities and a loss of SCAA’s cash reserves.
The association has reported this situation to the appropriate authorities, including insurers and the police. A formal investigation has been initiated and is ongoing.
The SCAA President, Secretary/Treasurer and Legal Counsel were immediately advised of the situation when it was discovered. They first informed the Executive Committee and then the entire Board of Directors. Following notification, the Board took the following actions: they 1) reported the nature, scope, and seriousness of the problem to the 125+ Committee members participating in the previously scheduled annual planning meeting; 2) restricted check signing authority to the Executive Director and Secretary/Treasurer of the Board of Directors; and 3) developed an action plan through the Committee structure to resolve the current cash crisis.
The elements of the plan for moving the association out of the crisis are three-fold. First, the SCAA has created a membership endowment fund to cover the association’s short-term loss of working capital. Second, it is continuing the normal conference planning process so that the SCAA’s Charlotte conference and exhibition is just as successful as the previous 17 events. Third, it is streamlining headquarters activities to operate within the current limits of available resources from membership dues.
The combined goodwill and determined efforts of the SCAA board of directors, staff, volunteers, members and business partners will ensure the timely and effective resolution of this situation. SCAA remains committed to its membership and is dedicated to ensuring the specialty coffee industry remains viable and strong . Rick Peyser, President of the SCAA Board of Directors, said, “The SCAA will continue to be the leading source of information and services for the rapidly growing specialty coffee community. We are moving forward with Executive Director Ted Lingle to achieve the plans we have developed and are looking forward to an outstanding annual conference that will be held in Charlotte, North Carolina April 7-10, 2006.”
The SCAA board will keep all association stakeholders informed regarding the current status of the situation and the full outcome of the investigation."
Needless to say, this is shocking and terrible.
At the same time, it was somewhat inevitable given the incredibly poor governance, cultural acceptance of "petty corruption", lack of accountability and culture of secrecy that was (and is) the SCAA.
Time for a revolution.
Official notice.
A blast from the past
I figure the timing might be interesting.
The following was first posted as a part of a larger piece here back in May of this year.
So here we go...
As a warning, I am 100% confident that I’m going to manage to piss off a lot of you at some point in this. Please understand that what I’m writing here is not only just my own opinion on things but that it’s entirely not personal and not directed at any person or people.
Specialty Coffee in the US – thoughts on the community, the people and the structures.
So we need to shake things up. How?
Well… the SCAA needs to change (first and foremost). I have a ton of respect for the employees of the SCAA. Folks like Michelle Campbell are the life’s blood of this industry. But the current governance, board and committee setup is severely broken. To a large degree it seems to be geared around protecting existing power bases and reputations and egos – around supporting and abetting conflicts of interest… in other words, it is your traditional profoundly corrupt political organization. There are some people involved who are trying to change things – there are some good politicians. But they are the exception.
As a result of the corruption and political nature of the organization, you see things like the institutionalized lack of interest in communication with and education of the consumer base. You see things like the pandering to certain vendors and the undue influence of certain vendors and organizations. You see stagnation in programs and offerings. You see an organization that is not leading the industry, but rather trailing the industry (and in the cases of the quality focused coffee companies, doing so rather severely).
These are all bad. And they are all a profound failure of the mission of an organization like the SCAA.
Given this, we really need to see not just a change in personnel at a governance level but also some structural and procedural changes as well.
I had some hope with the recent elections, but even that was (honestly) a long-term and incremental change that was unlikely to solve anything in the immediate future. Now that the results have come out, it is clear that nothing is going to change in the near future. As one person said, “the trouble with the old guard is that they all vote.” So now what do we do? People have to change. It didn’t happen in the election so I guess it’s going to have to happen in a bit less orderly of a manner.
When it comes to structure and procedures, we really need far more transparency and far more accountability. There is a Kremlin-esque quality to the SCAA that is really disturbing to me. The people working in this industry tend to have no idea what the SCAA committees and boards are doing, what the goals are – and there is little or no accountability when it comes to results. This then creeps out throughout the industry and infects all other organizations. As a result, the USBC ends up being incredibly secretive, political and insular. I’m afraid we could even end up seeing the same thing happening to the BGA.
Reading back through this I realize I sound very angry. And that isn’t quite true. I’m frustrated. I feel like there is so much potential in this industry and so much energy and passion in the people in the industry. But I feel like the organizations and structures that are in place to support, promote and represent us are failing to help us all get where we need and are instead creating a junior high school sideshow drama that is getting close to the point where quality focused companies have no choice but to simply jump ship.
Honestly – given the caliber of people in this industry – we deserve better.
The following was first posted as a part of a larger piece here back in May of this year.
So here we go...
As a warning, I am 100% confident that I’m going to manage to piss off a lot of you at some point in this. Please understand that what I’m writing here is not only just my own opinion on things but that it’s entirely not personal and not directed at any person or people.
Specialty Coffee in the US – thoughts on the community, the people and the structures.
So we need to shake things up. How?
Well… the SCAA needs to change (first and foremost). I have a ton of respect for the employees of the SCAA. Folks like Michelle Campbell are the life’s blood of this industry. But the current governance, board and committee setup is severely broken. To a large degree it seems to be geared around protecting existing power bases and reputations and egos – around supporting and abetting conflicts of interest… in other words, it is your traditional profoundly corrupt political organization. There are some people involved who are trying to change things – there are some good politicians. But they are the exception.
As a result of the corruption and political nature of the organization, you see things like the institutionalized lack of interest in communication with and education of the consumer base. You see things like the pandering to certain vendors and the undue influence of certain vendors and organizations. You see stagnation in programs and offerings. You see an organization that is not leading the industry, but rather trailing the industry (and in the cases of the quality focused coffee companies, doing so rather severely).
These are all bad. And they are all a profound failure of the mission of an organization like the SCAA.
Given this, we really need to see not just a change in personnel at a governance level but also some structural and procedural changes as well.
I had some hope with the recent elections, but even that was (honestly) a long-term and incremental change that was unlikely to solve anything in the immediate future. Now that the results have come out, it is clear that nothing is going to change in the near future. As one person said, “the trouble with the old guard is that they all vote.” So now what do we do? People have to change. It didn’t happen in the election so I guess it’s going to have to happen in a bit less orderly of a manner.
When it comes to structure and procedures, we really need far more transparency and far more accountability. There is a Kremlin-esque quality to the SCAA that is really disturbing to me. The people working in this industry tend to have no idea what the SCAA committees and boards are doing, what the goals are – and there is little or no accountability when it comes to results. This then creeps out throughout the industry and infects all other organizations. As a result, the USBC ends up being incredibly secretive, political and insular. I’m afraid we could even end up seeing the same thing happening to the BGA.
Reading back through this I realize I sound very angry. And that isn’t quite true. I’m frustrated. I feel like there is so much potential in this industry and so much energy and passion in the people in the industry. But I feel like the organizations and structures that are in place to support, promote and represent us are failing to help us all get where we need and are instead creating a junior high school sideshow drama that is getting close to the point where quality focused companies have no choice but to simply jump ship.
Honestly – given the caliber of people in this industry – we deserve better.
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