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Permalink Reply by Mike Spence on September 13, 2012 at 7:05am

Two stories for you here.  Before we started developing for the coffee industry, I was like a lot of the people you are probably talking about.  I bought a can of folgers or something at the grocery store and made it in my drip coffee maker.  I believed that the more coffee I put in the machine, the stronger the coffee would be.  Stronger = Better right?   Of course I would then add sugar and milk.  After attending some of the shows and being forced to try other things, I realized that there actually exists coffee that tastes good!  My only real exposure to specialty coffee was Starbucks so I had drinks that were always way hotter than they should be. 

For me it started with an awesome cappuccino that was not 1,000 degrees. Then it was looking at replacing my drip with a french press that we had laying around.  I went to a coffee forum and tried making french press with some coffee that I got at a show.  It was pretty good.  It just evolved from there.  Now I'm hooked :).

2nd story:  My brother thinks that an americano from Starbucks is the height of the coffee world.  A couple of years ago Matt gave me a small bag of coffee from Water Ave at Seattle Coffee Fest.  That same show, my brother was watching my kids so my wife could come to the reception party.  So, we get back from the trade show and I'm talking about the coffee that Matt gave me.  I pulled out the french press and made a cup for my brother and I.  I told him that he could not put milk or sugar into it until he tried it.  His response?  " Hey that is pretty good!".  Mine was "yeah and I don't even know what I'm doing :)!".  He now makes a little coffee at home and has branched out to other (non-Starbucks) coffee shops!

So, long post later. . . I think that the most important thing is to constantly expose people to GREAT coffee.  Let their tastes dictate what works for them but help them understand that what they think is good right now might not be.  

Whoops - third story here:  Darko from Caffee Streets in Chicago is a customer of mine.  I was in his shop a couple years ago when he first opened and this happened.  Keep in mind that Darko had a pour over bar and no airpots for coffee:

Customer - Hey do you sell just regular coffee here?  I don't like the fancy stuff.  

Darko - Yes we can make you a regular cup of coffee.  Look, it's going to look a little weird how I make it so don't pay attention to the method.  This isn't fancy - it's just different.

Darko then proceeds to setup for a pour over and makes the coffee.  The customer is obviously apprehensive because he does not see Darko just hit a pump 3 times and hand a cup over.

Customer - Hey this is really good!  I'll be back! 

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Permalink Reply by Kevin on September 13, 2012 at 2:23pm

One note I have, is that knowing a lot about coffee makes teaching the basics a little tough sometimes.  You want to share all the awesome little details, but they can be overwhelming.  I like to think of it like grades in school.  If they are at an elementary school level, teach that.  Don't toss them into a PHD program.  For instance, flavor wise, if I can get someone use to drinking Folgers to acknowledge a coffee is sweet with some fruitiness to it, that's a win.  I don't tell them the flavors are peach cobbler and hibiscus, most wont get it, and you risk losing them.

I remember years ago, back with Starbucks was still awesome, and discovering what a ristretto shot was.  Even 3 or 4 shots were less bitter than 2 regular ones.  I didn't know why, and if someone tried to explain the chemical differences of the shots back then, it would've been too much.  I really didn't care, but felt like I knew more than the average Joe and that meant better coffee.  It kept me interested, and I researched it later as my interest grew.

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Permalink Reply by Laura Clark on September 14, 2012 at 7:05am

I am doing something similar to this, except I'm focusing alittle bit more on the Coffee History. It's the very first Specialty Coffee Week in Kansas City, and wanted to do a seminar for it. So I'm doing coffee history, but at the beginning I'm going to give them a little bit of history of what coffee is and where it comes from.

But I would say to definitely make it personal, make it down to their level.

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Permalink Reply by Dennis McQuoid on September 16, 2012 at 10:18am

Don't worry about going too basic. Most baristi have virtually no clue about coffee - with the exception of those lucky ones who work for some boutique coffee houses.

In our shop, we do this everyday with customers. Not the "full-monty" with each customer, of course, but by the end of the day, we surly cover all the topics. With respect to time constraints, I would start by explaining what it takes to get a cup of coffee on the table - farm to cup. Then talk about species - Arabica vs Robusta.  Hand picking vs conventional farming. We discuss processing methods (natural, honey, and washed, aka dry, semi-washed, washed) and the effect on the taste, acidity, and body. And we talk about growing regions, varietals and profiles, and finally, brewing methods - including of each. 

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Permalink Reply by Brandon Beneventi on September 28, 2012 at 5:07pm

WOW! Great feedback all! Sorry for the late response. You all had significantly valuable feedback. This will be a group with ground level understanding (It's a culinary group...in Utah.) So I will definitely be keeping my audience in mind! Thank you all so much. Wish me luck! (I'll post results after the class, next month). Hi Mike!

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Permalink Reply by Sid Gauby on September 29, 2012 at 11:06am

Depending upon your space and time allowed you might consider making coffee in some different ways for those attending. When I do a Coffee 101 class in our shop I always start with a basic brewed air pot, then do a french press, followed by an old vacuum pot, and finished up with a chemex. I always use the same roast, grind, and ratio. This allows people to taste the difference and not just hear about it. 

The up side of that is that I almost always sell at least one chemex at the end of the class.

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