Posted by Bel Townsend on February 27, 2008 at 4:37pm
Hi all,I am doing my PhD research about the global coffee industry, and for part of my project, I need to visit a plantation. I am doing some comparison work - comparing a small-scale, organic, very high quality and ethically sound plantation with (I hope) a big commercial plantation that supplies coffee to the UK and likes of Caffe Nero or Starbucks. Ideally, I would like this to be in Central America, for purely practical reasons.Perhaps unsurprisingly, I've not had too much of a problem finding a smaller plantation (and big thanks to those of you on here that have contacted me about this!!) but I need help finding a big one. I've tried contacting Caffe Nero and Starbucks for help, and the sheer scale of this industry has meant that the buyers from these companies actually do not know exactly where the plantations are based. Which leaves me with a problem!Does anyone on here know of the plantations supplying the bigger UK chains? Do any of the farmers on BX supply to them? I'd really really appreciate any help you can give with this - contact details even better!cheers!Bel
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Wow, this site makes the geek in me super stoked...I'm all geek, so thats a lot of good vibes. I'm really excited to meet everyone here, albeit virtually (for now)... So, my name is Theresa, otherwise known as The Rza, a name that makes me sound waaaay more hip than I am in all reality. I work for a local, rock and roll, amazing micro-roastery in Cleveland. There's a lot of steam and brown fluid in this town, but at The Phoenix you know it's not toxic runoff. I'm a barista, assistant manager type, and barista trainer. Because I spend a lot of time at our training station in our roastery alone, unsupervised, and with unlimited beans....I decided to finally invest in my own tamper, just to make my little frothy art that much more mine, I guess. After doing a lot of research, and wishing to get something different than the lovely Reg Barbers we use, I chose a Thor Tamper, mainly for his rugged good looks. The idea that someone lovingly handcrafted him too, tickles my fancy. I'll be using someone else's piece of art to create my own.I think I may have briefly met a few of you at the SCAA skill building workshops last month (earlier this month? I don't know)...which was pretty sweet, although I pretty much did dishes the whole time. I'm hoping to go to the NERBC as a volunteer or judge, so maybe we shall meet again...Speaking of baristas and exchanging, we just recently had a girl from Costa Rica come work with us and learn about this end of the specialty coffee gig. She stayed for about 6 months, which was awesome. She owns a farm in....aw crap. Forget it, I don't remember, what a sham. Anyway, one of our baristas is working on her farm for about a month to learn about cultivating coffee plants and the process of picking cherries, cleaning, packaging, processing, etc. I can't wait to hear all about it when she returns. My buzz is dying and I feel a little awkward typing anymore, so you know, I hope to talk to some folks! - rza
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Posted by Mark Overbay on February 27, 2008 at 10:30am
Counter Culture Coffee cordially invites the barista exchange community to join reigning United Kingdom and World Barista Champion James Hoffmann for his 2008 U.S. East Coast Tour, March 2-15!The 8-stop tour will include coffee presentations, skill demonstrations, barista workshops, and more at Counter Culture regional training centers and other locations listed below. Hope to see many of you at the events!www.counterculturecoffee.com/jameshoffmannRegional event details:March 2Ninth Street Espresso - Chelsea MarketNew York, NY3:00 p.m.Live Barista Performance and MixerNinth Street EspressoChelsea MarketMarch 4Hyde Park, NY (Culinary Institute of America)10 - 11:30 a.m.Signature Drink PresentationDanny Kaye Theater2 - 3:30 p.m.Signature Drink PresentationDanny Kaye TheaterMarch 6Mid-Atlantic/Northeast Barista Jam10am - 12pmEspresso Extraction PresentationMarch 7Washington, DC10-11:30amCoffee Cupping7 - 9:30pmFood Pairing PresentationDC Regional Training Center1836 Columbia Road NWSuite 202Washington, DC 20009March 9Durham, NC2 - 5pmThree-Part Presentation:1) James' personal history in coffee2) Single origin espresso tasting3) Preparing for barista competitionsDurham HQ and Regional Training Center4911 South Alston AvenueDurham, NC 27713March 11Asheville, NC7 - 9pmBarista Comp. & Classic Drinks PresentationAsheville Regional Training Center77 Broadway StreetAsheville, NC 28801March 12Charlotte, NC7 - 9pmBarista Competition & Signature Drink PresentationCharlotte Regional Training Center1435 West Morehead StreetCharlotte, NC 28208March 14Atlanta, GA10 - 11:30 amCoffee CuppingAtlanta Regional Training CenterKing Plow Arts Center887 West Marietta Street NWSuite m210Atlanta, GA 303181 - 3:30 pmBarista Competition PresentationAtlanta Regional Training Center8pmParty at Octane!March 15Atlanta, GA2 - 5pmThree-Part Presentation:1) James' personal history in coffee2) Single origin espresso tasting3) Preparing for barista competitionsAtlanta Regional Training Center
James Hoffmann Biography:James Hoffmann started working as a barista back in 2003. He started working for the espresso machine manufacturer Gaggia, and quickly progressed into a training role. From there in 2005 he moved to another espresso machine company - La Spaziale to work as their national training manager. He also began competing in barista competitions that year and in 2006 won the UK Barista Championship and placed 5th in the World Barista Championship in Berne. He competed again in 2007, winning the UK again and this time went on to win in Tokyo, Japan and became the World Barista Champion. In May 2007 James left La Spaziale with the aim of starting a roastery and cafe in London. He continues to train and consult, as well as write for a variety of different publications and has an interest in food science, having worked with the chefs at the world famous Fat Duck restaurant when working on signature coffee drinks for competition.
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Posted by 3d7lj1n4xxk7t on February 27, 2008 at 9:38am
NPR's Morning Edition reported today that average Starbucks customers doubt that yesterday's massive barista retraining session will make a difference in the megacorp's coffee drink quality. And, they added, they couldn't care less. (Okay, those weren't their exact words but it was implied.)Customers interviewed in Bellevue, Washington said they didn't expect much to come from the barista retraining that closed all 7,100 of the US company-operated stores for a span of three hours. One remarked, "No matter what they do, I doubt they will make it as good as local coffee shops. Starbucks coffee is still like fast food, so it's convenient."According to Scott McMartin, Starbucks director of coffee education, the session started with an espresso tasting. "I want them to taste what the imperfections are. Taste the shot that's too long, the shot that's too short, and the milk that isn't steamed correctly." Well, good for him and them! Though I have to say that's pretty much basic training.Word on the street has it that the baristas were scheduled to spend some of their bar training time watching a corporate sanctioned DVD. I image it went a little something like this: "Susan here is a Starbucks barista. She is a valued employee and happy at her job. (Susan turns from the espresso bar to face the camera and gives a pleasant yet humble smile, showing no teeth, while her eyes betray her silent curses at having gotten roped into this project.) Unfortunately, Susan doesn't always take the time to sample the espresso at the start of her shift and doesn't know when the shots she's pulling are too short or too long, resulting in countless numbers of poorly made coffee drinks purchased by her customers. It's time Susan had a little retraining, don't you think?"All I can say is poor Susan. Why? Because I know that she and thousands of other Starbucks baristas actually do care about their job and want to do it well. Had she had the proper training and support to begin with, her customers might care, too.Susan, if I may, I'd like to give you and your barista compatriots some simple words of encouragement: Though this recent action taken by your corporate leaders may not have yielded the hoped for change in customer perception, we want you to know that, no matter what, we're all pulling for you! (Pulling for you? Get it? Oh, whatever.)LinkPost originally published by Milwaukee Specialty Food and Coffee.
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Ok. If a grand barista were to come into our tiny shop they might walk away with their head shaking. We are not just a coffee shop but we also have the basics in groceries, including toothpaste, eggs, milk, bread and cheese. We also have a couple of video games, a 5 ft Wizard gumball machine, 139 authentic autographs on the walls, Our espresso maker is a Saeko Vienna plus which is a super automatic espresso maker for the home rather than commercial ( it does make good espresso however). We serve gourmet coffee which can also be bought by the pound, two computers hooked to the Internet and free WIFI. Believe me, we have covered all the bases.We originally we going to be just a coffee shop but we are in a town of about 750 people. When we opened, we had no grocery store. As a matter of fact, the only businesses in town are a pizza/sub shop, two high end restaurants, another restaurant whose quality of food does not fit their prices, a bar (which has since closed down due to civil problems and a boat shop. Since we opened two years ago, a liquor store/convenience store has opened down the street which is taking many of our customers.Anyway, here we are. We are attempting to educate the town folk on the merits of gourmet coffee and tea instead of the sludge they get from some of the shops that are a few miles out of town. We have our regular customers that have been faithful for the past two years. But let me say this....the existence of the shop is getting critical. Being a seasonal town and waiting for the tourists to come in, it is getting hairy. Today, we have sold less that $30 in merchandise. That doesn't even pay the electricity. We have no employees, it is just my wife and I and poor Sharon has another job besides Main Street Station.The good news is that we are a place for the kids in town. Until we opened, the only place for the kids was a broken down basketball court and two toddler parks. Not much to offer teenagers. Now they have a place to go after school that keeps them out of trouble.If there was an extreme makeover for coffee shops, we would certainly be in the running.
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i have a wicked fever right now. bleccccch. i want swirl sherbet. my cousins used to call it "squirrel sherbet" because they were little and funny.also, i got into grad school! i am going to be going to the University of Wisconsin-Madison for a Masters' in Library Science. yayyyyyyyyyyyyyyy
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Posted by Andy Newbom on February 26, 2008 at 7:08am
Tragedy at our farm Partner Finca Vista Hermosa in Guatemala.Carlos of FVHfvh logoOn February 15th, 2008 a tragedy struck our farm partners at Finca Vista Hermosa in Guatemala. For the last decade or more Carlos has managed the day to day operations of Finca Vista Hermosa. He has labored tirelessly to bring exceptional quality, exquisite farming methods, demanding harvesting and processing procedures and intense cross training for all farm workers. The results have been astounding. Finca Vista Hermosa has consistently won international awards for coffee flavor and quality in auctions and programs. Carlos Martin lived a rich and full life and lived for his family and for coffee. He was training his oldest son Edwin Martin to take over managing the farm when he retires.But Carlos and Edwin Martin's lives were tragically cut short. On a return trip to the Finca they were ambushed by armed bandits and brutally murdered. They were returning with payroll for the farm workers and supplies and food for the entire farm. The sorrow and pain we here at Barefoot Coffee feel is deep and taxing. Roast Master Eugenia Chien and Andy Newbom spent a great deal of time with Carlos and Eddie when we last visited Finca Vista Hermosa.To show our love and support for the entire family of Finca Vista Hermosa and to help Carlos' wife Juana and her 11 children Barefoot Coffee Roasters is launching a support fund for their family. From February 22nd through March 7th100% of all proceeds from sales of all of our Guatemala Finca Vista Hermosa coffees beans will be donated to the fund for Juana.In about two weeks Edwin Martinez (the owner of Finca Vista Hermosa) will be going back to Guatemala and will bring down the check and present it to her. Please join us in supporting this amazing family of coffee farmers. You are also encouraged to make cash donations as well.Carlos Martin and his son Eddie were an amazing team of coffee professionals and our hearts are saddened at their passing. Carlos' older brother and original farm manager Lencho and Carlos' son Diego are working with the Martinez family to manage the harvest right now as they are in the middle of the key part of the harvest.Buy any Guatemala Finca Vista Hermosa coffee in our cafe or from our online store between now and March 7th 2008 and 100% of the sale will go to Juana and her 11 children.---------You can also make a cash donation in the cafe or online right here. http://stores.homestead.com/barefootcoffeeroasters/-strse-89/guatemala/Detail.bokor on Edwins blog:http://fincavistahermosa.wordpress.com/
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Posted by Sasha King on February 25, 2008 at 11:26pm
I don't know if I mentioned it yet but I too started a blog. You can find it at anothercoffee.wordpress.com. It's mostly about coffee but other seemingly unrelated subjects as well. You can look there for more up to date updates for this up coming trip!!!!
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Troy Reynard of Cosmic Cup Coffee and I (of New Harvest Coffee Roasters) are coordinating the Mid Atlantic Northeast Barista Jam NEXT WEEK! For all you who have registrations out there and plan on attending please contact either Troy or myself to secure your spot. We are trying to finalize the numbers and want to guarantee everyone who wants to be there is. If you are interested in more information please contact us.This event is getting better and better by the day....-Wednesday evening registration and reception featuring our keynote speaker Jon Lewis. Thursday and Friday all star cast of presenters Rob Stephen, Ellie Matuszak, Chris Deferio, Jay Caragay, James Hoffmann oh my!- 'Spro-Down, Espresso extraction competition. (Entry fees to benefit Bikes to Rwanda.)- Latte Art Throwdown (Entry fees to benefit Bikes to Rwanda.)- Two jam sessions open to the public, where jam participants will make drinks for the public, donations to benefit Bikes to Rwanda.This is in addition to the seven educational sessions and five jam sessions. There will also be a barista party on Thursday, at which the Latte Art Throwdown will take place, and yes there will be FREE beer!!!!!
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Posted by Jason Haeger on February 25, 2008 at 3:28pm
Originally taken from www.coffeeaspirations.blogspot.comAaron Blanco asked me to do some testing for a brand new espresso blend. This blend is based on an interesting philosophy of espresso blending that Aaron has been thinking about lately. Creating a blend of two coffees to create an experience that equals more than the sum of its parts. This is the first attempt at a realistic execution of this concept, and only the second "production" (as in, regularly created) blend in the history of The Brown Coffee Co. It's called "Espresso Two: Jacinto".Since he was sending this coffee, and since I was leading a tasting for the Lubbock Coffee Club, I asked if he would be interested in kicking another bag of something my way. Well, that's what the Kenya Kichwa Tembo Cooperative was intended for, but there happened to be two extra surprises when the mail arrived.The bag of Espresso One: Cottonwood (which, btw, has been reformulated for the new crop season.. more on this later) and the bag of Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Gedeo Konga Cooperative FT/O (which comes to the roaster in 25lb. vacuum sealed bags. I've seen a green sample from the broker, and this stuff looks pristine) were intended for "friends" who backed out last minute. No worries. More for me. ;o)Needless to say, I've been making crazy amounts of coffee here lately. With a full 3 pounds to burn through in a very short amount of time (not to mention visits to my friends at Sugar Brown's), the Expobar has been working overtime (and I've been praying for a plumbed pump and drain).Even the Hario TCA-2(courtesy of the guys at Barismo)is getting in on the action, as is the French Press. Notes on some of these coffees to come, but for now, I'd like to say something about Espresso One: Cottonwood.If you've ever tried it before, you may recognize the contents, except for one slight change. The Ethiopean used to be a Harrar. Now it's this "my tastebuds are confused" Yirgacheffe. The general profile of the blend has been affected, and I'm not sure what I think about it yet. I don't consider it an incarnation of Cottonwood at all, when comparing to what I remember from the last crop year. Sure.. there are similarities, but the heart just isn't similar enough for me to see it as the same blend. Don't get me wrong. That's not to say that there's anything wrong with it. Perhaps it just needs its own name.To my surprise this time around, this blend seems to prefer a slightly higher dose with a coarser grind pulled at a pretty slow pace. (something like 35 seconds before blonding.. I don't keep track of volume) Obviously this is not the star coffee of the review, but I thought I'd drop one bomb at a time (and the slew of coffee is a bomb in itself). I wanted to visit an old friend. I've found this friend to have matured a bit since last we met.Meet: the new version of Cottonwood.
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Posted by Coffee Noodle on February 25, 2008 at 2:04pm
Daddy makes really good machiattos (the silly name one) for me with his 'spresso....but Mr. Pete apparently make it a bit better :)Yay! Mr. Pete is #1!
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Posted by 3d7lj1n4xxk7t on February 25, 2008 at 6:45am
The newest additions to the Francis Francis X-series home espresso machines, the X7 and X8, are set to debut this spring and java hipsters 'round the globe are trying their level best not to scream like little girls at a Beatles concert as they wait for their first look.Designed by Milan architect Luca Trazzi, the series' first machine, the X1, was released in 1995, sending shock waves through the coffee enthusiast community. Sleek, sharp and oh so pretty, it was a huge hit among those who prefer their espresso machines to go beyond mere function and into the realm of chic appliance speak as it says all you need to know about the owner in one quick glance.So, how much will the espresso fashion obsessed be expected to slap down for the X7 or X8? No word yet on that. The price range of the current X-series offerings is $500-$1000, so I'm betting that these two new machines are gonna be mighty dangerous to any hipster's bank account.Link (via Coffee Talk)Post originally published by Milwaukee Specialty Food and Coffee.
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Posted by Jason Haeger on February 25, 2008 at 1:44am
So this is most likely my last blog post here.The rest can be seen at:tx-coffee.comorwww.coffeeaspirations.blogspot.comI'd love to keep another, but I fear I'll just end up neglecting one of the three if I try to keep tabs on too many things.Who knows, maybe I'll blog here on occasion.
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Finally my nerdom of coffee is met and challenged by other uber coffee nerds. I raise my imaginary drink in hand to the hopes of in depth coffee conversations spurred by this site.
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Pacific Bay Coffee Company is seeking a motivated coffee person to join our staff of enthusiastic coffee professionals. Opportunities are in wholesale sales, wholesale account management, training and barista-cashiers.We are obsessive about our work and are constantly pushing the limits of our coffee experience. For us, the search for the coffee perfection is a daily journey. You are the right person for our company if you love coffee, work well under pressure, are a self starter, detail oriented, responsible, punctual, take pride in your work, and are willing to learn new skills and techniques - and have fun while you are doing it. You must love coffee and people.We are a four year old growing company and are looking for quality people to grow with us.Our retail café is located at 1495 Newell Avenue, Walnut Creek, CA 94596Our new Roastery & Training Center is located at 2332 Fourth Street, Suite E, Berkeley, CA 94710Send us an email describing why we should consider you to join our team. No phone calls please.email: info@pacificbaycoffee.compacificbaycoffee.comPhotos on FlickrRead more…
Posted by Troy Reynard on February 23, 2008 at 1:45pm
So, many of you may have noticed the photo of my tamper tat on my forearm. My whole concept is to have a portafilter on my other arm. I really liked the "Baristas for Bikes" logo for the upcoming WRBC but the portafilter is in the wrong direction and I'd want the bicycle tire on the larger part of my forearm. So, if you have some design talent, submit the winning entry and receive one pound of Bicycle Blend Espresso, a Cosmic Cup/Viva Barista T-Shirt and $40 donated to Bikes to Rwanda in your name!
Posted by Bel Townsend on February 23, 2008 at 10:00am
Mi vida esta confusanda.Life is bloody complicated at the minute. I've been doing some real proper research in the real world, involving talking to real actual alive people, (as opposed to reading and regurgitating, or emailing). It's HARD. And the more I learn, the more complicated it seems to get.One real, actual alive person was helpful - Paul/Pablo from Caffe Nero head quarters. Unfortunately, what he told me has totally and utterly confused things even more. Maybe I was naiive to think it wasn't that complicated. Tracing the origins of coffee is an immense task at the best of times, but when the only source of information I can get hold of at the moment is trying hard to protect the positive image adopted by their brand marketing, what I get is not exactly deep - or even that accurate.It turns out, perhaps unsurprisingly, that Nero's coffee does not comerom the award winning co-operative in Brazil that they promoted on their website. Well, some of it does, but not the stuff they make into cappuccinos behind the bar every day. Instead, 600 tons of the stuff, comprised of seven different strains of coffee, is imported for Nero every year, coming from "Central and South America". By the time it reaches Nero, it has been through the hands of the farmers, the co-operatives, the commercial exporters, the roasters and the distributors, not to mention all the regulatory bodies, and anyone in charge of overseas import tariffs and customs..... Far from buying "direct from the producers", at least six different companies are involved in the industry from beans to mug.And I've got to go through the whole bloody lot, looking for any opportunity in this vast network for coffee to be wasted. This may take a while. Not only is this a lot of work to get my head round, it also ladders my proverbial fishnets (instead of being a linear commodity chain, I've decided it's now a complex mesh of a network – hence, commodity fishnets). There is a big hole in the proceedings now, and its quite embarrassing.I had a plan... up until last week. That was, to go to Fazenda Cachoeira (Waterfall Farm) in Brazil, to find out the extent of wastage from a plantation that directly supplies Caffe Nero. This gave me something to concentrate on, prepare for; I would need to learn Portuguese for instance. It also gave me a time frame – I'd go in the harvest season, which is between March and September, 2009.Now, it doesn't matter if I go to Brazil, or any other coffee-producing country in Latin America. Going to a Spanish speaking country would be far more sensible... but then, when to go? And indeed, where? I need to find out the different harvest seasons...For anyone who knows anything of my non-university plans at present, the timing of this is highly important. I don't know which Plan should take priority, whether I should just let Que Sera, Sera, and rethink depending on what happens, or whether I should take assertive action, decide for definite that I am going to, say, Costa Rica in May 2009, and fit everything else around that. That might be the easy option.Basically, I HATE planning when everything is a variable. I hate making important decisions that I might regret. I would far rather have life Just Happen to me, as it usually does. Or, I bury myself in trivialities, or wild fantasies which even I know are totally impractical – because even hampered with a short attention span and over-ambitious nature, those plans are always far more fun than the ones I actually need to focus on.Jo is filling my fragile, wanton little mind with ideas of the RASC cafe – that is, my dream of my own coffee shop called Doctor Coffee's, only promoted as an arts venture, so that we don't have to worry about it actually making any money. It would be a social enterprise project, providing a space for the RASC writers to go create in. She was even on about hosting it in a caravan at one point so we don't have to pay lease rates.... And all the while, I am sitting in Caffe Nero for days on end, studying coffee shops, when actually all I want to do is run one myself! This does not a productive Bel make.fAnd then, there are other dreams... Latin America. Again. It is no longer really a case of wanting to go back there, it's almost a sense of inevitability – I know I will someday, for whatever reason. I am sorely tempted to just say 'screw Nero', go visit Donna in Nicaragua or El Porvenir in El Salvador, and just pretend they supply a big chain... but that would not constitute good research practice, would it? I would love to catch up with Donna and Diego and all the chavalos and payasos again out there, I still feel like I have 'unfinished business' in Nicaragua somehow, I was rushed away all too quick last time. Or I could go next door to Costa Rica or Honduras and see bits I am less familiar with... For that matter, I would love to catch up with mi familia en Peru...Siempre yo siento como estoy malgasto mi vida, mi tiempo en este paid, cuando yo podría alli viviendo la vida en vez de lo estudiando. Soy demasiado impaciente. Tengo suenos de arroz y frijoles, y de aventuritas en climas lejos, quiero mas, siempre mas que este. Quiero una cambia.Yo me confundo con relaciones diferentes, los amores diferentes y entonces yo siempre siento que la necesidad de escaparse cuando todo falla. Yo no puedo ver lo que tiene razón bajo la nariz, que lo que quiero es ya aquí. Mi marido, mi niño, y todo que yo ya he creado aquí.
Posted by Matt Milletto on February 22, 2008 at 10:23am
Just a reminder to everyone in the Portland area that tonight is the Celbration of Dr. Illy's life at the American Barista & Coffee School. The party will start at 6pm with wine and Italian appetizers. Also, espresso will be flowing for sure! 7pm we will be watching the full Dr. Illy Milan interviews. Feel free to invite anyone who is interested in learning more from a true luminary and mentor to us all. See you tonight!
6pm - 9pm
ABC School
1028 SE Water Ave. Suite 150
Portland, OR 97214
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