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BARISTA TALK
Lynsey Harley is coffee development manager and Q grader at United Coffee UK and Ireland (www.unitedcoffeeuk.com). She is also UK chapter co-ordinator for the Speciality Coffee Association Europe (SCAE) and the 2012 UK Cup Tasting Champion. This issue, she takes on the mantle of the Barista Talk column, sharing with us her knowledge on what makes the perfect espresso and how to do it yourself. Exceptional espresso Since I first drank my first cup of coffee I’ve probably tried thousands of different espressos in all sorts of different establishments. This has allowed my palate to develop, meaning I can identify coffees that are sweet, acidic and bitter, know complexity, clarity and balance in the cup and tell whether it’s under or over extracted. Trying these coffees – both the good stuff and the bad! – means I’m fairly well equipped to identify what makes the perfect espresso. And for me, the perfect espresso is simple. It’s served in a ceramic cup, has a nice, evenly speckled hazelnut crema and tastes amazing. What is espresso? Espresso is in essence a solvent resulting from dissolving ground coffee into water. The amount of coffee that is dissolved is controlled by two things; time and resistance. Time is very simple, the longer we brew an espresso, the more we dissolve until we hit a point in which the water is fully saturated. If you continue passing water through into the cup, you’ll start to dilute the espresso. Resistance is the relationship between the dose and grind, both of which play a very important role in the perfect espresso. Over the years, the dose has evolved from 14g to 28g and is now between 20-21g. Grind size evaluation is becoming a very interesting topic; the quality of the grind blades are a very common problem. Low quality burrs produce too many fines and coarse particles. What we want is a nice bell shape distribution curve, preferably with short tails, and therefore a very tight spread of particle size. This
should result in an evenly extracted espresso. Since I drank my first espresso 10 years ago, coffee has moved on light years and consumers’ tastes are now a lot more discerning. To learn how to make a great espresso that meets today’s consumers’ expectations is actually really simple, once you have the right recipe. All you need to do is follow it precisely, using the best ingredients and you’ll get great results. Coffee blend/roast It might be stating the obvious but one of the most basic things to get right is the coffee. Always start with a quality raw product and use a coffee that you enjoy and your customers will appreciate. I appreciate a single origin espresso for the origin characteristics it showcases. I do prefer a blend just for the balance, but this is just my personal taste. Talk to your coffee supplier or roaster about the best espresso blend or roast for you and look at what’s in season. Freshness is vital to the quality of the drink. Try to use coffee within 28 days of roasting, after that the coffee loses most
If you have a barista-related query that you would like answered, then please email clare@jandmgroup.co.uk, or write in with details of your name, location of your café and question to Café Culture, Association House, 18c Moor Street, Chepstow, NP16 5DB and Café Culture magazine will endeavour to source a reply for you!
42 NOVEMBER 2012
CAFÉ CULTURE
TALK
Barista talk
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of its CO2 and quality of flavour decreases. Like most things we consume, the fresher the better. As consumers get increasingly savvy about what’s in the cup, it’s also important to consider where the beans are from and highlight the origin of the beans to your customers to show them you are knowledgeable about the product you’re serving. Dose size As I touched on earlier, for years the standard espresso dose size was 14g but as consumer palates have developed, this has changed to a recommended 20 to 21g. If you’re not entirely happy with the flavour of your espresso, then you can vary and play with the dose to find the optimum amount and adjust your grinder accordingly. Ideally, you should aim for 30 to 32g of liquid espresso in the cup at the end of the extraction.