Beanscene Aug 2020

AUGUST 2020

A World-Class Coffee Magazine

Ultimate control Celebrating skill, choice, and the user experience

The rise of retail

Emission-free roasting Sustainability made easy

COVID-19: a path to recovery Giancarlo Giusti’s roasting legacy

AUGUST 2020

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38 54

contents UPFRONT

8 NEWS 16 STUFF ON THE SCENE

GIANCARLO’S LITTLE ITALY

Celebrating Giancarlo Giusti’s vision to have Melbourne drinking better coffee

22 CELEBRITY CHEF

Shane Delia on creating food memories and why the best coffee shops have soul

54 A NEW DAWN

Veneziano Coffee Roasters and Gary Mehigan join forces to create a new range of specialty blends

56 GOING THE DISTANCE

How Toby’s Estate has adjusted its green bean buying during COVID-19

58 CLEAN LIVING

Cafetto discusses the importance of sanitising on both sides of the coffee bar

FEATURE NEWS

30 RETAIL THERAPY

How the rise of supermarket coffee will shape coffee drinkers

34 A PATH TO RECOVERY

38 COCOA TO SAVE THE AMAZON

The latest must-have products

INDUSTRY PROFILES

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SUSTAINABILITY FEATURES

Survey results reveal the latest sentiments from businesses

inas Hill Cocoa is M determined to protect the communities that live off the rainforest

40 FOR 50 YEARS MORE

Genovese Coffee is finding better ways of doing things

42 FIRST TO ZERO

Skip Zero gives pre-ordering a sustainable feel

44 ALMONDS ARE FOREVER

lternative Dairy Co revamps A its Barista Almond Milk with a sustainable edge

46 AHEAD OF THE CURVE

52 GO WITH THE FLO

Flo-Smart Beverage Solutions helps cafés work smarter with its automated beverage dispensing system

SKILL BASE

66 ESPRESSO YOURSELF

Jibbi Little pulls a kangaroo design out of her pouch

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TRAINING TACTICS

Suntory’s Jared Chapman on managing safety concerns as businesses re-open

70 R&D LAB

Dr. Monika Fekete on how to store coffee beans for ultimate freshness

Bellwether Coffee unveils its emission-free roaster to make roasting accessible to all

CAFÉ SCENE

TECHNOLOGY FOCUS

64 TECH TALK

27 MOVE TO THE BEAT

The Storm Profilo gives baristas the power to control the finer details of espresso extraction

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50

RAISING THE BAR

reate a better customer C experience and fresher cup with Coffee Machine Technologies’ Tech-Bar

THE THIRD GENERATION

Probat introduces the new-look P III series of shop roasters

60 CAFÉ SCENE

Around Australia and abroad

Service Sphere introduces the Bravilor Junior, taking filter coffee to the domestic market

72 STAY STRONG

ASCA on why it’s important not to become complacent in the fight against COVID-19

73 NZSCA

Celebrating the ladies of the New Zealand roasting scene

74 E SCENE

Fans of the magazine beanscenemag.com.au

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vershoot o c e n e c S n Bea

PUBLISHER Christine Clancy christine.clancy@primecreative.com.au MANAGING EDITOR Sarah Baker sarah.baker@primecreative.com.au JOURNALIST Ethan Miller ethan.miller@primecreative.com.au

Coffee Works Express 14-18 Skinner Ave, Riverwood, NSW, 2210 www.cwe.com.au (02) 9533 2693

ART DIRECTOR Blake Storey DESIGN Kerry Pert, Madeline McCarty

The hospitality industry is undoubtedly experiencing one of the toughest periods it’s faced in a long time due to the threat and spread of COVID-19. The year has been thrown into a spin, with the social calendar well and truly cleared. No latte art smackdowns, café opening parties, or extravagant product unveilings.

While businesses dig deep to get through this turbulent time, there are some things to look forward to, including the arrival of the impressive Storm Profilo espresso machine from Italy.

This machine was the definition of “headliner” at HostMilano 2019, drawing crowds and discussion from industry leaders and baristas alike, trying to work out if they were impressed, confused, or intrigued by the music-producing console. The reason it was such a talking point was that the industry had seen nothing like it before.

This machine is a unique combination of impressive design and technology that puts the control entirely in the hands of the barista, should they accept the challenge.

With plans to have the machine arrive Down Under towards the end of 2020, thanks to independent importer and distributor Coffee Works Express (CWE), it seemed only fitting that we show our excitement by having it grace the cover of our August edition.

“This is an exciting opportunity for CWE to welcome the Storm Profilo to our collection,” says CWE’s Natalie Kollar.

“It’s a machine completely geared to the needs of the specialty coffee market, and we know Australian baristas will appreciate all the intricacies and nuances that makes this machine unique – and the chance to play with the extraction curve.” (See page 27) The Storm Profilo’s interesting console, stainless steel feet, and dark features gave BeanScene’s designers a challenging yet rewarding chance to create a cover design that’s striking and simplistic.

On speaking with the Storm creators about the machine and its suitability for the Australian market, BeanScene Editor Sarah Baker says there was a clear stand-out about their response.

“Not only is the Profilo visually captivating, Storm wanted to design a machine that symbolised personality and attitude, which has nothing to do with a barista’s tattoos or clothing, but the deep passion they Ultimate control hold towards coffee,” she says.

“It’s for this reason that I know this machine will evoke a strong reaction from our audience and get baristas thinking about what makes them ‘tick’ as coffee professionals, and what more they can do in pursuit of the perfect cup.”

AUGUST 2020

Celebrating skill, choice

A World- Class Coffee Magazi ne

and the user experie

The rise of retail

Emission-free roastin g

Sustainability made

Giancarlo Giusti’s

beanscenemag.com.au

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER Zelda Tupicoff zelda.tupicoff@primecreative.com.au DESIGN PRODUCTION MANAGER Michelle Weston michelle.weston@primecreative.com.au CLIENT SUCCESS TEAM LEADER Janine Clements janine.clements@primecreative.com.au PHOTOGRAPHY Blake Storey, Diego Ramirez, The Rainforest Alliance, Brook James, Rowan Marsh-Croft CONTRIBUTORS Jibbi Little, Jared Chapman, Maurizio Marcocci, Emma McDougall, Kieran Westlake, Dr Monika Fekete HEAD OFFICE Prime Creative Pty Ltd 11-15 Buckhurst Street South Melbourne VIC 3205 p: 03 9690 8766 f: 03 9682 0044 enquiries@primecreative.com.au www.beanscenemagazine.com.au SUBSCRIPTIONS 03 9690 8766 subscriptions@primecreative.com.au BeanScene magazine is available by subscription from the publisher. The rights of refusal are reserved by the publisher.

ARTICLES All articles submitted for publication become the property of the publisher. The Editor reserves the right to adjust any article to conform with the magazine format.

nce

COVID-19: a path

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BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Courtney Walker courtney.walker@primecreative.com.au

easy

to recovery

roasting legacy

COPYRIGHT

BeanScene magazine is owned by Prime Creative Media and published by Christine Clancy. All material in BeanScene magazine is copyright and no part may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means (graphic, electronic or mechanical including information and retrieval systems) without written permission of the publisher. The Editor welcomes contributions but reserves the right to accept or reject any material. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of information Prime Creative Media will not accept responsibility for errors or omissions or for any consequences arising from reliance on information published. The opinions expressed in BeanScene magazine are not necessarily the opinions of, or endorsed by, the publisher unless otherwise stated.

THANK

YOU CELEBRATING 5 YEARS OF MILKLAB® To our collaborators and supporters who have been part of this incredible journey, thank you!

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CONTRIBUTORS In each issue of BeanScene we profile a few of our talented contributors.

Kieran Westlake is the current President, past Treasurer, and past Vice-President of the Australian Specialty Coffee Association (ASCA), Australia’s peak industry body dedicated to promoting and growing the specialty coffee industry. In his role, Kieran is excited to create opportunities and pathways for ASCA members. He is also a member of the Specialty Coffee Association and a certified food service professional.

Jared Chapman is the Group Customer Manager at Suntory Coffee. He has an extensive background in coffee, training, and consulting, working with cafés of all shapes and sizes, from independent cafés to corporate coffee chains. Jared’s passion is sharing this experience to help others in the industry run their businesses successfully.

Rawirat Techasitthanet, also known as Jibbi Little, is originally from Thailand and lives in Sydney, Australia. She is a barista, latte artist, and roaster at Jibbi Little Roasting Co. She is also the designer and creator of the Jibbijug milk pitcher. Jibbi has worked in the coffee industry for the past 10 years. She is a five-time Australian Specialty Coffee Association (ASCA) NSW Latte Art Champion and the 2019 ASCA Pauls Professional Australian Latte Art Champion.

Jibbi is also a Q Grader, competition judge, and founder of the Jibbi Academy.

Maurizio Marcocci lived in Milan and attended the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, where he completed a Masters of Economics and International Relations. He has distinct qualifications from Italy as a Certified Coffee Taster with an Espresso Specialist Certificate. Now, as the Managing Director of Service Sphere, Maurizio has grown the business to become an industry leader in the sales and service of coffee equipment in just 10 years.

Emma McDougall is the Communication and Administration Coordinator for the NZSCA. After gaining a degree in hospitality management, Emma has worked in Sydney, Dublin, Auckland, London, and most recently, Wellington. She has owned and managed cafés and tech-judged the New Zealand Barista Championship in 2015 and 2016. Now, she gets to help run them. One of the greatest joys she gets from the coffee industry is watching young people progress through their coffee journey.

A word from the Editor

REALITY CHECK-OUT

M

y weekly shop to Coles supermarket is a new outing I enjoy. Wearing masks and gloves, I zig zag my way through the aisles, keeping my head down and eyes firmly on the prize – the must-have items I ‘really’ need: eggs, butter, milk, chocolate. But a visit to aisle six sent me into an Alice in Wonderland rabbit hole experience and I stayed for a good 15 minutes.

For the first time, I paid attention to the coffee options. The variety was so extensive I had to triple check I wasn’t in the confectionery aisle. They had everything from St Remio to Urban Coffee Culture, and dc Specialty Coffee to Daley St. If I had gone into Woolies I would have seen Campos’ Superior blend staring back at me.

I looked over my shoulder then plucked two bags from the shelves. But why did it feel like I was cheating on my beloved cafés? After listening to roasters talk about the extreme rise of retail over the past months, I realised the influx of quality coffee in a mainstream platform is less about disloyalty and more about allowing a broader demographic to access high quality beans. Roasters have always said they want more people drinking quality coffee, and now they can. Cafés will always serve a purpose for their service, ambience and latte art, but supermarkets are simply providing consumers with a convenient new access point (see more page 30).

In fact, in a small window of opportunity when Melbourne cafés welcomed back dine-in customers before lockdown 2.0, I met with Grinders Coffee Founder Giancarlo Giusti in the city’s iconic Lygon Street.

For Giancarlo, not even a global pandemic could stop him. He’s visited the street for his morning coffee every day since he opened the original Grinders shop at number 277 in 1962. He of all people has watched the city and its streets change (see page 18).

While hospitality is undoubtedly one of the industries hardest hit by coronavirus, Giancarlo is confident our beloved cafés will have their place in the spotlight once again. “They are the heartbeat of this town,” he said.

“And, if I had a small part in helping bring good coffee and a strong coffee culture to more people, then I’ve played my part.”

Perhaps that’s what our supermarkets are trying to do too. They’re playing their role, now we need to do ours.

Stay safe, stay positive, and stay optimistic that our time in the spotlight is just around the corner.

SARAH BAKER

Follow us on Twitter @BeanSceneEd ‘Like’ us on Facebook @BeanSceneCoffeeMag Follow us on Instagram @beanscenemag

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NEWS

CUP OF EXCELLENCE CARRIES ON AND BREAKS RECORDS DESPITE COVID-19

Several records were broken in the 2020 Ethiopia COE auction.

COVID-19 has halted most international travel, but Cup of Excellence (COE) has continued to recognise the excellent work of producers at origin.

The June auction of the inaugural Ethiopian Cup of Excellence broke records, with total sales of US$1,348,690 (almost $2 million) topping the previous record of US$830,245 from El Salvador in 2011.

The El Salvador auction had 42 lots for sale, while the COE Ethiopia auction included only 28, achieving a record-high average price of US$28 per pound.

The top-scoring coffee in the competition sold at US$185.10 per pound, or about $594 per kilogram.

COE organiser, the Alliance for Coffee Excellence (ACE), says this is the highest price ever recorded for an Ethiopian coffee.

Its producer, Nigusie Gemeda of Sidama, was stunned to see the price paid for his coffee.

“I have been a coffee farmer for a long time, but I am just learning the value of our coffee. I am so happy with the result. Never could I have imagined coffee would have sold with such price. Now I know there is a reason for coffee to be called the green gold,” he says.

The competition was the first COE to be held at ACE Global Coffee Centers (GCCs) in Norway, the United States, Korea, Japan, and Campos Coffee in Australia.

Over in Central America, Luís Alberto Valladarez Moncada of Un Regalo de Dios won the 2020 8

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Héctor Bonilla and his son Josue won the 2020 Costa Rice COE.

Nicaragua Cup of Excellence with a Maracaturra natural processed coffee that scored 91.2 points. The Maracaturra variety took out the top five spots in the competition.

“With the effort of everyone involved we can push ourselves through this difficult time, people want to work and make it happen. This is a small example of what Nicaraguan coffees can do to offer the world,” Luís says.

In Guatemala, Cercol’s El Socorro farm placed first in the COE, with a 91.06-scoring washed Geisha coffee.

Geisha made up 16 of 30 COE winning coffees, however, judges noted the diverse characteristics of the coffees presented.

“Every coffee has a face of the producer. Flavour and aroma were just like the pattern of the Guatemalan

traditional textile Huipil,” says International Judge Keita Matsumoto of GCC Wataru in Japan, who also lived in Guatemala for four years.

While El Salvador lost its global COE record to Ethiopia, an incountry first was achieved in its 2020 competition. Roberto Samuel Ulloa Vilanova of Divina Providencia won with a natural anaerobic Pacamara, the first time that processing style has topped the El Salvador competition in its 17-year history, scoring 90.31 out of 100.

El Salvador COE Judge and Campos Coffee Green Coffee Buyer, Lloyd Thom, calls the country “a unique origin with an exciting array of varieties, techniques, and profiles”.

“It may be the smallest Central American country but it’s depth and complexity defy its size,” Lloyd says.

“Cup of Excellence here showcases an origin of both time-honoured tradition and, at the same time, an unbounded capacity for innovation, especially with new varieties. There are nuanced flavours and experiences you get here that you just can’t get anywhere else.”

Closing out the Central American COE season, the Costa Rican competition saw Héctor Bonilla of Don Mayo La Loma in the Tarrazú region place first with a honey process Geisha variety that scored 90.27 points. Tarrazú was also home to the two runners-up and six more of the 26 finalists.

“In this time of pandemic where only bad news is received, this is really an incentive to keep going,” Héctor says.

“I think of the saying, ‘it is never darker than before dawn.’ Let’s go ahead and work hard, agriculture is pride for countries that are capable of producing.”

Max Pérez placed second in the Guatemala Cup of Excellence.

NEWS

STREETSMART AUSTRALIA MOVES CAFESMART CAMPAIGN TO OCTOBER Every year, the café community unites to raise money for people experiencing homelessness through the CafeSmart campaign.

While typically held in August, the campaign’s organiser StreetSmart Australia has chosen to delay CafeSmart until October due to ongoing and fluctuating COVID-19 restrictions.

“Right now, we are focused on supporting our CafeSmart family during these turbulent times,” says Geoff Hills, Chief Operations and Fundraising, StreetSmart Australia.

“We have such a passionate and dedicated group of people within this coffee movement helping take action against homelessness. It makes sense to wait until things settle and all participants can join in.”

The campaign will also be extended from one day to a full week, from 12 to 16 October. Geoff says this will allow for more people to take part in the campaign, and “make it bigger and better”.

StreetSmart Australia has had a busy 2020. On 30 March, it launched SmartMeals, raising funds to partner cafés and restaurants affected by the

The annual CafeSmart campaign will be held over a week in October.

pandemic to make meals for their local overstretched homeless charity.

From 13 to 19 July, it held the Drink Coffee & Help Your Hood campaign, encouraging people to support their local café, to help those businesses that so often give to the organisation.

“Coffee drinkers and CafeSmart cafés have helped end homelessness, by

raising over $1.2 million over the past 10 years,” Geoff says. In 2019 alone, CafeSmart raised more than $200,000 for homelessness charities.

“CafeSmart provides an opportunity for cafés to connect with their local homeless charities and also their customers, which generates a great sense of community,” Geoff says.

COFFEE MARKET PRICES FALL FOR THIRD MONTH STRAIGHT The International Coffee Organization (ICO) composite indicator fell by 5.2 per cent to an average of 99.05 US cents per pound in June 2020, the third consecutive month of decrease.

This is the first time since October 2019 that the ICO composite indicator has fallen below 100 US cents per pound. The daily price of the ICO composite indicator spent more than half of the month below that benchmark,

Coffee market prices have slumped following a period of volatility due to COVID-19.

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ranging between 96.79 US cents per pound on 25 June and 101.27 US cents per pound on 8 June.

Despite strong exports in the first half of the coffee year, the ICO says there is an ongoing bearish outlook for demand, as global economic growth was further revised downwards in June by the International Monetary Fund, and expectations for a large harvest in Brazil put downward pressure on prices in June.

World exports for May reached 10.49 million bags, 14.6 per cent lower than in 2019, but this is still the third largest volume for May on record. Global shipments in the first eight months of coffee year 2019/20 have fallen by 4.7 per cent to 87.96 million bags.

According to recently released data for March 2020, imports by ICO importing members and the United States increased by 5.1 per cent to 11.76 million bags, of which 8.25 million bags originated from exporting countries.

In the first half of coffee year 2019/20, imports by ICO importing members and the United States reached 64.22 million bags, 3.7 per cent lower than in October 2018 to March 2019.

The ICO convened the first meeting of its Coffee Public-Private Taskforce to address consistently low prices on 30 June.

“Only by working together – coffee exporting and importing countries, public and private sector, civil society and knowledge-based organisations – can we make the coffee sector resilient, sustainable, and prosperous for all,” said José Sette, Executive Director of the ICO at the opening of the Task Force meeting.

“This is something no other commodity body has ever done: to start working together, public and private, on the same level of engagement and responsibility.”

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NEWS

ROBUSTA MORE SENSITIVE TO CLIMATE CHANGE THAN PREVIOUSLY THOUGHT A new study of the plant that produces Robusta coffee suggests its heat and climate change tolerance has been consistently overestimated. Worse yet, when temperatures slightly cross this point, yields plummet.

Scientists from the Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture, the University of Southern Queensland, and Ecom Agroindustrial, conducted the research on farms in Vietnam and Indonesia, which supply about half the world’s Robusta beans.

The study, published in Global

Change Biology, was built on 10 years of yield observations on almost 800 farms across Southeast Asia. The analysis suggests that the optimal temperature range for Robusta is 20.5°C, which is markedly lower than the temperatures currently considered optimal. For every 1°C increase over this new optimal range, yields decrease by 14 per cent.

“Our results suggest that Robusta coffee is far more sensitive to temperature than previously thought,” says the authors. “Its production potential could decline considerably as

Robusta may not fair as well under climate change as it has previously been suggested.

temperatures increase under climate change, jeopardising a multibilliondollar coffee industry and the livelihoods of millions of farmers.”

The study’s findings contrast with current estimates, based on historical botanical explorations in Central Africa, that had suggested Robusta had a higher temperature tolerance.

“This should make us reassess the viability of some of our current options, like switching from Arabica to Robusta coffee as the climate warms to adapt production to climate change,” says Jarrod Kath, the study’s lead author.

Arabica coffee, which is generally preferred for its superior taste, is even more sensitive to temperature change.

Coffee farmers at lower altitudes around the tropics have been switching out their Arabica trees for Robusta trees, while Arabica farmers have been searching for higher altitudes and lower temperatures to maintain production.

“Precipitation changes have long been a concern of the coffee industry,” said co-author Laurent Bossolasco of Ecom. “Now it’s clear that we need more in-depth analysis of temperature variations in the Robusta region.”

WORLD COFFEE RESEARCH IDENTIFIES FOUR PRIORITIES FOR AGRICULTURAL R&D Since its inception in 2012, World Coffee Research (WCR) has been devoted to ensuring sustainable supplies of quality coffee that is profitable for farmers through agricultural research and development (R&D).

In early 2020, as the organisation committed to fine-tune its strategic approach and develop its research agenda for the next five years.

To do so, it held a global consultation encompassing nearly 140 interviews and 896 survey responses from representatives across the value stream. This outreach is summarised in a new report: the Global Coffee R&D Awareness and Priorities Consultation 2020.

“We have evolved and grown as an organisation, and our program portfolio is coming to a natural inflection point,” says WCR CEO Jennifer ‘Vern’ Long.

“Ensuring our programs and activities are relevant to the broader coffee community is critical to ensure resources are aligned and complement the broader investment landscape. We need to be nimble and responsive, and engagement with the community is key to ensuring we’re focused on the right things.”

From this broad base of input, WCR identified four common global priorities:

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• Farmer profitability as the lynchpin of sustainability • Origin diversity for supply chain risk mitigation and flavour diversity • Quality for consistency and flavour • Climate adaptation and mitigation “Climate change is the defining issue of our time,” says Vern. “Everything agricultural R&D does must be oriented to address it and to build resilience and diversity into coffee production systems.

Feedback from roasters has confirmed our global footprint is more relevant than ever, as we seek to support their goals of managing supply risk through bolstering

World Coffee Research conducted extensive consultation to determine priorities for R&D.

coffee production across many countries.

Further, quality is a critical differentiator in the market, and the community’s feedback reinforces our efforts to address quality in our program portfolio.”

With the consultation now complete, WCR is considering how to incorporate suggestions from stakeholders into its program while conducting ongoing R&D efforts with coffee communities around the world.

“In the months ahead, we’ll refine our program portfolio to deepen engagement in several countries to enhance country competitiveness,” says Vern.

info@minashill.com.au @minas_hill_coffee

www.minashill.com.au/cocoa

cocoa that goes beyond cocoa

NEWS

Image credit: The Rainforest Alliance

RAINFOREST ALLIANCE ANNOUNCES ENHANCED CERTIFICATION PROGRAM AND STANDARD

The Rainforest Alliance is introducing more robust criteria and measurement.

The Rainforest Alliance has published a new certification program, which it says features more robust criteria, measurement, and impact featuring several key innovations. The new program will replace existing Rainforest Alliance and Utz certification programs from mid-2021.

“The new certification program incorporates new tools to support farmers and companies to set clear sustainability targets and focus investments to improve positive impacts

for people and nature,” says Ruth Rennie, Director of Standards and Assurance at the Rainforest Alliance.

“These tools and innovations will support more resilient agriculture and help make responsible business the new normal. This is increasingly urgent in our age of climate change, biodiversity loss, and global inequality.”

Key elements of the 2020 certification program the Rainforest Alliance identifies include: • Climate-smart agriculture

• • • •

Human rights Improved data management Shared responsibility Social and environmental requirements for supply chains • Deforestation • Risk-based requirements and assurance.

The international non-profit organisation expects at least two million farmers around the world to use the new certification program to produce better crops, adapt to climate change, increase their productivity, and reduce costs.

The development of the new certification program included public consultations that received input from more than 1000 people in nearly 50 countries, representing more than 200 organisations.

“This ambitious and innovative certification program is part of the Rainforest Alliance’s strategy of collaboration with farmers, companies, implementing partners, and thirdparty auditors, as well as other [non-government organisations], governments, and consumers,” says Alex Morgan, Chief Markets Officer at the Rainforest Alliance. “Only together can we restore the balance between people and nature and create a world where we thrive together.”

ASCA LAYS OUT PLANS FOR 2020 NATIONALS The Australian Specialty Coffee Association (ASCA) revealed three scenarios under which it could host the 2020 Condesa Co lab Australian Coffee Championships in a YouTube livestream on 14 July.

“This is still moving sands and I will leave you guys to have an educated guess of where we land because we still don’t know 100 per cent. What we can do is provide you dates and certainty around one of those three things being delivered,” ASCA President Kieran Westlake said.

Scenario one covers if the 2020 World Coffee Championships are still held at the Melbourne International Coffee Expo (MICE) from 3 to 6 November.

If this occurs, the Australian Coffee Championships will need to be held six to eight weeks beforehand. Kieran said the week of 14 September would be most likely and the competition would take place in a closed environment.

“We’d only have competitors, sponsors, and our judges onsite, plus a film crew,” he says. “We’d be able to do post-production with showreals of all of our competitors.”

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Scenario two covers if the 2020 World Coffee Championships are cancelled but MICE still runs as a domestic event. “[It would be] very similar to what our normal nationals would be, at the centre of a stage surrounded by a trade event,” Kieran said.

Scenario three is in place should hosting the competition at MICE not be feasible. In this case, a digital nationals similar to scenario one will be held but at the dates MICE would have taken place.

This is to provide competitors with clarity around what dates to work towards.

“It provides a great opportunity for our members and sponsors to really get ASCA’s brand out there in the silence and void of content being created globally at the moment,” Kieran said.

Should scenario one or three take place, the nationals will be held somewhere on the eastern seaboard, depending on venues, logistics, and travel costs for judges and competitors.

Should the 2020 World Coffee Championships be cancelled, the 2020 Australian Champions will represent Australia at the 2021 world events.

“It’s really exciting... to find something

Matthew Lewin of Ona Coffee is the reigning Australian Barista Champion.

positive out of such negative news.

One of these for us is the ability to change our cycle,” Kieran says. “Our national champion will get nine to 12 months of representing Australia, throughout Australia.”

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Stuff on the scene FIORENZATO F83E XGI The Fiorenzato F83E XGi grind-by-weight grinder features patented technology that dispenses coffee calculated in grams instead of seconds. Guaranteeing precision dose and avoiding waste, an algorithm constantly monitors each shot to ensure accuracy and consistency.

A touchscreen with CapSense technology displays statistical data, blades replacement hours, percentage of humidity in the air, and ambient café temperature. The grinder also features continuous micrometric grinding adjustment, low service requirements, easy programming, removeable chute and hands-free fork.

The grinder is fitted with 83-millimetre Red Speed flat blades. Twice as hard as titanium, this extends grinding life and is far more resistant to heat, producing uniform grinds resulting in a rich taste with improved flavour profiles.

A robust and reliable grinder, the F83E XGi is a must for medium-to-high-volume cafés.

Coffee Machine Technologies’ larger commercial electronic range of Fiorenzato grinders come standard with Red Speed blades.

For more information, contact CMT on +61 3 9335 2293, or visit www.coffeemachinetechnologies.com.au

MILKLAB MACADAMIA Milklab Macadamia is a premium plant-based milk for coffee, made in Australia using 100 per cent Australian macadamias. It is formulated to texture and stretch just like dairy and it complements the flavour of chocolate, chai, and espresso. This makes Milklab Macadamia perfect for all your customers’ favourite hot beverages.

For some winter recipe inspiration, try this Milklab Macadamia Chai-Spiced White Hot Chocolate recipe: Ingredients 180ml Milklab Macadamia, 1tsp Chai Latte Powder, 2tsp melted white chocolate (or 1tsp white chocolate powder) Method 1. Dissolve chai powder and white chocolate with 40ml water, in a serving glass 2. Texture Milklab Macadamia and incorporate with the chai-chocolate mixture For more information, visit www.milklabco.com

URBAN BARISTA CRAFTED ARTISANAL BLENDS Maltra Foods has added five crafted artisanal blends to its gluten-free and vegan-friendly Urban Barista range of specialty syrups and powdered drinks. The new drinking chocolate powder is developed using 40 per cent West African cocoa, creating a rich and luxurious blend.

Urban Barista Natural Chai is an exotic blend of real ground spices, black tea, and panela sugar for a complex flavour – easy to make and tastes as good as sticky chai.

On the syrups front, Maltra Foods has introduced Urban Barista Hazelnut, Vanilla, and Caramel to cater to the most popular flavours for customers to add to their coffees, milkshakes, and smoothies. The syrups are made with raw Australian sugar, all-natural flavours, and no added colours.

The new products pair well with the Urban Barista power lattes – Matcha, Turmeric, Beetroot, Hojicha, and Black Sesame – to offer baristas full flexibility in the beverages they offer.

For more information, visit www.arkadiabeverages.com.au or contact 03 9543 3113

MOCOPAN COFFEE Mocopan Coffee is passionate about its product reaching as many people as possible, especially with so many people continuing to work from home. That’s why Mocopan’s freshly roasted blends are now available via Amazon and on the Mocopan online retail store.

Mocopan has a blend to suit every application and taste preference, from malty and caramelised flavours to the smooth tones of chocolate, caramel, and cinnamon spice.

The Roast 54 is Mocopan’s ‘all-rounder blend’ – ideal for home espresso machines, French press, drip or stovetop coffee makers. This full-bodied whole bean coffee has rich tones of fruit and chocolate with hazel, and a hint of cedar spice.

During these tough times, Mocopan is there to support its customers, that’s why it’s offering free delivery on all blend orders.

For more information, visit www.mocopanshop.com.au

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LA MARZOCCO SWIFT MINI The Swift Mini grinds, doses, and tamps for espresso with the push of a single button, with a separate burr set for filter grinding in a swing arm feature. Providing a single solution for great espresso and filter coffee, with the possibility to switch between them with near zero retention and no need to waste coffee.

The Swift Mini has been designed for the home and office markets, however, can also be the perfect solution for those environments like small restaurants, bars and shops whose primary focus is not coffee. For these people, the limitations of current espresso grinders have created a barrier to entry, now cafè-quality espresso can be achieved anywhere by anyone. The Swift Mini grinder simplifies and streamlines preparing espresso, making it possible to grind, dose and tamp a double espresso on demand with no waste and no mess.

The Swift Mini is compatible with all La Marzocco Home machines.

For more information, visit au.lamarzocco.com

TOBY’S ESTATE’S NEW PACKAGING Toby’s Estate Coffee Roasters have shaken things up with a bright new look. Over the years, the roaster has proven itself as a dynamic, robust, and strong brand, exploring new avenues and uncovering exciting coffees sourced from around the world.

Toby’s Estate fears no new venture, diving into challenges, expanding, and never settling for anything but the best. The new design embodies this quality, a brand identity that reflects movement, change, collaboration, flexibility, and most importantly, growth. Much like a unique blend of coffee creating flavours and new combinations, Toby’s Estate says ‘you didn’t know you needed until you discover it’. The new bags are designed to make it easier for customers to shop Toby’s broad range of coffees, with each colour representing a distinct coffee category.

For more information visit www.tobysestate.com.au

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Giancarlo’s little Italy From humble beginnings and a single store front, Grinders Coffee has grown into an iconic Australian brand thanks to Giancarlo Giusti’s vision of having Melbourne drinking better coffee.

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Giancarlo Giusti established Grinders Coffee on Lygon Street in 1962. Today, the same shop serves coffee to Melbourne customers.

G

iancarlo Giusti knows Lygon Street in Melbourne like the back of his hand.

It’s the street he lived in, the street he opened his first coffee shop in, and the street he continues to frequent every single day.

“This street is a part of my history and my heart,” Giancarlo Giusti tells BeanScene. “I come to Lygon Street every day for a coffee. The people in these streets are my friends. I still see old customers and I know everybody, and everybody knows me.”

He’s not wrong. On meeting the 89-year-old down Lygon Street, dressed impeccably with a farmer’s flap cap, Giancarlo walks into one of the street’s iconic Italian coffee shops, waving at the baristas. He charms the waitress and two espressos arrive promptly for “Signor Giusti”.

“I’m Italian, coffee runs through my veins. Always one cappuccino first thing in the morning, then un caffè (espresso) and I’m done,” he says.

The street, affectionately known as “Little Italy” is reminiscent of Italian migration to Melbourne in the 1950s and 1960s. Giancarlo migrated to Melbourne from Albaredo d’Adige, a village in the Province of Verona in the Italian region of Veneto in April 1960.

Before this life-changing transition, Giancarlo would frequently ask his father for money to help sustain his “young vibrant lifestyle”– taking girls on dates, going to the movies, eating out, and going to local fairs and dances. In response, his father, a “hard working Italian” up at 6am

every morning to run the family grocery shop until the day he died in 1968, would tell Giancarlo: “If you want more money, go and open a business in a country where you can do something and be somebody.”

And he did. After 30 days at sea, the ship docked the day before Easter and Giancarlo was the last passenger to disembark at the Melbourne port, aged 29.

“I came to Australia for work, but I also had friends here and my cousin who worked for the Italian government,” he says.

Giancarlo lived in the Melbourne suburb of Altona for two weeks before moving to a house in the laneway behind the pub on the corner of Lygon and Elgin Street in Carlton, then called Percy’s Bar and Bistro, where he stayed for four years.

Giancarlo got a job at General Motors, working in an assembly line making distributors, before he moved to the countryside to work at a place specialising in canned fruit. But it wasn’t his true calling. Instead, Giancarlo turned to his father’s profession, selling produce to Italian restaurants before working for Mocopan Coffee as a sales rep. However, he still wanted more.

It was in 1962 when Giancarlo decided to open a shop with business partner Rino Benassi serving what Italians knew best – coffee.

One pound purchased the shop’s first grinder. Unlike the other delicatessens on Lygon Street at the time that served coffee, Giancarlo’s business model was different.

He served coffee and only coffee.

“It was a novelty. People were curious and would ask me, ‘but what does your

shop do?’ It was strange to them to have a shop selling roasted coffee in whole beans, ground, and equipment to make coffee at home,” he says.

That shop, called Grinders Coffee, went on to have a strong following in the area.

“Melbourne accepted my coffee, but before that they accepted me,” he says.

Giancarlo temporarily went back to Italy before returning and buying a roaster in 1969 thanks to money borrowed from a friend. He started supplying coffee to cafés throughout Melbourne, selling 200 kilograms per week, keeping his competitors on their toes in the likes of Coffex Coffee, Coffee Mio, and Mocopan Coffee.

Giancarlo’s coffee knowledge grew through education and experience. He had a minimum of six coffees available to blend at any one time, from Papua New Guinea to Costa Rica, Colombia to northern Australia. At night, he would brew the coffee, taste it, then leave it overnight and taste it again in the morning to assess the different flavours.

“A good espresso blend is best developed by individual assessment of the beans, and then putting the best beans together to create a balanced blend,” he says.

“When I started out my customers would ask me for half a pound of coffee. Gradually their requests changed.

Then they asked me for a good coffee, and eventually for a particular origin.

My customers learned about quality and could identify what they like and what they didn’t. I’m happy that I’ve helped people not just drink more

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coffee, but good coffee.”

With Melbourne now saturated with roasters, Giancarlo says it’s a strange scenario to observe compared to his early days roasting when there were just a handful of competitors. The ones that will ensure longevity, he says, are those that value the quality of their product.

“Roasting isn’t easy. Many people think they can start up their own roastery and cut corners around price, but a sustainable, long-term business will be one that values quality over quantity. To have a good business you must have a good product. I bought the best beans and never worried about the cost. People who value your product will pay, and it’s the same for good wine and good food,” Giancarlo says.

“There’s a saying in Italian that says: ‘It takes the same amount of time to make something good as something bad, so why not make something for the better?’”

In 2005, Giancarlo was in Italy for the summer holidays when he received a phone call from his accountant telling him Coca-Cola Amatil were interested in buying his business. At first, Giancarlo thought it was a joke. He accepted the offer and became the first small business in the world to be bought by one of the largest bottlers of non-alcoholic ready-todrink beverages in the Asia-Pacific.

“The acquisition made international headlines. The newspaper in Italy even published the news,” Giancarlo says.

Giancarlo is content with how he left his business. He grew the company to have more than 48 employees, an established roasting factory and increased the sale of whole beans from 50 kilograms per week to more than 20 tonnes.

Giancarlo Giusti bought his first roaster in 1969 and started supplying coffee to cafés throughout Melbourne.

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“MY CUSTOMERS LEARNED ABOUT QUALITY AND COULD IDENTIFY WHAT THEY LIKE AND WHAT THEY DIDN’T. I’M HAPPY THAT I’VE HELPED PEOPLE NOT JUST DRINK MORE COFFEE, BUT GOOD COFFEE.” “I am happy with what I’ve achieved.

I played my role. I learnt to do something that was good for me economically and financially, and I had fun along the way,” he says.

“Coffee has given me everything. It’s only on reflection that I accept how I’ve helped improve the city’s coffee culture and educated people to appreciate coffee.

Nowadays, Australians drink more coffee than Italians. They are sophisticated coffee drinkers.”

Giancarlo has no doubt the coffee industry will continue to thrive and bounce back strong from the recent slump during coronavirus restrictions.

If anything, Giancarlo has been a loyal customer to the cafés of Lygon Street throughout the pandemic, and over the past 58 years.

Since Coca-Cola Amatil’s acquisition of Grinders Coffee, Giancarlo spends three months of the year in Italy and still travels to industry trade shows such as HostMilano. He pulls out his business card to show two addresses – one of his Melbourne home and the other in Verona. On his return, Giancarlo would spend a day in the family’s delicatessen in Albaredo d’Adige, “just for fun” to connect with his local community.

The other joy in his life – apart from coffee – is his love for the Italian opera.

Each year when Giancarlo returns to Verona, he attends the famous Arena di Verona – of which he pulls another card out to prove his membership to the illustrious club. Not surprising, Giancarlo is friends with the opera singers, whom he meets upon touring to Melbourne.

“There’s something magical about sitting in the audience in the open-air cinema on a balmy summer evening in Verona, watching Aida, the best opera of all,” he says.

He adds that quality coffee can now be found throughout Italy, with the emergence of some specialty coffee shops, and a significant rise of local consumption.

“The country is still dominated by big roaster companies, but like Melbourne, you can also find many local roasters in Verona,” he says.

For now, Giancarlo continues to enjoy his retirement. During the mornings he can be found catching up with friends in Lygon Street for coffee, and on Friday evenings down at Jimmy Watson’s wine bar for dinner and a few vinos.

Giancarlo is already planning his 90th birthday party in December, hoping to accommodate a crowd of family and friends for the occasion, and celebrate “being young in heart and in mind”.

As Giancarlo gets up to leave the interview, he puts his hat on, says “ciao” to the baristas, and walks proudly down Lygon Street into the distance. On a final glance he’s already stopped to greet another friend he’s spotted.

This is a man who helped bring the espresso culture to Melbourne. He was one of the first to turn coffee into a business and put his name and passion to a brand that is etched in Melbourne’s historical coffee scene.

“When I see the Grinders name on a bag of coffee or a delivery van passing by, I think to myself, ‘Giancarlo, you did good,’” he says.

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REINVENTING THE WHEEL Shane Delia is determined to support hospitality businesses during COVID-19 restrictions.

He’s launched Providoor, a joint concept with Melbourne’s top restaurants, to deliver signature dishes to local doors.

Image credit: Brook James

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CELEBRITY CHEF

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Shane’s signature style Chef Shane Delia talks to BeanScene about creating food memories, the shift in traditional restaurant models, and why the best coffee shops have soul.

By Sarah Baker

M

ost coffee lovers can attest to one unforgettable coffee experience. For some, it’s the time they tasted their first Geisha or a winning Cup of Excellence coffee, and for others like chef Shane Delia, it’s a memory tied to a location and a point in time.

“After filming a TV segment in Istanbul, I had the last day to explore the city. I started the day with a walk through the city streets. Then I went to a barber, had a shave, went for lunch, walked through the markets, and watched the sun go down. When it does, the light shoots through the city and creates beautiful shadows,” Shane recalls.

“In that exact moment, I came across a little hole-in-the-wall coffee shop called Mandabatmaz, located off the main Istiklal Street. The shop had been there over 150 years and standing out the front was this old guy. He’d been making Turkish coffee his whole life. I ordered a coffee from him and sat outside on a little crate in this alleyway with the sun beaming down. I was drinking a delicious, rich, slightly cardamom-tasting coffee, and it was a really beautiful moment. That was a moment that embraced the soul of the city and was about so much more than what was in the cup.”

Over in Malta, where Shane has ancestral heritage, he says the coffee culture is still accustom to instant coffee, but in some of the older villages on the island, the food and drink traditions are strong.

“The country has an ancestral connection with the Middle East, but over time, it’s become diluted by war, and the current mishmash of cultures,” he says.

“From a food point of view, I feel the country is lacking in identity, but when you strip it back, you’ll find shops serving beautiful traditional spiced coffee such as coffee and aniseed, coffee and chickweed, and coffee and liquorice.”

Back in Australia, Shane continues his own traditions. As a child, he would always find a big jar of freeze-dried coffee in his grandparent’s kitchen. It was their religious morning ritual, and a memory he holds dear.

“THAT MACHINE HAS SERIOUSLY CHANGED MY LIFE. IT’S CHANGED MY MORNING ROUTINE, MY RESPECT AND UNDERSTANDING OF COFFEE QUALITY.” “My family was of Maltese dissent and growing up, we were poor. Every time I look at a tin of coffee it reminds me of how my grandparents stretched $1 into $10 and were happy with whatever they had.

I still keep a jar in the house, and every time I drink it, it reminds me of them. I don’t really enjoy it, but it definitely has sentimental emotions drawn to it,” Shane says. “I think about my grandparents all the time. They’ve past now, and sometimes I like to have a crappy cup of coffee and think about my grandfather.”

From a humble jar of coffee granules to something a bit more elaborate, last year Shane made a considerable upgrade and invested in what he describes as “a beast of a machine” – the La Marzocco

Linea Mini – in baby blue.

“That machine has seriously changed my life. It’s changed my morning routine, my respect and understanding of coffee quality. It’s changed my appreciation, how much coffee my wife and I consume, and the way we entertain at home,” Shane says.

“Now we can offer guests a fully rounded experience with beautiful coffee to finish.

This weekend. I’ve got two sets of friends coming over for coffee because their wives wouldn’t let them buy [an LM Mini].”

Shane says full credit must go to his wife Maha on being the better barista – he still can’t master milk texturing – but he couldn’t be happier with his latest purchase.

Shane says the machine has helped ensure that his first coffee of the day – a short macchiato – is “bang on”, followed by a double espresso in the afternoon and sometimes a latte in the evening.

“I’ve always had domestic machines, but when I did some research and discovered this machine had all the technology applied from a commercial machine but in a smaller model, I knew it could handle the volume I wanted,” he says.

“I’ve walked into many coffee shops and always seen La Marzoccos on the bench. When I ask the baristas why they use this brand, they simply say: ‘it’s the best – and it looks cool.’ This brand has a perception of quality. I’m a big car guy, I love old Ferrari badges, and La Marzocco machines have a similar logo and sense of style that draws you in.”

When Shane isn’t perfecting his morning coffee, he enjoys visiting his local Ascot Food Store in Ascot Vale, or Burnside on Smith Street in Collingwood.

“Good coffee shops must have a soul. Coffee is the by-product of that. I look for a good experience, and a coffee that’s familiar, comforting, and not too confronting,” Shane says.

“Melbourne has a very diverse ethnic face that’s quite European, and that culture is embedded in Melbourne’s food, coffee,

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CELEBRITY CHEF

Shane Delia’s Maha Bar celebrates a meze-style shared food menu with Middle Eastern flavours.

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Image credit: Diego Ramirez

Maha Bar’s sesame crusted borek buns.

at doing delivery. It’s exciting. It’s not a Melbourne solution, it’s a national solution.”

Shane is excited about reopening his restaurant to diners. On reflection of the past few months, however, he says it’s been a time for hospitality leaders to assess how they can operate better, show who they really are, and prove their

Image credit: Diego Ramirez

and community. It’s a community which thrives on quality, whether its quality of architecture, sport, conversation, or food. I think quality is something we gravitate too, including in our coffees shops.”

That same philosophy is what Shane believes his customers at Maha connect with. For the past 12 years, he’s operated the award-winning Melbourne restaurant that celebrates Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cuisine. Like most restaurants impacted by COVID-19 restrictions, Shane was forced to close the restaurant for dine-in service.

He looked at ways to diversify his product offering and launched MahaGo, Shane’s own delivery service, which he says went “unbelievably well”. He also started Providoor, a joint concept involving Melbourne’s top restaurants, producers, bottle shops, and retailers, in which signature dishes are prepared delivered straight to your door.

“We’re giving restaurants a chance to take their premium brand to the people, put their food out there. We’re not selling hot food, we’re selling a food and restaurant experience for people to create at home,” Shane says.

“I feel this model, which is a balance between traditional business which has dishevelled, and something like Providoor, is the future. It gives restaurateurs a real legitimate chance

commitment to the industry.

“There are some great people who have been able to create new revenue streams, keep staff employed, and pay suppliers, and there are some who haven’t coped as well with the situation,” he says.

“I know it sounds cliché, but it’s been hard. The traditional restaurant model is not going to get any easier. It’s already been announced [from the Fair Work Commission] that there’s going to be a 1.75 per cent increase to minimum award hospitality wages. The economy is going to have a significant downturn, employment is going to rise, and some restaurants will close. Instead, we need to be employing people, we need to create jobs and new experiences, and the only way that’s going to happen is if restaurateurs are enabled to do that.

There’s a lot of work to be done and a bigger discussion needed to make hospitality, and the country, sustainable.”

For now, Shane’s message to the industry is to “get back out there and eat”, while he continues to create great food memories and new experience for his customers.

“People are drawn to things that make them happy, and I was lucky to be drawn to food and make it my career, which still makes me happy,” he says.

“I’m always humbled when people dine with us. There are so many great restaurants in Melbourne. People could choose to eat anywhere, so we are lucky when they choose us. We don’t take that responsibility for granted. Some chefs sometimes forgot that. This industry is not about your ego, your legacy, or making a dish architecturally perfect with five ingredients customers have never heard of. It just needs to be delicious.”

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Each of our new easy espresso pods is encased in an environmentally friendly, food grade filter paper which is 100% compostable & biodegradable. The used pods can be placed directly into your home compost.

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Ultimate control Celebrating skill, choice, and the user experience

The rise of retail

Emission-free roasting Sustainability made easy

COVID-19: a path to recovery Giancarlo Giusti’s roasting legacy

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TECHNOLOGY PROFILE

Move to the beat Just like a music producer, baristas can now play the notes of their own track with a machine that celebrates their manual skill and the finer details of espresso extraction.

A

t HostMilano 2019, crowds swarmed to the Astoria Storm stand, huddled like they were waiting for autographs from a Hollywood movie star. Cameras flashed, iPhones were raised, and among the video recordings was the sound of Michalis Dimitrakopoulos mixing his own extraction on the new Storm Profilo espresso machine.

“It’s so cool that you can change the pressure of the steam in just one minute,” the Storm Ambassador and 2019 World Barista Championship runner-up showed the crowd of onlookers.

“You can change every parameter of espresso extraction easily, right in the very moment. The buttons on top of the group heads and the ability to change everything so fast is something very unique.”

Storm became an independent brand to Astoria in December 2019. Riccardo

Comaron, Brand Manager of Storm, says the brand will now follow its own path and leave its own mark in the specialty coffee world, starting with the Australian launch of the Storm Profilo.

“Storm Profilo was born with longevity in mind. We wanted to create a machine that never tired and would still remain relevant in 50 years’ time. We wanted a machine that was efficient, professional, and allowed users to work like they did with the original Storm machine, but taken up to the next level,” Riccardo says.

Unlike the flagship Astoria Storm, which had display screens above each group head to monitor and adjust the extraction curve, the Profilo is all about manual control.

Like a DJ uses faders on a mixing board to adjust audio sounds, baristas now have a panel of faders on the analogue console to manually mix and control the parameters of espresso extraction. Baristas

can control the dose, pre-infusion time, and temperature in the group boiler.

Then, with the simple slide of a finger, they can adjust the blooming phase through the pressure valve during the infusion. On the adjacent fader, baristas can select how fast the pressure raises between the pre-infusion and extraction phases. There’s a control for the water pressure level during the central extraction phase, body dose percentage to define the volume of water to be used for pre-infusion and the body of the extraction as a percentage total, and an option to control the pressure level during the final extraction phase.

Riccardo Ferraris, Digital Manager at Storm, says that changing parameters of espresso extraction is simply another form of customising the user experience, already seen in espresso machine design and colour choices, or the flexibility in a customer’s coffee order. Only now,

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baristas can customise the intricacies of an extraction.

“The fact you can customise espresso is changing the way people look at espresso.

We are giving the barista full control over the coffee experience and allowing them to express themselves. Just like chefs put their own spin on a classic dish and put a piece of their heart into their food, we want baristas to put a little piece of themselves in the cup,” Riccardo says.

Rather than be intimidated by the Profilo’s console panel, Michalis says baristas need to be curious and openminded about its functionality, and just “play”.

“There is nothing to worry about.

The only thing baristas have to do is try it for themselves,” he says. “When they understand how easy it is to work with the parameters and how much this machine has the ability to change and influence the flavours of their espresso, I’m sure they will love it.”

For example, Michalis says if a barista has a really fresh roasted coffee, they need a pre-infusion or lower pressure at the end of the extraction to avoid the

Michalis Dimitrakopoulos says espresso extraction and flavour profiles are now in the hands of baristas.

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bitterness from carbon dioxide, and to get a balance and clarity of flavours in the cup.

“It’s like a game – baristas will need to make small changes to the parameters in order to achieve the best flavour,” he says.

“The Profilo combines all the parameters a barista needs in one machine. Baristas have the power to create different cups of coffee and achieve different flavour results by using the same coffee. This is how we can push the level of the industry forward – by experimenting with each extraction.”

Michalis says having control over different parameters is powerful, especially in the specialty coffee game.

“It’s like asking a roaster why we need different roast profiles,” he says.

“Our job, as baristas, is to experiment, then try to figure out what is best for every coffee and serve it to the costumer.”

The Profilo is scheduled to arrive on Australian shores in late 2020, and Michalis is confident Aussies will embrace the machine for all of its intricacies and beauty.

“I know the Australian people and

especially the barista market, and I believe they are truly going to love experimenting on every extraction to create the best result in the cup,” he says.

Riccardo Comaron says Australia is already a supporter of the original Storm machine and is excited about the response from the specialty coffee market.

“Australia is the most important country in terms of specialty coffee culture,” he says.

“If the Australian market reacts positively and can manage a machine like the Profilo, we think specialty cafés or roasters with multiple outlets will see the benefit because they can set and save recipes easily and quickly from one machine to the other, and see the same profiles replicated across multiple stores.

All you need is one experienced barista.”

Australia is also a market that appreciates unique and sophisticated design. Riccardo Comaron says the engineering team took all the digital features from the original Storm hardware and “turned everything into an analogical format”.

“Of course, we had our challenges,”

he says. “The Profilo is two years’ hard work. We learned by making mistakes. We learned a lot from designers, our customers, and baristas.

In the beginning, lots of people were sceptical if we could pull it off.

Even I was in the beginning. But we had a lot of discussions and we worked day by day to understand how we can use the music industry to inspire the design, and how the barista can best use the machine to achieve the desired result.”

Ultimately, Riccardo Ferraris says the team achieved its goal, “to create something aesthetically that people would recognise and connect with”, like a music mix board.

“The Profilo certainly has its own personality, and we think that, combined with its inspired design, is just so cool,” he says.

“THE PROFILO COMBINES ALL THE PARAMETERS A BARISTA NEEDS IN ONE MACHINE. BARISTAS HAVE THE POWER TO CREATE DIFFERENT CUPS OF COFFEE AND ACHIEVE DIFFERENT FLAVOUR RESULTS

BY USING THE SAME COFFEE. THIS IS HOW WE CAN PUSH THE LEVEL OF THE INDUSTRY FORWARD – BY EXPERIMENTING WITH EACH EXTRACTION.” The Profilo rests on polished stainless-steel supports, which guarantees durability and cleanliness. The water and power cables are invisible, hidden in a cylindrical structure that does not detract from the machine’s neat, elegant look. The machine’s rounded contours and vertical removal of the drip tray make routine cleaning easy.

Minimising power consumption was also important in the design of the Storm Profilo. With power supplied only when and where necessary, thanks to software that manages the automatic standby system during downtime, night-time energy saving, and smart temperature regulation function, energy is reduced by up to 47.6 per cent.

To Michalis, innovation such as this, and that of machine functionality and design, is key to a successful espresso machine. It’s something the team have done since he joined Astoria in 2006, and something Storm constantly searches for.

“Our vision at Storm is to create machines that can change the extraction and create the perfect balance. I love working with people who never stop experimenting and developing, and our Storm team does just that. It’s not only about creating a beautiful design but creating something that changes the industry,” Michalis says.

“We always look for something new, something different, thinking outside box and looking to address people’s needs. Storm is for people who want to push the boundaries of coffee industry, and we will keep doing that every single day.”

Coffee Works Express is an Australian importer and distributor of the Storm Profilo.

For more information, visit www.cwe.com.au

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FEATURE NEWS

Retail therapy Supermarkets are welcoming a new wave of specialty coffee and locally roasted beans. With retail sales spiking over the past months, BeanScene asks how these new buying habits will shape coffee drinkers and the wider industry for years to come.

By Ethan Miller

‘S

pecialty’ is well and truly entrenched in the Australian coffee culture. It is the domain of independent cafés, restaurants and bakeries across the country. Even fast food and convenience stores are said to serve coffee a cut above the rest of the world.

But there is one market that, until recently, seemingly missed the third wave, and a ‘super’ one at that. Steve Wrightson, Sales Director for Suntory Coffee Australia and New Zealand, tells BeanScene that supermarket chains are looking at how they can accelerate sales

Campos Coffee in now available in 990 Woolworths stores nationwide.

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by providing their customers with caféquality fresh coffee.

“We’re seeing a lot of interesting plays and exciting news in the supermarket aisle.

First, Starbucks launched its capsule range which created a lot of buzz, and now, we’re even seeing premium café brands enter the market for the first time,” Steve says.

“The consumer all of a sudden has choice, and it’s not just of big brands with low prices.”

When the coronavirus pandemic brought lockdowns and restrictions with it in March, some cafés had to close their doors. But their customers still required a coffee fix and many turned online or to their local shops to get it. Steve says sales of the Urban Coffee Culture brand Suntory, developed in collaboration with Coles and launched in 2019, grew almost five times throughout April and May. “We’ve seen the consumer uptake of Urban Coffee Culture grow over time, but then it just exploded. We couldn’t keep up with stock and can only assume new customers started buying fresh coffee from supermarkets during that period,” he says.

But consumers weren’t just looking for a caffeine hit. Many wanted to recreate what they were missing about cafés, and they were willing to pay top dollar for that level of quality. Espresso machine manufacturer La Marzocco says interest in its Home range skyrocketed over March and April.

“We saw people trying to replicate that café experience at home a lot more than they had previously, because they didn’t have the option to go to cafés they had previously,” La Marzocco Australia Marketing Manager Jets Anita Langlands says. “There was more of a necessity. It was a shift from ‘would be nice to have’ to ‘need to have’ and people that were teetering on the edge decided to take the leap. Other brands in brewing equipment or retail coffee we’ve talked to saw a

similar shift.”

The La Marzocco Home range sits at the higher end of the domestic model spectrum, in terms of ability and price.

Despite this, Brand Director Andy Di Donato says La Marzocco has seen an “unprecedented rise” in the number of people engaging with the brand across its platforms.

“We find that we’re talking to a more diverse mix of consumers. We’re used to working with coffee drinkers who are further along in their home coffee journey. Now, there’s a broad range of customers – some of whom are absolutely new to the concept of home coffee – thinking about what their solution would look like,” he says.

“Some consumers still have a long way to go on their coffee education journey, but we embrace that at La Marzocco. The more that people appreciate specialty coffee, the better platform it provides the industry.”

Jets agrees, adding that the greater introduction of local and specialty coffee brands into supermarkets will play a role in that education, like it did in her native New Zealand.

“For years, they’ve had really good specialty coffee in their supermarkets and I think that came from consumer demand for high-quality coffee,” she says.

“In Australia, we also want coffee that is freshly roasted, and there is an understanding and demand from people to have high quality products that are Australian made. Especially with the economy as it is, there’s a real understanding of provenance and supporting local.”

IN THE BAG

Aldi is one supermarket ahead of the curve when it comes to fresh and local coffee options. Since 2014, the Germanborn chain has partnered with Black Bag Roasters in Richmond to procure and produce its Lazzio Coffee range.

Lazzio Coffee now features nine products, including different blends and rotating single origins, roast styles, and serving formats. While the range has grown in popularity over the last six years, the partnership really paid dividends for the two businesses when panic buying set in earlier this year.

Sales of the Lazzio Coffee range jumped by 50 per cent over the period, a boom for Black Bag Roasters and its parent company Nomad Coffee Group.

Black Bag Roasters General Manager Lance Brown puts the success of Lazzio Coffee down to Aldi’s willingness to listen, learn, and collaborate.

“The relationship is far more than

Local business Black Bag Roasters has produced Lazzio Coffee for Aldi since 2013.

just transactional. It is a true partnership in every sense of the word, from the Managing Director of Aldi Australia through to the buying teams at all levels,” Lance says.

“Aldi from the very start recognised the importance of coffee in Australia and wanted to ensure it could provide an amazing quality product at a fair price for the home user.”

The partnership began when an Aldi buyer met with the Nomad Coffee Group at the Melbourne International Coffee Expo, where they were looking for a local alternative to the chain’s imported coffee.

“Even though the product was great, by the time it reached Australia the concept of ‘freshly roasted coffee’ was not quite the same. We decided to partner with a local supplier to ensure we sold the freshest coffee to suit the taste profiles of an emerging Australian coffee marketplace,” says Varun Raheja, Buying Director at Aldi Australia.

“We have an Australia-first buying policy, so knowing that our partnership with Black Bag Roasters is supporting employment and investment back into Australia is a significant benefit.”

Varun says the other benefits of working with local roasters is the speed to market and the freshness of the product.

Lance adds that Aldi’s “very Germanic” and efficient system ensures seamless delivery, distribution, and instore turnover.

“They don’t sit on a whole lot of stock in their warehouse,” Lance says. “I could tell you day in, day out, exactly how many coffee beans have been sold by bag of each Lazzio product. So we know what we’re roasting every week, and that way, what’s on the shelf stays fresh.”

Despite such a high volume, Lance says simple quality assurance practices just need to be done at scale to maintain consistency. This includes post-blending so each individual origin is at its optimum roast quality before being added to a blend.

The Lazzio Coffee range also bolsters the amount of coffee Nomad Coffee Group can buy from coffee producers while procuring for its specialty coffee arm.

“Imagine one of the green bean buyers going to origin – India, Brazil, Colombia, Peru, or Honduras – on a mission to buy some specialty green. They might buy half a container of the farmer’s highestgrade single origin, which the farmer thinks is fantastic, then they add five containers of their commercial grade product,” Lance says.

“It means using everything the farmer has to offer and really supporting them.

Our legacy is about supporting coffee farmers towards a sustainable future.”

Lance attributes the growing demand for fresh and high-quality coffee in supermarkets to the performance and popularity of its cafés, which is unlikely to change in the long-term.

“We have this amazing culture in Australia where fresh is best. A customer will pick up a bag, look at the best before and roast dates, and think ‘this is months old, why would I drink this?’ Because they know what stale coffee tastes like,” Lance says.

“Post-COVID, people will be quite happy to make coffee at home. About 47 per cent of homes in Australia now have some sort of coffee machine. We’ve moved away from wet spoons and instant coffee to espresso and filter, which is where we want to be.”

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FEATURE NEWS

Coles partnered with Suntory Coffee Australia to launch Daley St following the success of its Urban Coffee Culture range.

GOOD THINGS ARE HAPPENING

While other supermarket chains Coles and Woolworths have featured locally roasted commercial coffee brands on their shelves for years, they have only recently embraced the freshness and artisanal approach Australian roasters can offer, with the likes of St Remio also joining the shelves in 2019.

Following the success of Urban Coffee Culture at Coles, Suntory’s Steve says the two businesses started thinking about what’s next the retail space. Landing on premiumisation as a key trend going forward, they released the Daley St brand in May. “Daley St is very much focused around telling the story of the origin, but just as importantly, introducing high-grade quality beans into the supermarket aisle,” Steve says. “It’s about providing a special coffee moment for the coffee consumer at home, and that they can share with friends.”

Suntory Coffee Australia sees Daley St as an opportunity to also educate the consumer on everything that goes on behind the scenes to create a great cup of coffee. Even the local name, taken from the street running behind its Preston

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roastery, is intended to connect the consumer to the roaster .

“There’s a perception from consumers that coffee is a long-life product, but through Daley St, we’re trying to educate consumers that it’s an agricultural product,” Steve says.

“Australia has some the most sophisticated coffee drinkers in the world, but there’s an opportunity here to bring fresh coffee to the masses.”

Coles’ newfound interest in Australian coffee is also in part due to a growing demand for local produce across its aisles.

The supermarket unveiled the Coles Local concept in 2018, with wider expansion in 2020, reworking its store format to highlight convenience, sustainability, and locally sourced products. These stores offer more ready-to-eat and plant-based products, local produce, and baristalevel coffee thanks to Eversys Cameo automatics and coffee from dc Specialty Coffee Roasters.

Rob Stewart, General Manager of dc, says the roaster has worked with the Coles Local team to “redefine the space of coffee” since 2018.

“We developed an overall experience that breathed new life into the category and presented a product to the standards

you would find in any specialty café,” he says. “The initial store concept was highly successful, suggesting there were a significant number of consumers who wanted to buy specialty coffee as a part of their grocery shop.”

After some refinement of the concept, dc rolled out a range of its blends to premium Coles store locations nationally pre-coronavirus. While the pandemic has turned many customers from cafés to retail, Rob says having them consume better coffee at home will support the whole industry.

“It will elevate consumer understanding of coffee and increase their appreciation of the amazing work baristas and cafés around the country do to deliver a great product with a special service experience,” he says.

“For every consumer that moves from an entry-level quality coffee experience to a specialty coffee experience, this is one more body that will appreciate coffee quality, and these consumers will seek out this same quality through Australia’s café industry.”

THE FRESH COFFEE PEOPLE

The uptake of local and specialty coffee in supermarkets came to a head at the end of May when Woolworths took a big step up into the arena. The grocery has partnered with Campos Coffee to launch the Australian International Coffee Awards 2020 Roaster of the Year’s Superior Blend in 990 stores nationwide.

Campos Coffee Founder Will Young calls the partnership a game changer for coffee consumers, and one that was more than a decade in the making.

“It’s always been important for us to get good coffee into as many Australian hands as possible,” Will says. “We thought for a while that grocery would be good for us if we could figure out how to do it, do it well, and make sure the freshness was still there. It was always on our radar, but when COVID came along, it brought it to the forefront.”

Before approaching Woolworths, Campos had a third-party survey of 2500 coffee drinkers to determine demand for their coffee preferences. Will says Campos, the Australian International Coffee Awards 2020 Australian Roaster of the Year, consistently came out on top.

“The Australian public was basically asking for easier access to Campos Coffee, especially during COVID with everyone stuck inside making coffee at home,” he says. “This gives us an easy ability to reach people in their homes whether they’re self-isolating or just drinking more coffee.”

But before entering the supermarket space, Will says it was important that strong supply chains be in place to guarantee a good flow of quality coffee.

“We’ve spent the last 10 years on the road, building up our relationships and understanding each origin we buy from intimately, which has made this large scale possible,” he says. “We’re really confident about going into grocery now,

whereas five or six years ago, we’d feel a bit hesitant over whether or not we could find that much good coffee.”

A downturn in wholesale business has meant Campos had the stock ready to go for initial deliveries to Woolworths, however, Will says its producing partners were “champing at the bit” when Campos let them know it was going to need to buy more coffee.

“There’s a lot of specialty coffee outlets who are suffering because of COVID-19 across the world. Many can’t even open.

That means there’s a glut of good coffee out there that isn’t being bought by the usual players. I can’t think of any better time than right now to be buying more,” he says.

The Superior Blend’s cupping score rests at 86 to 86.5 out of 100, which makes Will “doubt there’s anywhere in the world where you can buy such high quality from a national grocery outlet”. To keep this sentiment, Campos Coffee has scaled its quality control procedures to match volume.

dc Specialty Coffee Roasters has worked with Coles to help develop and expand its Coles Local concept.

The best brewed coffee at home!

“Everything is done to the exact same levels as always, it’s just on a bigger scale.

We’ve based our business on keeping a promise of quality, and going into grocery won’t stop us from adhering to what we believe,” Will says.

“I believe that’s true for any specialty coffee company. They’re all so married to quality. That’s what got us into coffee in the first place. Going into grocery almost means we’ll go harder on quality control and keeping that up because we’d never want to disturb our current quality credentials.”

Will sees the supermarket specialty coffee boom as a good thing for the industry, that will raise the general consumer’s awareness and preference for quality coffee. Creating a link between that quality and the signature Campos Coffee rosetta will help the cafés serving its coffee in particular.

“There are so many specialty coffee brands out there that it’s hard to get saliency in the market. This deal cements Campos as a household name and a known Australian brand. That means there’s more people attracted to the brand, not just in the supermarkets but in cafés as well,” Will says.

“We’d never have made this choice if we didn’t hand-on-heart believe this would ‘float all boats’. We realised that increased brand awareness would help all of our café partners as well, and that’s when we made the call.”

Will sees the availability of Campos – and other specialty brands – in the supermarket as a natural evolution of Australia’s penchant for quality coffee.

“Up until a little while ago, you wouldn’t have talked about specialty coffee going into groceries, but now we certainly are,” Will says.

“But it’s not the coffee that’s changed it’s the grocery stores. It’s really exciting, and it’s just a testament to how important specialty coffee is to Australia and the Australian consumer. They demanded this and now they’re able to get it.”

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INDUSTRY SURVEY

A path to recovery Following a survey conducted by BeanScene’s publisher, Prime Creative Media, we reveal the latest stats from businesses in the sector as we battle through COVID-19 and move into a new normal.

A

ustralia is an outlier in global economic performance. For the past 29 years, the country has defied global trends, avoiding recession with 29 years of continuous growth according to the Australian Trade and Investment Commission. Australia has outperformed all 34 member countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation (OECD). Even the Global Financial Crisis from 2007 to 2009 couldn’t hurt performance, as the economy continued to grow largely thanks to direct injections of cash from the federal government to residents.

The result is that at least 3.5 million working age Australians have never lived in a recession, while another approximately 9.1 million working age Australians have never been in the workforce during one. This all changed in June 2020, where the might of Australia’s economic muscle was weakened following the lockdowns to contain the coronavirus pandemic.

At the start of the lockdown, even conservative estimates said this downturn was inevitable. While there was some hope major stimulus packages might

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heed a recession, once major events were cancelled, international travel banned, and tourism put to halt, few believed the country could avoid it.

The recession has arrived, and the question now is: how fast will Australia’s economy recover? To help answer this question, from 28 May to 5 June 2020, Prime Creative Media, Australia’s leading B2B publisher, undertook an ambitious industry sentiment survey across more than 490,000 readers and its 29 brands, to measure business performance and confidence among the key industrial sectors we serve.

One of those sectors was the coffee industry, undoubtedly among the worst hit by the coronavirus restrictions. The purpose of the survey was to reflect on where the coffee industry is placed as the national and global economies start to emerge from this once-in-a-generation challenge.

HOW WAS THE SECTOR IMPACTED?

A wide variety of people across executive, mid-level manager, finance, sales and marketing, procurement and operations participated in the industry survey

representing BeanScene and Global Coffee Report audiences.

Forty-four per cent of survey respondents had up to 10 employees in their company, while 25 per cent had between 11 to 50 employees, and 11 per cent between both 51 to 100 and 101 to 500. On the other end of the scale, just 6 per cent had more than 500 employees.

These results can be attributed to Australia’s coffee industry being largely made up of small boutique businesses, stretching across both metro and regional locations.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), more than a quarter of all jobs in accommodation and food services were lost between mid-March and the first week of April.

Those aged 20 to 29 and over 70 were the worst affected by the job cuts in the accommodation and food services sector, with more than 40 per cent losing work.

As of 18 June, unemployment had reached a 19-year high, sitting at 7.1 per cent.

Many had access to JobKeeper, however the Australian Financial Review reported in May that only half of the hospitality sector had enrolled for the government’s JobKeeper payments,

despite the industry being among the worst impacted by coronavirus restrictions. Some businesses struggled with enrolment or didn’t make the cut, and many of the industry’s casual and foreign workers were omitted or ineligible.

Released Treasury data showed 51,269 employers in the accommodation and food sector had enrolled for the wage subsidy by 4 May, out of a total 728,640 applications. But the figure represented just 53.8 per cent of the businesses operating in the sector, as recorded in February by the ABS. There are already calls for the $70 billion JobKeeper wage subsidy scheme to be extended until the end of the year, with the sector facing a long road to recovery.

A CHALLENGING TIME

When it came to describing the impact COVID-19 has had on individual businesses, 40.5 per cent of respondents said it was somewhat negative, while 37.6 per cent said very negative, and 12.8 per cent had not seen a lot of impact. Only 8.9 per cent said they had seen some increase in business.

For those businesses who had experienced a downturn, at the conclusion

of the May-June survey, an optimistic 34 per cent of survey respondents said they expected their companies to return to previous levels in the next six to 12 months. Twenty per cent said three to six months, and more than 12 months, while 13 per cent said timing wasn’t applicable.

Just 12 per cent of respondents expected business to bounce back within one to three months.

While this may be the case for some states, unfortunately at time of print in mid-July, a second wave of COVID-19 was imminent, with Metropolitan Melbourne facing record case numbers, and forced into stage three lockdowns again. Once again, Melbourne hospitality businesses felt the strain just after they’d welcomed back dine-in patrons. And, for the first time in 100 years since the Spanish flu pandemic, borders between Victoria and New South Wales closed on 9 July.

With the survey sent out just as initial restrictions were starting to lift across the country, results picked up a strong appetite for a quick recovery. In terms of hiring intentions in the next 12 to 24 months, a total 37.6 per cent of survey respondents said they don’t expect to

WHAT CHARACTERISES THE EFFECT OF COVID-19 ON YOUR BUSINESS AT PRESENT?

Very negative

37.62%

Somewhat negative

40.59%

Not a lot of impact

12.87%

We have seen some increase in business

8.91%

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INDUSTRY SURVEY

create new positions. Twenty-three per cent said they would operate with a reduced number of staff and the same percentage said they hoped to create more positions within the next 12 months. Only 15.5 per cent had hope of rehiring any laid off or stood down staff.

WHAT BEST DESCRIBES YOUR INVESTMENT IN THE NEXT 12 TO 18 MONTHS?

ADAPTABILITY

Most impressive in response to the lockdown has been the coffee industry’s ability to adapt to its ‘new normal’ and think outside the box in terms of operational abilities and ways to reach their target market.

This includes an increased demand in retail coffee from both café volumes and supermarkets sales as Australian households increased their caffeine intake (see more page 30). Then, there was the uptake of online and app-based ordering systems to help cafés remain operational as takeaway- and delivery-only. Cashless payment systems also accelerated, and for some businesses, “pivoting” meant diversifying its businesses operations to incorporate groceries and hand sanitiser manufacturing – anything to help retrieve the loss of income from traditional methods of sales.

This sentiment for versatility and adaptability was felt across the coffee sector at the time of our May-June survey.

Half of respondents said they were exploring new technologies and services to make their companies more productive and efficient in the next 12 to 18 months.

However, 35 per cent said they will continue current projects and not make any new investments, and 14.5 per cent said they would cut or reduce all of their investment and research and development.

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14.52%

We will continue current projects, but not make any new investments.

35.31%

We are exploring new technologies and services to make our company more productive and efficient.

50.17%

INDUSTRY ENGAGEMENT

As major news outlets continue to report on the strains the supply chain is experiencing and show a general perspective on the hospitality industry, BeanScene’s close relationships with leading decision markers, coffee suppliers, roasters, café operators, and baristas have given the publication exclusive access to content and stories.

Cafés around the country have imposed social distancing restrictions to comply with government regulations and found ways to diversify their product offering.

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We will cut or reduce all of our investment and R&D.

To help suppliers in marketing to those companies that are looking to make investments, we polled respondents on what sources they use to make purchasing decisions. Information given directly from suppliers was the most influential source of information to make a purchasing decision during this time, followed by case studies about companies similar to their own.

A high portion of respondents said that information from third-party sources such as trade magazines and industry reports and trade events had been highly beneficial over direct advertising from social media platforms such as Google or Facebook.

The majority of respondents rated social media as the least trustworthy source during recent times, rating last by the highest margin among all the sources listed. Emailed newsletters and media websites rated moderately to highly trustworthy, and the most trustworthy source according to industry is trade magazines and periodic journals.

Following the generally accepted advice that it’s important to maintain share of voice in a downturn, an impressive 42 per cent of survey respondents said they had maintained their level of marketing.

Twenty-six per cent had increased their level of marketing, and 25 per cent had made a reduction in their level of marketing. Only 5 per cent cut all marketing spend altogether.

WHERE TO NEXT?

In addition to media trust, the survey also polled respondents on industry events, to help companies plan how to incorporate live events in their future marketing plans.

HOW WOULD YOU RATE THE GOVERNMENT’S SUPPORT FOR YOUR INDUSTRY DURING COVID?

Very strong

18.87%

Acceptable

50.99%

Not enough

27.15%

Although many physical industry trade events have been cancelled or postponed until further notice, a very healthy 40.9 per cent of respondents said they are likely to attend trade events in the future,

D

when the government deems it to be safe.

Thirty-five per cent said very likely, and just 23.7 per cent said not very likely.

Half of respondents rated the Federal Government’s support from the sector during the COVID-19 crisis as acceptable, however with cafés forced to shut down or limit their businesses, 27.1 per cent of survey respondents were critical, saying the governments didn’t do enough. On the other hand, 18.8 per cent said it was very strong.

The Federal and State Governments were quick to release a range of support programs and stimulus packages for small businesses struggling during the coronavirus pandemic. This included the Federal Government’s $130 billion JobKeeper Payment scheme to help keep more Australians in jobs, and a code of conduct and moratorium on evictions for commercial leases, meaning many small businesses that were uncertain of the future will live to see another day.

The Federal Government provided up to $100,000 to eligible small and mediumsized businesses that employ people, with a minimum payment of $20,000. State governments have also provided financial support to businesses, but there’s still more to be done.

eveloped in conjuction with the BeanScene magazine website, The Long & Short of It news EDM is dedicated to keeping the coffee industry abreast of the latest relevant news as it breaks, in addition to providing an electronic interface for the viewing of BeanScene magazine content. To keep up to date with fresh, informative and relevant content, register your details at www.beanscenemag.com.au

Confidence is a tough thing to shake. With Australia’s long history of economic might, it seems that even a recession can’t hold back the confidence of businesses in some of Australia’s most important industries.

The economy is experiencing one of the worst crisis to impact the industry since the post-World War II era. COVID-19 has already shut down millions of businesses globally, with a good percentage unlikely to reopen. We hope that our beloved cafés, as well as roasteries, traders and suppliers, find the strength to withstand the lockdowns and stand stronger together on the other side.

And while confidence is no crystal ball to predict the future, it forms an important part of our path back to prosperity.

‘Animal Spirits’, the term coined by British economist John Maynard Keynes, highlights that the instincts and emotions that guide our behaviour can have a significant impact on the economy. The results of this survey show that many business leaders in key sectors are eager to continue marketing and invest in their businesses, in the hopes we’ll return to normal in less than 12 months. This attitude will form an important part of making that belief a reality.

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SUSTAINABILITY FEATURE

Cocoa to save the Amazon The Amazon is under threat from illegal deforestation, but Minas Hill Cocoa has emerged to help the communities that live off the rainforest protect their natural resource.

M

any Australians have heard about the rise of deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest, however in a year full of bushfires, pandemics, and lockdowns, few will have truly considered what this means on a global scale.

According to the National Institute for Space Research of Brazil, about 1200 square kilometres of tree cover was cleared in the first four months of 2020, a 55 per cent increase from year-on-year.

In April alone, deforestation grew 171 per cent compared to the year prior.

That was after an already devastating 2019 for the Amazon. Deforestation levels reached their highest point in more than a decade and the 2019 Amazon rainforest wildfires tore through not only Brazil, but Bolivia, Paraguay, and Peru.

While much of the logging, mining, and farming in the region is illegal, Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro and Environment Minister Ricardo Salles have endorsed deforestation. The government has also cut funding to and fired senior officials from the groups meant to curtail these activities.

Ernesto Londoño, Brazil Bureau Chief of The New York Times, writes “the rise in deforestation is being driven by a prevailing sense among illegal loggers and miners that tearing down the rainforest carries minimal risk of punishment and yields significant

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payoff”. An outbreak of the coronavirus has exacerbated this, with the government’s and public’s attentions elsewhere.

The impact of this deforestation is wide reaching. The Amazon contains isolated indigenous communities and unique flora and fauna that are being put in danger. It is also the world’s largest carbon dioxide sink, and thus plays a pivotal role in mitigating climate change.

For almost a decade, Marcelo Brussi, Founder of green bean trader Minas Hill, has helped bridge the social gap between farmers in Brazil and coffee roasters in Australia. He saw the impact of this deforestation firsthand on his most recent trip to Brazil last year.

“The Amazon is almost the size of Australia, and it’s more important than any other forest in the world for climate regulation, so we should all be concerned about keeping it alive,” Marcelo says.

“I want my kids and grandkids to be able to experience the Amazon’s whole magnitude and grandeur.”

LIVING OFF THE LAND

Many communities and cooperatives harvest the natural produce of the Amazon to bring income to their communities. This includes pepper, acai, Brazilian nuts, and cocoa or cacao.

A friend who had established Ocra Cacau, the first cocoa factory in the Brazilian Amazon, invited Marcelo to visit

one of these communities. Marcelo says the vast region of Terra do Meio in the state of Pará was rife with conflict.

“These cocoa communities are wedged between the protected national park and the deforestation. The illegal loggers, cattle farmers, and miners put pressure on conserving that part of the forest,” he says.

“These people need to be allowed to maintain their own traditions and culture, and Minas Hill wants to commercially contribute, empower, and strengthen this population to keep this forest alive and intact.”

Marcelo says the indigenous population and communities living off the Amazon cannot simply be relocated due to deforestation. The best way to support these people is to encourage them to maintain the rainforest long term.

“You can’t just give them money to solve the problem. It needs to be an ongoing support. You need to give them business, so they see that the forest intact is worth much more than the forest chopped off and sold as timber.

Otherwise, they will end up selling the natural resources they have on the land,” he says.

Cacao requires shade to grow, like the canopy the Amazon provides. In fact, despite more than half of the world’s cocoa supply being grown in West Africa, the cocoa tree is native to the Amazon.

Marcelo says due to the soil of that

The cocoa is processed and roasted at origin to add value and keep jobs in the community.

rainforest, this is the only cocoa in the world that can claim to be cadmium-free.

“Countries like Japan, the United States, and some from the European Union, have already banned cocoa containing cadmium, a harmful chemical, responsible for multiple diseases,” he says.

It is also fermented and roasted in the region. This adds more value to the product and keeps jobs in the community, providing more incentive to preserve their land and resources.

Minas Hill has partnered with these communities and Ocra Cacau to launch Minas Hill Cocoa, bringing the product of these community’s hard work to Australia.

“I aim to raise awareness from the Australian coffee industry and wider community. If you want sustainable coffee, why not sustainable cocoa too?”

Marcelo asks.

“When the pandemic started, people said this was the time to change some of our old behaviours. We are embracing a more local, conscious, and sustainable way to consume, purchase, and engage with goods from around the world and in Australia.”

MINAS HILL’S COMMITMENT

Sustainability has always been at the core of Minas Hill. Its four core coffee producing partners – Ismael Andrade, Gabriel Oliveira, Pedro Gabarra Teixeira, and Luis Sobrinho from Bela Epoca – have embraced biodiversity and conservation efforts on their own farms.

By law, Brazilian farms must conserve at least 20 per cent of their land. Gabriel preserves 40 per cent of his.

Pedro’s farm Fazenda Pinhal was even named the most sustainable farm in Brazil for 2019 by Globo Rural, a respected agricultural publication.

Minas Hill has also contributed to these producer’s social environmental campaigns at origin, including GIMA with Gabriel, Wings with Pedro, and providing funding and equipment for

Ismael’s local hospital.

The green bean trader itself has reduced waste in the supply chain by encouraging its partners to use a biohybrid plastic lining in their hessian sacks when transporting coffee.

“It is important to me and my customers that we are bringing a more sustainable coffee, and I want to do exactly the same for cocoa,” Marcelo says.

FROM COFFEE TO COCOA

While the sustainable practices behind Minas Hill Cocoa are admirable, Marcelo says it would be tough to sell the product if the quality did not match that of its specialty coffee offering.

“Cocoa is from the Amazon region, so we’re sourcing it from its natural environment with the perfect ‘terroir’.

Then, these guys know when and how to pick the cocoa at its ripest. Finally, the way they ferment and roast their cocoa produces one of the highest qualities you can find,” he says.

“I believe we can create a niche in sustainable and specialty cocoa. Like coffee, cocoa is more than a commodity, and I believe people are willing to pay for something unique, specialty, quality, sustainable, and with a great cause behind it.”

Minas Hill has a range of certified

cocoa products it can offer to businesses, ranging from roasters and cafés to confectioners, chocolate makers, and bakeries. This includes Natural Cocoa Powder, Alkalised Powder, and Red Alkalised Powder. Each product is also offered as a single origin from one of the three regions: Alto Xingu, from deep forest; Amazon, from the eastern Amazon; and Rain Forest from Bahia state. Marcelo says Minas Hill’s Cocoa Liquor and Cocoa Butter from these regions are unique in the Australian market.

“These two products are truly special, and there isn’t an equivalent in quality available in the market,” Marcelo says.

“You can ask for any of the products as Single-Origin, or from the High-Quality range. I’m sure our customers will be truly amazed by the quality.”

Marcelo says coffee and cocoa are interconnected, and not just because they’re both used for hot drinks. The two crops face many of the same social and environmental issues, setting the stage for the coffee industry to embrace more sustainable cocoa. Marcelo hopes to take several roasters to the Amazon in 2021 so they can see the difference this cocoa is making for themselves.

“Cocoa is a product that complements the offer from a coffee roaster, but it can also impress chocolatiers, bakers, and purveyors of fine hot chocolate. I think they and their customers will understand the product and want something more sustainable,” Marcelo says.

“Together we can make a better world.

We are about to create new paradigms and concepts, shifting away from mass production to more sustainable purchasing behaviour, and consumers want to know where their goods come from. Our actions in Brazil impact Australia, and vice versa.

We live on one planet and we need to look after it.”

For more information, visit www.minashill.com.au

Minas Hill hopes to encourage communities in the Amazon to see the value cocoa has to offer.

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SUSTAINABILITY FEATURE

For 50 years more Genovese Coffee is leaving a sustainable legacy for the next generation – going carbon neutral, supporting farmers and projects at origin, and finding a better way of doing things.

S

ince 1970, Genovese Coffee has stood as a pillar of the Australian coffee industry. The family-owned coffee roaster was one of the first, and few remaining, to set up shop in Melbourne.

Over the past five decades, Genovese Coffee has grown not only in size and scale, but in quality, reach, and sustainable practices. Adam Genovese, the third generation of his family to run the business, sees the importance of preserving it and the planet for future generations.

“We take our responsibility to the environment and future coffee growers and drinkers seriously,” Adam says. “An individual can make a difference, but with the reach our coffee has to so many consumers, we can get a message out that’s clearer than one person shouting into a void.”

For years, Genovese Coffee has looked at how it can improve its own environmental footprint. In 2013, the business took advantage of government incentives to install solar panels at its Coburg facility. Adam says solar power has replaced about 60 per cent of the roaster’s electricity usage, reaching as much as 80 per cent in sunnier summer months.

“I don’t understand why most businesses aren’t almost forced to do it.

We live in a country with a lot of sun, so why wouldn’t you tap into that?” he asks.

“Buying less electricity from coal-fired power stations even saves us money that can go into buying coffee or further projects.”

The roaster also uses recyclable or reusable packaging wherever it can. Some high-volume accounts receive their coffee in reusable aluminium containers that are switched out and cleaned between deliveries. Adam says sustainable packaging will be a big focus of coffee and other industries moving forward.

As for disposing of coffee itself, Genovese is a founding signatory of Coffee 4 Planet Ark, a project that aims to repurpose used coffee grounds rather than sending them to landfill.

“It’s finishing off what we started. It’s

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Genovese Coffee has taken steps to make its business and products, like the Shots by Genovese paper pods, carbon neutral.

the last piece of something in the chain that needs to be dealt with. It’s a product of what we do with our café partners, and if we can help close that loop then we should,” Adam says.

However, in a supply chain as complex as coffee, it’s difficult for a roaster to

power, and use a formula to determine the remainder,” Adam says. “Then, we offset every one of these emissions by purchasing carbon credits from renewable energy programs across the globe.”

With the Carbon Reduction Institute certifying its own environmental

“WE SELL A KILOGRAM OF COFFEE AND THAT MAKES 70 OR 80 CUPS IN A CAFÉ.

THAT’S 70 OR 80 PEOPLE PER KILO WE CAN REACH, WHO MIGHT WANT TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT US AND THE THINGS WE’RE DOING.” completely wipe out its carbon footprint.

Genovese Coffee works with the Carbon Reduction Institute to make its business and products carbon neutral.

“They audit our movement of products in importing and distribution, gas and electricity bills, consider our waste management system and solar

sustainability, Genovese Coffee has been able to turn its attention to offering alternatives to end consumers.

At-home coffee consumption is on the rise, and Adam says many people are turning from instant coffee to single serve machines like Nespresso. With the Shots

by Genovese paper pod range, he hopes

to offer a more sustainable solution.

“Nespresso has been very good at capturing that domestic market, but the problem is, as soon as you’re locked into that system, you have to buy their capsules or compatible ones. In Australia, a lot of the compatible ones are plastic, and there are three million plastic capsules going into landfill every day,” he says.

“About 50 per cent of Australia’s coffee consumption is still instant coffee.

We can tap into the part of the market that hasn’t decided on their coffee machines yet and help them make a more conscious decision.

“We came across [Easy Serve Espresso] (ESE), a paper pod system that’s prolific in Europe but hadn’t taken off in Australia. Traditionally, the pods are individually wrapped for freshness, which causes its own packaging issue. We thought to ourselves, ‘how can we make it a bit better?’”

The answer was to package 20 paper pods in a recyclable aluminium tin. Adam says it only takes a household one or two weeks to go through a tin, with Genovese Coffee determining there’s no loss of flavour over that period.

Each pod is encased in an environmentally friendly, food grade filter paper which is completely compostable and biodegradable. “If the pods end up in landfill, it’s paper and coffee, and will break down. If they go in a worm farm or compost, they’ll add value like anything else in that environment. I want people to make a better choice rather than putting plastic into landfill,” Adam says.

Shots by Genovese is compatible with a number of ESE machines, with Genovese Coffee recommending the Tube

Shot by Genovese serves as a sustainable alternative to plastic coffee capsules.

Luxe and Pallina in particular. Currently, the range includes Bold, Mellow, Decaf, and a single origin sourced from the Orangutan Coffee Project in Indonesia.

This program works closely with Sumatran coffee farmers to improve farming practices in organic and ecologically friendly coffee farms, supports the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Program (SOCP), and fights deforestation.

“There’s a lot of projects around the world you can choose to support, but Indonesia is one of our closest neighbours and orangutans are beautiful animals so close to being wiped out. The number of orangutans left in the wild wouldn’t fill the seats behind the goal posts of the MCG,” Adam says.

“We’ve seen the work this conservation project is doing with our own eyes and the haven they’re building for orangutans to live out their lives where they can’t be put back into the wild.”

On top of the agreed green bean price, Genovese Coffee pays a premium to the Orangutan Coffee Project which is split 50/50 between the independent smallholder farmers and SOCP. This is only one program Genovese Coffee supports at origin through its coffee buying. Another is the CriaCarmo Coffee Project, which provides social and athletic programs to around 150 at-risk and underprivileged youth from Carmo de Minas in Brazil.

“We could operate as a business that only worries about itself, but we’re gifted in coffee to reach so many consumers,” Adam says. “We sell a kilogram of coffee and that makes 70 or 80 cups in a café.

That’s 70 or 80 people per kilo we can

The Orangutan Coffee Project helps farmers improve their practices while supporting the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Program.

reach, who might want to find out more about us and the things we’re doing.

Hopefully, it touches enough people to make a further difference.”

More broadly, Genovese Coffee contributes to coffee producing communities by paying prices and premiums for coffee well above market prices. Adam says Genovese Coffee’s direct and long-term relationships with its producing partners are pivotal to making this happen.

“All of our coffees are sourced as ethically as possible and we work closely with a number of direct relationships across 15 to 16 origins,” Adam says. “It’s about not treating coffee as a commodity where prices are driven down. At the very least, this helps the family we buy from and gives them continuity.”

With Genovese Coffee celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2020, Adam says he is proud of his heritage and the efforts he and his family have taken to be sustainable. He encourages others in coffee to reflect on their own legacy.

“I’d like to ruffle some feathers and have people take notice that there are better options. We shouldn’t just go for the easy one but the conscious one,” Adam says.

“Our initiatives have been put in place over time as the opportunities have come along. We don’t pat ourselves on the back and aren’t doing these things to land more business. We just want to do better.”

For more information, visit www.genovese.com.au, www.shotsbygenovese.com.au, or www.orangutan.coffee

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SUSTAINABILITY FEATURE

First to zero Skip Zero combines the convenience, simplicity, and traceability of a pre-ordering app with the sustainability of a swap-cup program.

O

ver its six years servicing the Australian food and beverage industry, Skip has witnessed the rise of customers turning to reusable cups firsthand. The pre-ordering app even added a bringyour-own (BYO) option at the request of its users. However, Skip CEO Bill Bizos tells BeanScene it was tricky combining the idea of BYO with Skip’s intention of ‘skipping the queue’.

“It wasn’t until I was at a Bunnings store swapping out a gas tank bottle for my barbeque right before Christmas that it dawned on me, ‘you know what, this could work with a cup swap’,” Bill says.

“We saw an opportunity to play a part in the sustainability of the industry. One billion cups go to landfill in Australia each year, which is massive. The question for us was: ‘how do we reduce that waste and create a sustainable system without compromising on convenience and efficiency?’”

The answer was Skip Zero, a swapcup program that allows customers to pre-order their coffee in a reusable cup, exchanging their old one for a new one

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Skip Zero introduces pre-ordering and convenience to the swap-cup program.

when picking it up, without having to wait in a queue. Bill says this system avoids some of the issues that have dogged other reusable alternatives.

“We want to make it simple to be sustainable, and I think that’s been the biggest problem. We all want to be

sustainable, but a lot of the time, the breakdown is because it’s not convenient.

I think it will play a massive part if we can reduce that,” he says.

First time users receive a new reusable cup and lid with their first order using Skip Zero on the Skip App. Each cup

Skip Zero keeps track of the number of cups users keep from going to landfill.

Skip Zero cups have been made to look appealing as well as be ergonomic.

has an inbuilt near-field communication (NFC) chip, which the merchant or barista scans to assign it to the customer.

The next time that customer orders a coffee through Skip Zero, the barista assigns another cup to them. When they arrive, the customer returns their used cup – which gets unassigned and goes through a commercial dishwasher – and they walk away with a fresh cup, popping on their existing lid.

Cafés that join the Skip Zero movement pay a small sign-up fee to receive an NFC reader, 12 cups to allow swapping, and 30 retail cups and lids for first time users – for which cafés will receive a rebate. Skip has also developed ‘coasters’ the barista can place on top of a cup so it remains hot while waiting for the customer to arrive.

Bills says this system has been in development for more than a year to ensure a seamless experience for both

barista and user. It also took time to find the right cup which ticked all the boxes Skip was looking for.

“We’re an Australian business and our goal is to support local. The company that produces the cups is Melbourne-based, Australian owned, and is a certified B Corporation,” Bill says.

“For the cup itself, not only did it have to look good and be sustainable, it had to perform well too. That meant ensuring it is odourless, isn’t porous or breakable – it can go through 1200 commercial washes – and has a great pour, so it’s easy for baristas too.”

Skip tested the system at several key sites around Melbourne before bringing it to the wider community. These include Standing Room in Melbourne Central, No Vacancy at QV, and La Trobe and Deakin Universities.

“We want to ensure we learnt as much as possible before launching, which is why we’ve been testing for such a long period of time. The feedback has been really positive: that it’s easy and simple from both sides,” Bill says.

“More venues are already jumping onboard. The existing Skip technology will enable us to work with our 2300 merchants and take this to market with a greater impact.”

After a wider launch of the cup swap program, Skip intends to expand Skip Zero into food packaging, ‘leases’ for additional cups, and catering to large events. While COVID-19 has cast a shadow on the ‘BYO cup’ mentality, Bill says Skip Zero provides an extra level of hygiene and assurance.

“Skip Zero will enable us to create a swap experience using a commercially washed and sterilised cup,” he says. “It’s also cashless, has inbuilt loyalty programs, and creates a virtual queue. With COVID-19, you don’t really want to be standing around waiting for a coffee.”

The ability to pre-order is only one benefit the original Skip app brought over to Skip Zero. Bill says the platform brings a new level of traceability to the cup swap.

“Each time a coffee is purchased through Skip Zero, the merchant and customer both receive a notification letting them know they saved one cup, which is added to a tally,” he says.

“It’s nice to know what impact you’re having on the environment, and we provide data on exactly how many cups you’ve saved and the difference you’re making.”

For more information, visit www.skipzero.com.au

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SUSTAINABILITY FEATURE

Almonds are forever The Alternative Dairy Co is revamping its Barista Almond Milk while highlighting the sustainability and quality that come with Australian made ingredients.

A

lmost a millennium before millennials walked the Earth, almond milk became popular in the 1100s as a non-animal food substitute during Lent. In the Middle Ages, many turned to it as a healthy and longer-lasting alternative to dairy.

While times have changed, The Alternative Dairy Co Café Trade Marketing Manager Marcus Fehlberg says the recent uptake of almond and other plant-based milks is for the same reasons.

“There’s two reasons plant-based milks are becoming more prevalent again.

There’s the health and lifestyle benefits, and the other is that they’re better for the environment,” Marcus says.

The Alternative Dairy Co first introduced its soy and almond barista milks to the coffee industry in 2018, with its flagship Barista Oat Milk following in 2019. Marcus says the success of the oat milk has increased recognition of the brand and its other milks.

“It was timed well with the emergence of oat milk as an option in cafés towards the end of last year, and has had overwhelmingly positive feedback,” he says.

“Our almond milk has been around a bit longer, and with all of our products,

The Alternative Dairy Co has reworked its almond milk to improve its mouthfeel, creaminess, and the way it textures.

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Australian grown almonds from Select Harvests are used in the Alternative Dairy Co Barista Almond Milk.

we’re constantly listening to feedback from the market and consumers, and want to make them the best they can be.”

With increased attention and experience in coffee behind it, The Alternative Dairy Co has reformulated its Barista Almond Milk to improve its mouthfeel, creaminess, and the way it textures.

While the original recipe performed well, Marcus says The Alternative Dairy Co is always pushing the boundaries of how its plant-based milks work with coffee.

“We’re never resting on our laurels.

We want our milks to be the go-to for the wider market. That means making sure they have a product that performs as expected every single time the barista pours it into a jug,” he says.

“It’s not really a substantial change in ingredients. We’ve just played with the ratios and adjusted levels to make a more robust almond milk and improve it when used with coffee.”

This means that The Alternative Dairy Co Barista Almond Milk still uses Australian-grown almonds, sourced from the Murray-Darling-based company Select Harvests. In fact, sourcing Australian ingredients is a priority for the brand, with its milks conceived and created on the NSW Central Coast.

“We want to support local farmers and the economy as much as we can. Being Australian made and owned is important, even more so with the COVID-19 pandemic,” he says.

“Australia’s also a long way from everywhere else, so it just makes sense to source locally wherever we can. We want to minimise our impact on the environment, which includes reducing carbon miles and not importing things from overseas when there are as good – if not better – ingredients available here in Australia.”

People have been using almonds as an alternative to dairy milk for almost a millennium.

The sustainability of almond production has recently come into question, with large volumes of water required to water trees that only flower once a year. However, Marcus points out that this pales in comparison to the water used in dairy production.

“There is probably a misconception that almonds are very water intensive, but it is far less than dairy milk,” he says. “We’re not against dairy, but we offer an alternative and we think it’s a better choice.”

Marcus points to Select Harvest’s water management and irrigation strategies, and its innovative use of almond by-products to power its processing facility as just some of the proof points of the Australian almond sustainability story.

“Select Harvests has a 50,000-litre worm farm that converts almond waste into liquid fertiliser for its trees – it’s amazing. We’ve also been really impressed by their biomass co-generation plant. It converts almond hulls, shells and orchard waste into energy that powers their processing facility and even some of the nearby orchard pumps,” Marcus says.

“They‘re a great supplier to partner with, and a real Australian agriculture success story.”

The revamped Barista Almond Milk reached cafés in July, but Marcus says The Alternative Dairy Co is not going to slow down with new ideas and seeing how it can improve the use of plant-based milks in coffee.

“Plant-based milks are still fairly young in the coffee industry and we believe there’s still room for growth, and that we can make them work better,” Marcus says.

“We’ve already heard feedback from people about our oat milk being better than dairy milk in coffee. If dairy milk is the bar and oat milk has already reached that, then what’s the next bar? Where do we go from here?”

This question is driving The Alternative Dairy Co to innovate its recipes and products.

“We have this concept of a ‘unicorn milk’, the perfect expression of a plantbased milk when paired with coffee,” Marcus says. “That could be a blend of plant-based milks, or something we’re not aware of yet, so we’re always looking at new trends, developments, and technologies that could take us there.”

For more information, visit www.altdairyco.com

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SUSTAINABILITY FEATURE

Ahead of the curve Bellwether Coffee has developed an emissions-free roaster that makes coffee roasting possible for almost any café or business.

The Bellwether Coffee Roaster is emissionsfree, and green coffee purchased through its Marketplace is sustainably sourced.

R

unning a café, or simply working behind an espresso machine, has stoked the flame of many people who dream of owning their own coffee brand. However, coffee roasting has been an elusive and exclusive art known only to a small few. Until now.

After several years of development, Bellwether Coffee made waves at last year’s 2019 Specialty Coffee Expo in the United States, where its commercial coffee roaster was recognised in the Best New Product awards.

The roaster is roughly the size of a refrigerator and, running on electricity, can be installed in a café or similar venue.

Bellwether Coffee CEO Nathan Gilliland tells BeanScene the roaster caters to pent-up demand for a “more distributed” method of roasting coffee.

“Coffee was headed in a super-premium direction, like wine, beer, and most other beverage categories,” Nathan says.

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“To really enable that, we had to create a much fresher product, which meant roasting near the point of consumption.

Whether that’s in a café, restaurant, or hotel, being able to roast and serve super fresh coffee was the pathway to a more premium product.”

Sustainability was front of mind when developing the roaster. The system is emissions-free thanks to an internal afterburner that combusts the volatile organic compounds present in coffee smoke. In combination with filtration, this ensures only clean air leaves the machine.

“Coffee is one of the higher carbon footprint beverages that people consume, and many don’t really know that. Often, 12 pounds of CO2 are emitted for every pound of coffee that’s consumed. That’s way too high,” Nathan says. “Being able to shorten the supply chain, run it on electricity instead of natural gas, and clean off those pollutants while we’re roasting was core to the business from day one.

“People around the world have become more aware and active regarding climate change, and we want to do our part to try and fix this situation.”

Accessibility was just as important so the machine could provide a wide entryway into roasting for its users.

The entire system is controlled with a touchscreen tablet attached to the machine where operators can select, edit, and create roast profiles.

“If we wanted this thing to be accessible, it had to be easy to use and intuitive. It couldn’t require specialised labour, where you had to be a 10-year roasting veteran to know how to roast coffee,” Nathan says. “Usability is one of the bigger differentiators of what we do. It’s a fun and easy to use machine compared to the old school technology that traditional roasting is all about.”

Even procuring green coffee is made easy through Bellwether Coffee’s Marketplace, accessed through the

touchscreen, which features coffees curated by Bellwether.

“To really make it easy and accessible for our customers, they needed the ability to source green coffee, which is not a simple process. On top of that, we want to help people buy coffee that is more sustainable, highlight the farms themselves, and make sure they are earning the costs of a sustainable product,” Nathan says.

“You can sort coffee by continents and origins. If you’re interested in gender initiatives, you can buy coffee from female cooperatives. If you’re more worried about environmental sustainability, you can buy coffees that are Rainforest Alliance endorsed.”

Nathan says the majority of Bellwether’s customers buy green coffee through the Marketplace, which includes information on the coffee, pictures and videos of the farm, and the producer’s story. Bellwether also develops recommended roast profiles for its green coffees that customers can follow or adapt.

However, customers are also encouraged to explore their own preferences, and can create roast profiles by simply drawing them on the touchscreen.

“People who own a café or really care about coffee want to understand where it comes from and more about the product.

Actually roasting it yourself, building roast profiles, and creating the exact coffee you want to serve to your customers is something that our customers have really engaged with,” Nathan says.

“Similarly, they can roast and sell it under their own brand now, which builds their brand and allows them to tell their own coffee story.”

So far, Bellwether Coffee’s main clientele has been independent cafés looking to strike out with their own coffee brand. Others include grocers, hotels, restaurants, corporate campuses, and larger chains.

“Our early customers were industry influencing cafés that others looked up to, and we targeted them for that reason.

It was people who wanted to offer a cool customer experience: to see a coffee roaster, to watch coffee being roasted through the glass front, and to bring the coffee front and centre,” Nathan says.

“Besides fresher coffee and the customer experience, there is consistency.

Being technologically advanced and controllable, you get perfectly consistent coffee every time. It’s not like older machines that are dependent on things like the weather or even the person using it.”

Over the last year, many businesses in the United States have adopted Bellwether Coffee roasters for these reasons to great

results. A Bellwether customer, located just outside of Dallas, Texas, is one example Nathan gives of an independent café that has successfully grown its brand.

“They were buying wholesale coffee from a roastery in Austin, which while in the same state, is a long way away,” he says.

“They purchased our roaster, buy our green coffee, and have seen their revenue grow by 20 per cent because they’re pushing their own brand now. They’ve had a lot of really positive customer feedback about the coffee too.

“Their cost per pound dropped by 25 per cent as well, so they simultaneously grew revenue and reduced their coffee expenses.”

While COVID-19 is a huge blow to the American coffee industry, Nathan says many of Bellwether’s customers handled the situation better than most cafés.

“So far, our customers have had mixed impacts. Some have fared better, particularly those who already knew how to do ecommerce or were selling retail,

but some in New York, for example, were forced to temporarily close,” Nathan says.

“Our total coffee volume being roasted is back up to pre-COVID levels, which is very encouraging to us.”

While Bellwether Coffee has been embraced across the US, the roaster has not yet arrived on Australian shores, something Nathan hopes to soon change.

“Australia is unique in how premium the coffee offerings are. What many Australians think is typical, Americans would think of as super premium, and that’s really our type of market,” Nathan says.

“Australia is a pioneer in the coffee market and we want to serve that super specialty market. We also connect with the strong interest and focus on sustainability. I think you’ll see us there either by the end of this year, or more likely, early 2021.”

For more information, visit www.bellwethercoffee.com

Bellwether Coffee makes it possible for anyone to enter the coffee roasting market.

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TECHNOLOGY PROFILE

Raising the bar The Australian designed, under-the-bench Tech-Bar modular espresso machine from Coffee Machine Technologies aims to provide a better customer experience and a fresher cup of coffee.

W

ith coffee quality at such a high level across Australia, the customer’s service and experience are the only things separating the best cafés from the rest.

Coffee Machine Technologies (CMT) saw this firsthand, servicing and supplying thousands of cafés with equipment across Australia. So, the company applied its years of experience in coffee and engineering to create an under-the-bench espresso machine that could create new levels of customer engagement. A little more than two years ago, the Australian designed Tech-Bar hit the market.

“There’s no barrier between the barista and the customer. We’ve pulled down those walls created by the coffee machine and all those cups on top,” says John Colangeli, Founder and Managing Director of CMT and creator of the Tech-Bar. “There’s an opportunity for the

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customer to see the barista at work – the whole theatricality of grinding the coffee to brewing it and texturing the milk.”

The Tech-Bar is fully customisable and available in practically any colour and finish that bests suits the venue. The modular nature of its components means the machine can be set up however will best improve the workflow of the barista.

“We’ve got Tech-Bars where the coffee is made on one side and the steam wands are on a right-angle bench. For some people, that’s what works best,” John says.

“You can actually install a two-group model, then in six months or a year’s time when you’re getting busier, you don’t have to buy another machine. We can add the third group to the existing machine.”

Each group head is controlled with a touchscreen interface, which also displays information like shot times and water volumes or pressure. John compares it to using an iPhone.

“You can swipe left or right, up or down, to change whatever parameters

you want,” he says. “I don’t think there’s anything else like that interface on the market.”

As the machine’s inventor, John takes part in each installation, and with a team of skilled technicians, CMT can jump on any issues that may arise. Having the parts spread out and modular also makes the machine easier to service and maintain.

“A traditional coffee machine has everything in one big box. Basically, we’ve split that open. The ‘engine room’ is safely underneath the bench and out of the way.

It’s easier to maintain everything above the bench because you’re not working inside a tight casket,” John says.

Unlike single- or dual-boiler machines where one boiler heats water for every group head, the Tech-Bar uses a pre-heating chute to bring fresh water straight to the group head. The piping brings water to 70°C to 75°C, then the group head uses a thermoblock to take it to the set temperature.

“This delivers freshly filtered water,

maximising the oxygen content. When water boils, it releases oxygen, which is important for improving the flavour of the coffee. At no point does the water go above the boiling point, so it doesn’t lose any oxygen,” John says.

“If you look at companies that specialise in tea, they never reheat the same water. They always tip the old water out and heat fresh water. The Tech-Bar does the same.”

This is one of the many reasons Peter Elasmar of San Pedro Coffee has been recommending the Tech-Bar to the roaster’s busier wholesale café partners for the last two years. Peter tells BeanScene the quality of coffee the machine provides, its reliability, and the customer appeal have been game changing.

“Hospitality is all about being reliable and there when your customers need you.

These machines have modern systems and maintain a fresh water flow to the front of the head,” Peter says.

“The maintenance has been very easy, which is very important as a café and a roaster. You don’t want any disruption of service. There’s nothing worse than telling a customer ‘no’ when they ask for their coffee.”

San Pedro supplies coffee to a small chain in the Melbourne CBD called 365 Food Store, which has particularly enjoyed the benefits of the Tech-Bar. “They installed a Tech-Bar in their third store. They were so impressed that they wanted it in their first two as well.

We helped get it in one of them and the volume of coffee they sold jumped by about 50 per cent. So, we installed it in their other café and a fourth one they opened as well,” Peter says.

“It does make a difference and the volume of sales does increase. I think customers like going somewhere that has something new, and that takes its coffee seriously.”

Another early adopter of the TechBar was Calvino Coffee, which operates several coffee shops along Victoria’s highways, where it faces stiff competition.

Co-owner Bill Hudson says Tech-Bar has offered the five venues in which it’s installed a massive point of difference.

“The first store we put it in was unbelievable. We’re in service centres where there are also McDonald’s, Oliver’s, and the service centre’s automatic machines serving coffee. It’s fairly competitive, but the sales were growing by 20 per cent month-on-month,” Bill says.

“I spoke to the Operations Manager and she said it’s because while they’re working, they’re constantly engaging with the customer and giving them a good experience. They’re doing more than just

serving them a cup of coffee.”

When Bill took over Calvino Coffee about a decade ago, he expected the freeway location would mean having almost only one-off customers. However, he says roughly 40 per cent are regulars, showing the importance of building longterm relationships.

“In a busy coffee shop, often your staff might hide behind the coffee machine and not make eye contact with the customers.

That’s not a problem here,” Bill says.

“If people walk in and see a queue for coffee, but you acknowledge they’re there and will get to them as fast as you can, they’ll be more willing to wait. If you hide behind the coffee machine, maybe not.”

On a regular day, Calvino Coffee’s busier stores will serve up to 1500 cups per day, making consistency and performance extra vital.

“The standard coffee machine has one boiler for three heads, so if something goes wrong with the boiler, the whole system chucks in the towel. Whereas with this machine, you can keep going,” Bill says.

“But if an issue does come up, I can call John and a technician will be there that afternoon.”

CMT’s John says the Tech-Bar has quickly built momentum since it made its debut in 2018. Other successful cafés to feature the Tech-Bar include iBean in the Docklands, Melbourne Airport, and Marvel Stadium in Victoria, and Hennessy Coffee and Northern Beaches Hospital in New South Wales.

The machine has seen interest from overseas, however, with the Tech-Bar well

The Tech-Bar was designed in Australia to suit local high-volume cafés.

established in Melbourne, CMT’s next step is putting it in more hands of the Sydney coffee community, with a few in the pipeline for 2020.

“A lot of cafés today are scared to lose business to the guys across the road, and sometimes, it’s because they don’t have that relationship with the customer,” John says.

“Now with Tech-Bar, you can expose everything, giving it that clean look and see customers when they walk in. You can pull that wall down.”

For more information, visit www.coffeemachinetechnologies.com. au/tech-bar or contact (+613) 9335 2293

365 Food Store in Victoria has installed the Tech-Bar in multiple venues.

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TECHNOLOGY PROFILE

The third generation Singers change their name to be more appealing and companies do it to signify a new identity. In the case of Probat’s shop roaster range, it’s a chance to target a new generation of users.

W

hen Probat Shop Roaster Trainer Daniela Nowitzki first learned how to roast, all she had was a timer and temperature probe. All measurements were written on paper.

It was challenging to reproduce a roast accurately, some may even say it involved luck. However, fast forward 20 years and roasters can easily get the results they’re after thanks to advanced technology and sophisticated visual cues.

“Roaster needs have changed, technology has changed, but our desire for consistent and reproducible roasts remains the same throughout the world,” Daniela says.

German roaster manufacturer Probat has pioneered such solutions in its industrial range since 1868. However, since 2008, Probat’s shop roasters have embraced the same world-renowned standards of technology, starting with the Probatone series. In 2012, it was updated to the Probatone II series, and now the thirdgeneration line will be formally known as the P III series.

“We needed to make the name of the roaster easier for our international customers to relate to,” says Jens Roelofs,

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Head of the Shop Roaster Sales and Service Department at Probat. “Most of our customers and colleagues, especially those in the United States, got used to shortening the name to the ‘P series’, so we decided to make it official.”

The range still includes the 5-kilogram, 12-kilogram, and 25-kilogram batch sizes, only now the model names will be abbreviated to P05 III, P12 III and P25 III, with a roasting capacity between 20 to 100 kilograms of green coffee per hour.

“We kept everything from the Probatone Series 2 that we considered ‘optimum’, such as its consistency and reproducibility and iconic Probat design, but have gone to the next level in the P III series in terms of design of the roaster’s outer appearance, and how the user visualises the control and roasting information,” Jens says.

Thanks to a large 15.6-inch(39.6-centimetre) touchscreen and advanced software, users now have a more visual representation of roasting parameters and data, such as temperature, pressure, burning power, timing, drum speed and roasting curve.

“Roasters want to see what’s going on inside their machine and change every parameter – all the small details to

perfect their roast. And with the new P III series, they can,” Daniela says. “Roasters can ‘play around’ to get the best from their roast.”

Better visual elements mean it’s easy to adjust the roast and for the operator to react immediately.

P III series roasters will be available with even more sensors than the Probatone II series. In addition to existing sensors, like product and roasting exhaust gas thermocouples, Probat has added a pressure gauge for the roasting exhaust air, thermocouples for coffee ambient temperature, supply air temperature, and cooling exhaust air temperature. These added features give roasters maximum information to control and reproduce their roast automatically.

“In coffee roasting, consistency is hard to achieve but extremely important,” Daniela says. “These days, the reproducibility of a recipe is easier and more reliant with the automatic function. It means all the parameters and recipes can be set, saved, and stored into the software for other colleagues to access and easily reproduce.”

Jens says while many roasters will maximise the machine’s automation, others prefer to stick with traditional, manual

TECHNOLOGY PROFILE control, using only gas heating to produce their roast, for instance.

“The good thing to know about the P III series is that you can control every parameter and access lots of data about your roast, but if you don’t want to, you don’t have to,” Jens says. “A roaster can still, more or less, operate the machine manually like they once did 15 years ago, but the option is there for more.”

The P III series, like its predecessor models, uses specially developed shovel mechanisms to move the beans in the drum at a controlled, set rotation speed.

Inside the roaster, the beans move along precisely defined paths. A controlled flow of hot air roasts the beans via convection with minimum drum contact. This results in a highly consistent roast and uniform bean pattern.

The new P III series also includes improved thermal insulation to minimise heat loss and maintain the energy inside the roaster. Airflow is controlled better and the front casting of the drum is now partially double-walled to reduce hot surfaces.

In terms of ergonomics, the design integrates improvements in usability, energy efficiency and ergonomics. The new model is easier to access and clean, especially inside the insulation chamber, where the roasting drum is installed. The lever of the drum outlet flap has been moved to the left side in all models.

“We are mindful that a lot of roasters work by themselves these days, and now they can be empowered to operate, clean, and perform maintenance on the machine themselves,” Daniela says.

Roasters can also use any mobile device to connect to the roasting software and control the parameters of the roast.

“Users can even compare the results from the sample roaster and replicate the recipe easily on your roaster using the same software. This was not the case before, so it’s a very significant change,” Daniela says.

When it comes to developing a new product range, Probat looks to customer feedback from the sales and training teams, and devises a “wish list” of the top items worth implementing. For Jens, “control of more parameters” and “better access to more data” topped his list. Then, it was improved design for efficiency, easier maintenance, and easier servicing, all of which he says have been addressed in the new P III series.

“It’s always a long, challenging process but we try to find ways to fulfil each wish list with the help of our engineers. Then we wait for the prototype,” he says.

In terms of design inspiration, the P III series resembles the well known and loved Probat style, with the addition of high-end technical features to perfect

The new P III series includes improved thermal insulation to minimise heat loss.

its performance.

The new series also embraces design elements taken from the new Probat sample roaster. Users also have the option to customise the materials and colours of the drum body, hood, and cast-iron front.

“Lots of businesses now want customers to see the roaster, just like they do the espresso machine. Many roasters want the customer involved in the process of roasting to see how the product is made,” she says.

More than ever, Jens says there’s a high demand for shop roasters from new and maturing markets, such as Asia and Eastern Europe. He says many roasters live abroad to learn the art of roasting, and on their return, are keen to replicate their skills.

“It’s a repetitious pattern but the demands from these roasters are always the same. They all have high demands in the technology of the roaster,” he says.

Daniela adds that Probat is committed

to the shop roaster market because of the growing specialty coffee industry, where there’s a thirst for knowledge sharing. This includes the Australian market, which will receive the P III range towards Q4 2020, following its digital launch in September.

When asked about the Australian coffee market, Daniela acknowledges it is an industry “very open to exchange”.

“Roasters discuss what models they’re using, they share their recipes, and they transfer knowledge, which for us, is a really important segment of the market to support,” she says.

“Australia is a market that is willing to test and play with parameters and data and make their product even more interesting for the end consumer. We believe the machine will fit in perfectly, and we can’t wait to see it there.”

For more information, visit www.probat.com

Roasters can use any mobile device to connect to the roasting software and control the parameters of the roast.

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TECHNOLOGY PROFILE

Go with the Flo Flo-Smart Beverage Solutions is helping cafés work smarter, reduce waste, drive efficiency, and improve profits through a contactless automated beverage dispensing system.

G

ood technology will do more than just the role it was designed to fill. It will have a holistic effect, improving the process and efficiency of the business or its user.

Like the iPhone does much more than let you make calls and listen to music with one device, the Flo-Smart Touch Beverage Dispenser does more for a café, than simply deliver and pour its liquids.

“There’s a process and resultant efficiency improvement within the café ecosystem. In short, Flo-Smart delivers the beverage of choice, at a constant temperature in exacting quantities more efficiently,” says Nick Carter of Flo-Smart Beverage Solutions.

“It’s about a whole-of-business understanding, centred around what the system does from a total cost of

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ownership. Looking at how owners and managers of a venue are able to adjust processes or methodologies within a café in order to leverage new technology.”

The Flo-Smart Touch dispenses up to four different pulp-and-sentiment-free chilled, still beverages at the point of sale.

The system is hands free, automated, and is able to dispense the exact amount of the beverage required every single time.

These measured doses can be of different varieties of milk or, for example, ancillary cold drinks like cold brew coffee and tea, juice, or water.

“Cafés use a lot of different types of milk. Whether it’s full cream, skim, soy, or other plant-based milks; they are now able to dispense those through the one unit, rather than having two-litres bottles sitting on the bench,” Nick says.

“At the end of the day, Flo-Smart can

dispense pretty much any liquid with the right engineering design applied. That’s the beauty of dealing with a systems company like Flo-Smart, we are able to design, install and maintain a chilled beverage dispensing solution to suit a particular environment.”

The Flo-Smart Touch is controlled with an intuitive touchscreen system that is typically installed into the bench, where baristas are then able to control specific software parameters. But what Flo-Smart offers goes well beyond the unit on the counter and what it encompasses.

“It’s not just a product, it’s a whole system. Flo-Smart installs and commissions piping and refrigeration/chiller solutions as maybe required for each environment, through skilled in-house contractors. It’s a whole different scenario than simply selling product,” Nick says.

“You can have your milk or cold brew stored in Flo-Smart 18 litre containers, in a fridge below or near to the dispenser, or cool room in the back of store, and our system, including piping and insulation, will transfer that beverage from that location to the point of sale.”

Flo-Smart provides these beverages at calibrated temperatures and exacting quantities, ensuring less wastage and removing one of the variables in coffee making.

“Café owners require consistency of delivery, both in the liquid itself and the temperature. Temperature of the milk is important in the art of making good coffee,” Nick says.

“Traditionally, you have the milk bottles moving from under-bench refrigeration and then potentially sitting on the bench, rising to room temperature pretty quickly, making it not only a quality, but possibly a hygiene issue as well. Flo-Smart delivers consistent, calibrated doses of milk into the jug at the same temperature every single time.”

Station Stop in Parkdale, Victoria, was one of the first cafés to install the Flo-Smart Touch. Under typical circumstances, the café was serving 1200 to 1400 cups of coffee per day and using more than 200 litres of different milk varieties. A staff member would be rostered on busy shifts to go back and forth from the fridge and keep milk

topped up.

Wael Bou-Karrom, Owner and Operator of Station Stop, says while this level of business is welcome, “it places pressure on [our] systems and processes”.

Via chilled lines installed by Flo-Smart, different milks are dispensed at a constant 2°C to 4°C from 18-litre containers kept in a fridge at the rear of the building. Wael says the appeal of the Flo-Smart Touch came from its ability to dispense a variety of beverages and milk types into custom jug configurations.

“With the touch of a button, the jugs sizes are programmed and your required volumes stored,” he says. “Major settings are password protected, with small ‘tweaks’ to volumes still accessible for users to adjust on the fly.”

Automating the café’s milk delivery led to an increase in the speed of service as well as a significant reduction in waste of milk and its packaging.

“The result has been simply amazing,” Wael says. “Quality, speed, and efficiency is up and wastage at both the product and labour levels are down incrementally.

The blending of passion for service, with purpose-built technology has made a very real difference to our café.”

With reduced wastage and overhead taken into consideration, Nick says FloSmart estimates an average café will earn back the money it spends on the system within 12 months.

The contactless Flo-Smart Touch is controlled with an intuitive touchscreen system.

“Once it’s installed, it may lead to a reduction in overhead as well as possibly help to address some fundamental [operational health and safety] issues, particularly around injury associated with repetitive strain, through process efficiency of the café,” he says.

“We looked at the average use per day, wastage typically seen in a café environment with overfilling of jugs and throwing out milk left on the bench too long; combined with the efficiency of reducing labour costs during peak periods, and Flo-Smart has a significant impact on overhead, if you look at how some of these cafés operate.”

Nick adds that the development of the Flo-Smart solution also took its practicality into consideration, including ensuring that the dispenser itself did not look out of place on an espresso bar.

“It’s designed to be a ‘bit of art’ and hence, it’s pretty different to how one would usually dispense beverages. We looked at the expense and overhead cafés allocate to their coffee machines, some of which are more expensive than an average car. So, we wanted to make sure our design aesthetic was consistent with the rest of the barista’s technology,” Nick says.

While COVID-19 has limited the capacity of many cafés to invest in new technology, Nick says it has also highlighted the need to operate as efficiently as possible. To help cafés invest in the system, Flo-Smart has partnered with Valiant Finance to assist customers with the cost of installing the solution.

“We want to offer selected cafés and venues Australia-wide, a getting-back-tobusiness opportunity, so we can help them get their cafés back into the marketplace,” Nick says.

“You can either buy the Flo-Smart solution outright, or you can rent/lease through Valiant Finance [subject to their lending terms] and have technology installed that will save you money, for potentially only two to three hundred dollars per week.”

With Flo-Smart having recently launched to the market, Nick says he looks forward to seeing the system improve the coffee making process of more cafés across Australia and the world.

“Cafés have staff ranging from the fully-fledged barista, to the new young person picking up work on the weekend and making coffee,” Nick says.

“Our goal is to help them embrace technology that improves the overall café experience for all, as well as drive costs down.”

For more information, visit www.flo-smart.com

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INDUSTRY PROFILE

A new dawn From MasterChef judge to coffee connoisseur, Gary Mehigan has joined forces with Veneziano Coffee Roasters to create a new range of blends that turn everyday coffee drinking into a celebrated occasion.

S

ome people have used COVID-19 restrictions as a time to perfect their sourdough skills or learn a new language.

But for renowned chef, author, and TV presenter Gary Mehigan, it’s been a time to enhance his coffee knowledge.

“I’ve watched re-runs of Pete Licata’s 2013 World Barista Championship routine on YouTube, I’ve learned the value of weighing my ingredients for AeroPress – 30 grams coffee to 500 grams water – and I can now name six coffee varietals,” Gary says, and proves it.

Gary has been a long-time coffee drinker, starting his coffee journey in a family where coffee meant ‘instant’.

“My dad would take his flask of Nescafé Blend 43 – and a cheese sandwich – to work every day of his life,” Gary says.

Garry hasn’t wavered from family traditions entirely, but he has expanded his range. He has a little Gaggia at home, enjoys a good espresso, even a Nescafé at times, and worships his Rancilio Lucy espresso machine. He attributes his newfound coffee appreciation to his partnership with Veneziano Coffee Roasters.

Veneziano Managing Director Craig Dickson approached Gary about a collaboration years ago, but with Gary’s demanding MasterChef commitments, it left him little time to spare. When asked

again at the beginning of COVID-19 restrictions, having moved on from his MasterChef duties, Gary said “yes”.

“I didn’t hesitate. The timing was perfect,” he says. “I get asked to do lots of things, and in my position, you have to be very careful what you put your name and your face to. Do I use the product at home? Do I love it? Would I recommend it? Well, when you’re talking about Veneziano I don’t even have to think about it or do the research. It’s a product I know well, a product I believe in, and it’s a brand I really love. And that’s what makes this a great collaboration.”

Gary’s relationship with Veneziano started more than 15 years ago when

Gary Mehigan Specialty Coffee is designed to appeal to a wide range of tastebuds.

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he operated Fenix restaurant in the Melbourne suburb of Richmond and served Veneziano’s Bella blend.

“I wanted to use a brand that offered a great price, was a bit more specialty, niche, and locally roasted, and that was Veneziano,” Gary says. “Our relationship goes back a long way. Veneziano has been my favourite coffee ever since.”

Veneziano had many COVID-19 brainstorming meetings on how they could get coffee into the hands of home coffee drinkers. One idea was Veneziano’s Pinnacle Series. The other, was a collaboration with Gary to develop a range of blends that would appeal to a wide demographic, without deviating too far from the great taste Veneziano customers have come to know and love.

“Veneziano is pitched at café owners and coffee aficionados, but we knew that partnering with Gary would give us access to a whole other marketplace and enable more people to experience what we do at Veneziano, and our love for coffee,” Craig says.

Veneziano gathered its ‘A team’, including Green Bean Buyer Jack Allisey and Research and Development Coffee Consultant Pete Licata, to curate the range with Gary. They sourced, selected, roasted, and cupped until they reached consensus on three blends that any customer would be proud to have at home.

The result is ‘Gary Mehigan Specialty Coffee’, roasted by Veneziano, and designed to turn everyday coffee moments into occasions worth savouring.

“I’ve been saying it for a long time, but as much as takeaway coffee has become part of our culture, and people enjoy the convenience of grab-and-go, we have lost a little bit of the ceremony attached to making coffee at home,” Gary says. “Most of the time we’re not paying attention to the coffee itself, which is quite an expensive product. Takeaway doesn’t do a lot for the pure enjoyment of coffee. I want to celebrate the ceremony of coffee making – either by walking into a café and staying there or making it at home myself.”

To do just that, Gary’s and Veneziano’s three blends are designed to appeal to a wide range of tastebuds.

The Dawn blend is a traditional darker roast with robust flavour, an intense coffee for the early riser that cuts through milk really well.

The Everyday blend is an all-rounder.

It’s a smooth coffee that stands up well in milk but can also be enjoyed black.

And the Weekend, Gary’s personal

favourite, is a fruit-driven blend with high acidity and sweetness. With dominant berry flavours, stone fruit and green apple acidity, Gary says this blend is a great weekend treat, or in his case, a daily one.

“The great thing about these blends is that you don’t need an expensive coffee machine to enjoy them. You can use an AeroPress, French press, even an old cafetière, which so many people are dusting off at the moment and enjoying,” Gary says.

Gary Mehigan and Veneziano Managing Director Craig Dickson are celebrating a 15-year partnership.

“I’m not a coffee snob when it comes to what I want to drink two to three times a day, but I’m also open minded as to what is a very complex industry, how people consume coffee, and what people like and what they don’t. I’m very confident that what we’ve achieved is three premium yet accessible blends that encapsulate most coffee consumers out there.”

With more people buying retail coffee, a trend Gary predicts will continue, he says cafés will have to embrace a new way of interacting with their client base at home.

“COVID is not going away anytime soon, and it is making hospitality operators rethink how they’re going to engage customers going forward,” he says.

“For many, the situation has been disastrous, and for others, it’s

really exciting. I’m talking to a lot of restaurateurs, café owners, and producers.

For some, it’s a unique opportunity to pivot their business into something new. Specialty coffee has also changed enormously in the past four years, and now we’re seeing it go more mainstream.

It’s a huge opportunity and it means new markets to explore.”

The other benefit, Craig adds, is the opportunity for more consumers to support Australian owned and produced products.

“Traceability and knowing where your produce come from, how it’s roasted and where, has never been more important as we navigate through COVID,” he says. “We take the sourcing of our green beans very seriously, and we form close, long-term relationships with our farmers, to the point where some have become like family. Being able to identity the origin of our beans, the farm, and the farmer, is so important.”

Gary agrees, adding that identifying coffees by varietal, country, and state is the next step in people’s understanding and appreciation of coffee quality, much like is already done with wine.

“Chef Paul West once said to me: ‘if you don’t cook you don’t care,’ and I equate the same thing with coffee. If you don’t make your own coffee, you don’t always care. But if you take the time to immerse yourself in the coffee making ritual, you will inherently care more, know more about the supply chain, and enjoy the experience,” he says.

Gary has taken his paddock-to-plate passion even further, releasing new episodes of his PodcastOne series, A Plate To Call Home, and will launch a new show on Channel Seven later in the year called Plate of Origin, alongside long-time mates Manu Feildel and Matt Preston.

Gary is busier than ever but has found more time for the things he’s passionate about, including finishing his new cookbook and taking the time to savour every coffee moment.

“There’s always time to make a good cup of coffee, and in our current situation of restrictions and lockdowns, there’s no better time to celebrate the ceremony of coffee making,” he says.

Gary Mehigan Specialty Coffee is available online and can be ordered for home delivery via www.garymehiganspecialtycoffee. com.au. Stockist enquiries from independent food stores or grocers can be made via the website.

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INDUSTRY PROFILE

Going the distance Toby’s Estate Green Bean Buyer Charlotte Malaval tells BeanScene how the coffee roaster has adjusted its green bean buying during COVID-19.

Green Bean Buyer Charlotte Malaval has been grounded since March.

T

he life of a green bean buyer is usually full of travel and excitement, visiting farms and producers growing the best coffee around the world.

But since March, borders have been closed and coffee volumes plummeted.

Toby’s Estate Coffee Roasters buys a large volume of coffee from many different producers, with seven single origin coffees available every month – four filter, three espresso – and more than half a dozen blends in its roster.. When COVID-19 restrictions first hit in March, Green Bean Buyer Charlotte Malaval says the roaster had to quickly reconsider the coffee it was buying.

“This was a lot of work, as we source 80 per cent of our coffee directly.

This means we are cutting out the intermediaries, so all of the risk and management is on us. Direct trade allows us to have more control, transparency, and traceability on the coffees and

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the prices that we pay, which involves working closely together with producers and exporters at origin.” Charlotte says.

“When you take the risk to do direct trade, the relationships, the trust, and friendships really play a crucial role. I spend a huge amount of time building those relationships [with producers] and we really do care about them. Working together has allowed us to manage the damages during these challenging and uncertain times.

“The forecasting must be quite precise, as specialty coffee is based on freshness.

So, we need to anticipate the harvests, the seasons, the shipping times, or any unexpected situations. There’s always some drama when you bring coffees from overseas.”

Toby’s Estate usually commits to prices and green bean volumes in advance, making forecasting very important. But due to the sales downturn restrictions have caused, the Toby’s Estate green bean team

had to monitor its forecasts closely.

“We weren’t going to cancel any of the contracts we’d already signed, but there were so many discussions with producers from around the world, texting and calling day and night as we had to reschedule all of our shipping months.

In addition, we also looked to build future agreements with our partners to give them confidence we weren’t going anywhere,” Charlotte says.

She adds this was a huge job that would not have been possible if Toby’s Estate didn’t have such strong relationships with its producing partners.

“I spent the last number of months talking with our suppliers to see how we could get through this situation together. This year really showed us why it is so important to travel to origin. We couldn’t do it this year, but I believe if we hadn’t built those strong and amazing relationships, we wouldn’t have been able to move those things around as smoothly.

It would have left us in a really bad position,” Charlotte says.

“All of our producers have been so helpful and understanding, because at the end of the day, we’re all in this together.

Everyone understands supply versus demand. They know if I overbuy coffee this year, I will have too much stock and won’t be able to buy again next year. Our joint goal was to manage the damage from this year in order to come back stronger next year.”

In many cases, while rescheduling shipping months, Toby’s Estate increased its buying commitment. Charlotte says the roaster usually buys coffee at a fixed price one year in advance, but are looking to extend some contracts to 2022.

“For producers, it’s safer to know they’ll have a buyer in the next year at a set price. We’ve been discussing new arrangements so everyone can come out of this situation in as good a position as possible,” she says.

“For our up and coming producers who we would usually buy a smaller amount of coffee from at the beginning of the relationship, this year has been difficult with currency and the pandemic.

They have been very understanding of this and in return, we have been working on ways to allocate them greater volume. More volume next year will help strengthen the supply chain, as it means more diversity and stable quantities coming from multiple suppliers.”

Even in cases where Toby’s Estate has had to reduce its 2020 volume, Charlotte says it is still committed to on-the-ground community projects in producing countries. This includes supporting a Day Care Centre and scholarships in Guatemala, the Matão Women’s group in Brazil, a kitchen and dining facility for farm workers in Nicaragua, and a School in Ethiopia, among others. “[The pandemic] has affected everyone at so many different levels. Some producers live in cities in lockdown and haven’t been able to travel to their farms.

Or they have no pickers or labourers and can’t pick their coffee,” Charlotte says.

“They need security, because for many of them, this means a drop in what they’re going to be able to sell next year too.”

At the moment, Charlotte says Toby’s Estate’s shipments are on track, but there have been issues along the way and COVID-19 is just one thing that can impact shipments.

“We were supposed to receive a container from El Salvador in the last few weeks, but it couldn’t be sent because there was a huge storm and [the producers] couldn’t get the coffee to the port. It’s just something you have to deal

with when you import coffee,” she says.

Hygiene is another new consideration.

Toby’s Estate has implemented measures at its roastery to ensure all cupping is done safely and hygienically. Despite the new protocols, Charlotte says the coffees she has received recently are among the best she’s ever tasted.

Unable to visit these coffee farms and exporters and cup the usual thousands of coffees, the samples have been pre-selected

by Toby’s Estate’s partners at origin and sent to its headquarters in Sydney. “Those coffee cuppings have been the most important part of the process, and the yearly calibration with coffee producers has shown some very positive results on the samples we received,” Charlotte says.

“High quality and consistency are what our customers expect – the same taste in every cup. The replicability that we are able to achieve every harvest by being so close to producers is the most important factor in our buying and a strong part of what we stand for as a brand.”

While Toby’s Estate has taken a hit from COVID-19 like many roasters,

at-home coffee consumption has been a saving grace. Charlotte says the higher number of home brewers has actually made its filter coffee more popular, emphasising the importance of its single origin line-up.

“Things are starting to slowly come back to normal. Thankfully, we didn’t push too many shipments back, as things are already starting to reopen.” she says.

Charlotte says it was this forward thinking and those strong relationships with producers that have made Toby’s Estate successful through this crisis.

“I have to say that for me, COVID has actually been very interesting. With my team, we have been constantly monitoring the situation, texting day and night about how things are going and how the market is evolving,” she says. “This situation actually required a stronger knowledge over the total supply chain from farm to cup, so I have learned a lot, and this part has been exciting.”

For more information, visit www.tobysestate.com.au

Charlotte attributes Toby’s Estate’s strong relationships with producers to its ability to adapt to COVID-19 restrictions.

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INDUSTRY PROFILE

Clean living Cafetto discusses the importance of regular and correct-procedure cleaning and sanitising on both sides of the coffee bar.

I

Many people have become accustomed to cafés and businesses offering hand sanitiser.

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t should come as no surprise to most baristas and café owners that coffee equipment requires frequent cleaning to perform at its best. However, the coronavirus pandemic has also brought additional attention to the importance of hygiene.

Christine Song, General Manager of Cafetto, tells BeanScene the Australian company has received an increase in requests from cafés for detailed cleaning instructions.

“Before the pandemic, I think many business or café owners considered it a choice how thoroughly or often they cleaned their machine. Of course, they would and to a healthy standard, but it wasn’t always as structured,” Christine says.

“Having gone through this pandemic, there’s an added level of pressure to maintain hygiene. It’s become a mandatory step to keep their business open and service their customers.”

Christine recommends the daily use of Cafetto Evo powder with the traditional espresso machines most popular in Australian cafés. Cafetto Evo, like Cafetto

Espresso Clean, cleans a group head through a simple backflushing process with a blind portafilter. See Figure 1.

When dissolved in water, it produces a foamy solution that removes built-up coffee oils and residue. After rinsing, the group head is ready for use.

“Cafetto Evo is a brilliant product that’s organically certified and safe to use,” she says.

“Creating a schedule will provide a reminder of the daily cleaning that should be in place for cafés. Doing this will provide you with consistent coffee quality and the best hygiene possible.”

Cafetto produces a range of products for cleaning different types of coffee equipment too. This includes cleaners for descaling boilers, brewing equipment, automatic machines, and even domestic units.

Knowing that water and moisture can cause problems for the internal components of a grinder, Cafetto developed a grainbased cleaner that can be run through a grinder, taking leftover coffee residue with it. This also means the grinder can be cleaned without disassembly.

For equipment where the user would prefer not to use hot water, like blenders, nitro brewers, or cold brew makers, Cafetto had developed Polar Clean, which effectively cleans and sanitises with cold water.

Cafetto Inverso was designed as a milk jug cleaner, but Christine says it is good for multiple uses, including crockery, cups, and stainless-steel items. Cafetto Milk Frother Cleaner can be used to soak a steam wand, which only needs a wipe down and purge afterwards.

But in the face of COVID-19, cafés need to be cleaning and sanitising more than just their equipment. Cafetto Spray & Wipe Green provides an easy way to maintain hard surfaces that several people come in contact with.

“All of your surfaces – benches, counters, and tables – pretty much anything you touch, must be cleaned,” Christine says. “This is something that can’t be ignored in the food and beverage sector, which is directly related to people’s health.”

Many venues are also opting to provide customers with access to communal hand sanitiser for an extra precaution.

Using the expertise of its sister company Dominant, Cafetto has developed Premasan hand sanitiser for distribution to its café partners.

“Dominant produces hospital-grade disinfectants and sanitisers, and we wanted to have a product available for the coffee industry as well. That way, whoever needs hand sanitisers can access them,” Christine says.

“Offering hand sanitiser has become commonplace and something customers

h o w t o s a n i t i s e yo u r h a n d s

1.

2.

Apply a palmful of the

Rub hands palm to palm.

3.

product in a cupped hand.

Rub with fingers interlaced, palm to palm and over the back of both hands.

4.

5.

Backs of fingers with fingers interlocked.

Rotational rubbing of

6.

thumbs and webbing.

Once dry, your hands are safe.

Figure 2: Many government bodies have identified good hand washing as one of the most effective ways to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

expect to see. It provides them with peace of mind as well as good hygiene.”

Baristas or servers can also regularly sanitise their hands to reduce the risk of transmission. Figure 2 demonstrates a recommended hand washing procedure.

With the coffee industry showing a desire to learn more about proper cleaning and hygiene, Christine says Cafetto intends to create more educational content to share with the community.

“This will cover daily, basic, and general cleaning concepts, how it’s going

to impact the business, and per machine type,” Christine says. “We’ll provide that content to our distributors and resellers that they can use themselves and to pass on to customers to make a part of their standard operating procedure.

“It will bring things to an easy level of understanding of what’s required and what products to use when cleaning your café every day.”

c o m m e r c i a l es p r e s s o mac hi n For more information, visit www.cafetto.com

Daily Maintenance Procedure 1

2

3

4

5

OR Replace the normal filter with a blind filter (no holes).

6

Insert the group handle into the group and swill to remove ground coffee from the group.

7

Rinse through group handle.

Re-insert the group handle and stop and start cycle every 5 seconds. Repeat 10 times.

Add one scoop OR one tablet into the blind filter.

8

Run cycle for 10 sec to dissolve. Start and stop cycle every 10 sec. Repeat 5 times.

9

Remove the blind filter and replace with normal filter.

Remove group handle and discard left over solution. Run water from group and clean.

10

Brew an espresso and discard.

Use Spray & Wipe to clean all surroundings.

Figure 1: Café equipment like espresso machines should be cleaned daily.

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Image credit: Rowan Marsh-Croft

CAFÉ SCENE

Ona Coffee Melbourne features an array of single origins and premium coffees from its frozen reserve menu.

ONA COFFEE MELBOURNE 22 Ovens Street, Brunswick, Victoria, 3056 Open weekdays 7:30am to 3pm, weekends 8am to 3pm

Ona Coffee opened the doors to its Melbourne flagship on 11 June.

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Image credit: Rowan Marsh-Croft

Sustainability is truly at the core of Ona Coffee Melbourne, the new Brunswick flagship of the acclaimed roaster. From the solar panels and water tank that run the venue to its recycled materials and reusable cup policy, every precaution has been taken to reduce the café’s impact on the environment.

Ona Coffee General Manager Tom Beaumont says building and opening a café during COVID-19 wasn’t easy, but the sustainably-minded Breathe Architecture

brought the roaster’s vision to life.

“There’s always bumps here and there, as you’d expect, but the goal’s always been the same and we achieved it,” Tom says. “This espresso bar has been mind-blowing for everyone involved. They had in their mind: ‘this is a café, you put a machine on a bench and make it look nice’, but this is unlike anything else.”

Sitting in the centre of Ona Coffee Melbourne is an espresso bar lined with white tiles, made from the moulds left over when producing bricks. On one side sits a San Remo Café Racer and four Anfim grinders, each loaded with a different one of Ona Coffee’s signature blends.

“We have all of the Ona Coffee offerings, which there is a lot of. There’s four milky blends, as well as all the filters and single origin espressos,” says Bar Manager Jess Lambie.

The other side features an ‘experience bar’, where customers can order pour over and discuss it with the brewer. A custom single-group Modbar is used to brew espresso from Ona’s frozen coffee reserve menu, allowing customers to experience unique and quality coffees roasted years ago.

“In some specialty coffee places, you might walk up to the bar and be afraid to ask the barista questions because the menu can be so overwhelming. We want to break that habit and have a space that’s welcoming, where people can come in and ask their questions,” Jess says. “Our focus here is coffee and people, really building that sense of community.”

Jess says it was important to Ona that it didn’t “come stomping in as the new big specialty coffee joint” and actually

become a part of Brunswick. “As we’ve been setting up, we’ve networked with other people in the area, like Ovens Street Bakery across the road and the pottery place next door,” she says. “We’re using local produce as much as we can to be a part of the community.”

A spacious wooden outdoor seating area provides customers with a welcoming entryway while helping Ona Coffee Melbourne stand out from its more industrial neighbours. “In the summer, I can imagine chilling out there with my sketchbook, having a good day,” Jess says.

Natural lighting, gorgeous greenery, and a similar colour palette brings a taste of the outdoors inside. “Natural light always brings positive vibes and helps the space feel more open,” Jess says.

Ona Coffee Melbourne had a very busy launch on 11 June, despite limited seating due to COVID-19 restrictions. Customers had – and once restrictions are eased, will again have – the option of staying and enjoying the atmosphere, buying coffee and gear to take home from the dedicated retail wall, or enjoying a takeaway coffee in one of several reusable alternatives.

Following the successful opening, Jess says she looks forward to sharing more of what Ona Coffee has to offer Melbourne.

“Now that people know that we’re welcoming with information and the community we want to build, I hope people will come in wanting to learn more, especially baristas who aren’t necessarily working in specialty coffee,” Jess says.

“Ovens Street is a bit off the beaten path, which makes it like a nice little adventure.

You really get a feel for the area, seeing the graffiti and experiencing Brunswick.”

THE RUSTY RABBIT 252 Forbes Street, Darlinghurst, New South Wales, 2010 Open weekdays 7am to 3pm, weekends 8am to 3pm 0405 062 037 Thanks to a strong following and online presence, The Rusty Rabbit in Darlinghurst has fared better than many other businesses during COVID-19.

“We’ve been really busy all the way through with takeaway, online, and UberEats orders,” Co-Owner Joshua Khoury says. “We built an online ordering platform before everything started, so when COVID-19 hit, we were already a step up.”

Since opening in 2014, The Rusty Rabbit has launched a second location in Burwood with a third on the way in Epping, New South Wales.

“It’s more than a café. The focus is on maintaining high-quality food, quality, and service, but there’s also a merchandise aspect – socks, jackets, shirts – that helps us stand out,” Joshua says. “It developed over time. You find your feet after a few years, find out who you are and what you do, and go from there.”

Also helping The Rusty Rabbit stand out is coffee from Toby’s Estate Coffee Roasters, that Joshua says has a “sweet, caramel-like

SATURDAYS 195 Marine Parade, New Brighton, Christchurch, 8083, New Zealand Open seven days 8am to 4pm +64 3-382 0266 Saturdays are for fun and relaxation. That’s one of the reasons why Eddy Yu named his first café in New Brighton, Christchurch, after the first day of the weekend.

“After COVID-19, people want to have fun but they can’t really leave the country for holidays,” Eddy says. “We want to create a destination for people, so they can come

Saturdays serves coffee from Grey Roasting Co, the roaster of NZ Barista Champion Dove Chen.

The Rusty Rabbit has flourished through COVID-19 by getting a headstart with online ordering.

flavour” with wide appeal.

“Toby’s Estate has been great, and we’ve been with them since day one,” he says.

“We serve their single origins for all our black coffee and filter, offer batch brew on the weekend, and cold brew all year round.”

On the food side, fan favourites include the sweet potato and corn fritter, middle eastern-inspired Lamb Eggs, and “signature” pancakes, served with ricotta, strawberries, berry compote, passionfruit, pistachio, and maple syrup.

“There’s a second pancake dish we rotate each menu,” Joshua says. “This time round, it’s a cheesecake pancake with lemon curd, cream cheese, blueberries,

strawberries, maple, and ginger cookie.”

The menu is scattered with pop culture references, including Dragon Ball Z-named burgers and the Pea-Kachu smashed peas.

This matches the Pop Funko figures sold at and decorating the “sandstone and rugged and rusty feel” of the venue.

The café’s great food and coffee offering and eclectic style, combined with its good location, has gained The Rusty Rabbit a diverse following. This ranges from schoolkids and parents to at-home workers and retirees. “There’s a very mixed crowd and it’s because we’ve made strong connections and friendships with people in the local community,” Joshua says.

out to the beachfront and we can provide the food and service while they relax and have a little holiday.”

Saturdays holds a special place in the history of New Brighton, which in the 1960s became the first place in Christchurch allowed to trade on the weekend. Eddy says the areas has not been the same since the 2011 Christchurch earthquake, but that Saturdays is one of several businesses looking to rejuvenate the town.

“We want to bring people back to the area so it can be what it used to be.

Saturdays are important to the community of

Christchurch,” he says.

Opening in May, Eddy says the café has had a good start he hopes will continue thanks to its high standard and quality. The decked-out coffee bar features a La Marzocco KB90 espresso machine and Mythos Two, Mahlkönig e65 grinders, and an EK43S. “Customers have been really keen to come back again,” he says. “We want to have the best technology on hand, so we can make coffee consistently, no matter which barista is behind the machine.”

Saturdays serves coffee from Grey Roasting Co, the roastery of two-time New Zealand Barista Champion – and Eddy’s brother in law – Dove Chen. The “balanced, sweet, and creamy” Daily Blend is used for milk-based coffee, which Eddy says is “very customer friendly”.

At time of writing, for single original coffees, Saturdays was serving a Pink Bourbon from Colombia, a Washed and Natural processed Kocheres from Ethiopia.

“This is my first café, so we’re really starting from scratch. I’m learning a lot and really appreciate that I have a strong team behind me to help me through it,” he says.

“There are also a lot of passionate people in this industry, and most that I meet are happy to help because I’m quite new.

There is a strong connection across the people in coffee and small business.”

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CAFÉ SCENE

The Olive serves the Campos Coffee Superior Blend to the people of Norfolk Island.

THE OLIVE Burnt Pine 2899, Norfolk Island Open seven days 6:30 am to 1:30pm +672 3 24406 About 1400 kilometres off the coast of New South Wales, Norfolk Island is home to almost 1800 people, the evergreen Norfolk pine trees, and The Olive, a café that has built strong relationships with the local community. Naomi Thompson became the Owner/Operator of the café in 2010 after discovering a ‘For Sale’ sign during a Christmas holiday the year before.

“I got to know a lot of the locals who became my ‘Norfolk family’. We’ve been able to grow by supporting the community, being involved in different charity and

CAFÉ AMBASSADOR Shop G171/42 Marine Parade, Southport, Queensland, 4215 Open weekdays 7am to 3pm, weekends 8am to 3pm (07) 5532 8800 Kelvin Lu grew up in coffee, with his parents owning and operating cafés since the early 2000s. Setting out on his own with Café Ambassador in 2019, Kelvin saw it as a chance to present specialty coffee to the town of Southport on the Gold Coast.

“The word ‘ambassador’ is significant to us, and it’s what we try to do here – whether that’s of specialty grade coffee, our partners, or for coffee culture overall,” Kelvin says.

Café Ambassador partners with Veneziano Coffee Roasters for its coffee, serving the “robust and classic” Forza blend and Bella blend for “a more acidic and fruity offering”. A rotation of single origins is used for pour over coffee.

“We definitely have customers that come back on a regular basis to try the different single origins – the die-hard coffee enthusiasts that wants their filters and double espressos,” Kelvin says. “It takes time to build that kind of following, but we’ve now got a reputation with black coffee drinkers.”

The collaborative relationship between the café and its roaster has proven

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sporting groups,” Naomi says. “Making sure we’re serving good food and good coffee helps as well.”

The Olive sources whatever produce it can locally, meaning the menu is very seasonal. Fresh local mushrooms always prove to be popular with customers when they’re available. A few staples, like the Eggs Benedict, are always favourites.

“We’ve had shipping problems in the past, so sometimes the island will run out of eggs or be low on milk. These are the challenges you face being so removed, so all of these things we try to locally source,” Naomi says.

There are, however, a few key imports, including potatoes, ginger, garlic, milk, T2 tea, and the Campos Coffee Superior Blend.

beneficial to both sides, helping present the coffee in the best way possible.

“We talk regularly in person and on the phone about how we can move coffee forward and raise the bar higher,” he says.

Café Ambassador aims to connect Southport on the Gold Coast with Australia’s vibrant coffee culture.

“I always try to keep up with the coffee scene in Australia, see what’s going on, and offer different stuff all the time,” Naomi says. “We’ve got non-dairy milks on offer, and I’m quite surprised how popular almond milk is with the locals.”

When COVID-19 restrictions hit Australia, Norfolk Island went into full lockdown for several weeks. Naomi says it was tough for the community, but with no active cases, the island has been able to quickly get back into the swing of things.

“We’ve been missing the tourists though.

While I’ve got a good local following, tourism is the cream on top,” she says. “I’m not sure when they’ll reopen the borders, but we have an elderly population, so we really don’t want the virus to make it over here.”

Not too far from Brisbane and Sydney, Naomi says Norfolk Island will be a great holiday destination for Australians once travel restrictions are eased. Until then, she adds, it’s been good to take time out and focus on the locals.

“I’ve been at The Olive for 10 years now. I’ve watched kids grow up and now they’re going on dates or having milkshakes and food with friends,” Naomi says. “There’s mothers and their babies, grandparents, and tradies – a wide range of people who come and have coffee with us. Everyone is welcome at The Olive.”

As well as the small specialty following Café Ambassador has gathered in the year since it opened, its location by the main entrance of Australia Fair Shopping Centre has been a big driver of traffic. The café’s minimalistic aesthetic, featuring plenty of white, timber, and copper, gives it a ‘clean’ feel that draws in customers without distracting from the coffee.

Like the rest of the Gold Coast, Café Ambassador is feeling the loss of international visitors due to COVID-19.

However, with Queensland in a good position at time of writing, many of the town’s locals are returning to the swing of things.

“Southport is the CBD of the Gold Coast and we’re seeing office workers slowly come back to work,” Kelvin says. “Things in Queensland are definitely getting better, and there’s been a big leap forward with our COVID progress.”

The main lesson Kelvin has taken away from the COVID-19 pandemic is to make the best of what you can and remain loyal to those that are loyal to you.

“It was a tough time for us to get through, but we want to come back strong,” Kelvin says. “We don’t want to let our loyal customers down. They’re familiar with the venue, and we want them to be able to come back and enjoy our service here.”

Kerry Street Pear Tree hits its coffee’s yields and targets with every shot so the quality matches that of its woodfired pizzas.

KERRY STREET PEAR TREE 1 Kerry Street, Hamilton Hill, Western Australia, 6163 Open seven days 6:30am to 12:30pm, Friday 5pm to 8pm For Ronald Canty, working as a chef on private yachts for the rich and famous off the coast of France might have been a life of luxury, but it wasn’t the best way to raise his newborn son. Six months after settling down in Perth – his wife’s hometown – Ron stumbled on a derelict corner store in Hamilton Hill and saw potential.

“When I took it onboard, there was nothing there but a pizza oven. We got the coffee machine in and built it from there, slowly adding to it all the time,” Ron says.

That store became Kerry Street Pear Tree, a café and woodfire pizzeria serving great coffee and pizza to the suburb of Hamilton Hill since 2017.

“We’ve adhered to good quality ingredients all the way through. We use organic flours, non-GMO, no single-use plastic, no vegetable oils, and we’re even making our own marshmallows,” Ron says.

“People have really identified with that approach. It’s a good following that’s just grown and stayed with us through COVID-19. We’re quite lucky that we’re almost back to normality, 200 people through the door per day for a suburban place is pretty good.”

The café serves Karvan Coffee, the specialty coffee brand of local café supplier Leaf Bean Machine. Ron says the training and service offered by Leaf Bean Machine has been crucial to Pear Tree’s success.

“Having Leaf Bean Machine in the same suburb, being able to send staff for training or have them drop in every time we need something, has been huge,” he says.

“Our staff have become super confident thanks to the constant training, and I’ve got

confidence too because if there’s something up, I just call them and they can come in and check it out.”

Pear Tree offers a variety of alternative milks and prepares its espressos with a selfdosing grinder, PuqPress tamper, and Wega Polaris espresso machine, which each barista on the team is confident to calibrate.

“We’re hitting our targets and our yields are spot on. Everyone making coffee is loving it,” Ron says. “The Puqpress was a gamechanger. We have three baristas working some mornings, and using the Puqpress means we’re getting consistency.

The more experienced baristas have problems with [repetitive strain injury] from using a traditional tamper, so it’s good to be able to look after our staff too.”

While the coffee is important, the woodfires pizzas are the ‘hero’ of Pear Tree. During COVID-19, Ron expanded the café’s pizza business, now offering delivery of pizza bases and vacuum-sealed topped

pizzas. In-store, Pear Tree gets creative with its recipes.

“We’ve got fresh truffles coming today, and for our special this weekend, we’ll be serving that with a stracchino cheese from Rose Valley, about 40 minutes from here,” Ron says. “We’ve been aging it since last week so it has just the right level of pound to it now.”

Another big drawcard at Pear Tree is its green way of thinking. The venue recently installed solar panels and offers compostable cups and bins. This compost returns to Pear Tree for use in its ‘pop-up forest’, a garden seating area covered in greenery.

“It’s become an urban greenspace and the local musos are happy to play their music there,” Ron says.

“It’s a really nice suburb and people tell us how happy they are to have ‘somewhere to go’ in walking distance. If we closed down, there’d be a big hole in the community that would be hard to fill.”

Ronald Canty established Kerry Street Pear Tree after moving to WA from France.

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TECH TALK

Maurizio Marcocci is the Director of Service Sphere.

Junior high Maurizio Marcocci introduces the Bravilor Junior, a new way to enjoy filter coffee at home with the same high standards you’d expect from a café.

The Bravilor Junior advanced flow control ensures the right extraction time to get the best flavours from your grinds.

I

f there’s anything we’ve learnt over the past five months in lockdowns and COVID-19 restrictions, it’s that we can’t live without our office coffee. I know many of our customers in rural and suburban areas have thrived to an extent, with takeaway sales high and retail coffee beans flying out the door to accommodate coffee lovers suddenly all at home.

Australians are strong espresso-based coffee drinkers, with many people splurging on high-end domestic machines to ensure their tastebuds don’t suffer from the lockdown, but there’s another type of coffee that’s seen a resurgence, and that’s filter.

I’ve seen family and friends dust off their stove tops from their cupboards, or bring out the French press or plunger, and

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truth be known, they do the job.

For some, a delicious black filter coffee has been a familiar friend they’ve reacquainted with, and for others, now is the perfect opportunity to indulge in a coffee preparation method that might just become addictive.

In the specialty world, v60 pour over and Chemex filter coffees are beautifully prepared by baristas who take pride in having the correct dose, water weight, and temperature to make their brew. But I’m excited about a new addition to the Service Sphere range that gives domestic users the same quality filter experience they’d find from a café, only without the fuss.

Introducing Junior, a Bravilor device that brews a cup of filter coffee as close to perfection as humanly possible. The

Junior filter machine has been designed especially for domestic use, and in my opinion, the timing couldn’t be better.

This machine combines the highquality standards of Bravilor Bonamat’s professional equipment with top-class kitchen design.

Junior has even been awarded the ECBC seal of approval, certifying that it meets the strict quality guidelines for coffee machines by the European Coffee Brewing Center, and is also Specialty Coffee Association certified.

The Bravilor Junior is already renowned in Europe for its in-cup quality thanks to the craftsmanship of its Dutch manufacturers under strict quality control, and now I’m excited to introduce it to the Australian market. Like switching schools

and becoming ‘the new kid’, we need to make Junior feel welcome. Do that by taking him in and putting him to work on your kitchen bench at home, or perhaps you’d like to introduce filter coffee at your café, or at your roastery. Either way, I’m sure Junior will quickly feel at home.

Great quality brewed coffee isn’t only about the roast, ground coffee, and water.

Good brewing equipment ensures that the water extracts the coffee optimally, and I’m proud to say Junior has my tick of approval.

From the tank, fresh water runs down into the stainless-steel boiler where it boils in no time thanks to 10-amp power. The spray head then carefully pours the water just like a barista does at exactly the right temperature. It has a 16-hole stainless steel nozzle so hot water contacts the ground coffee at many points simultaneously.

By automatic regulation of the heating element to suit the amount of coffee within the decanter, the hot plate keeps the coffee at the perfect temperature of 80°C to 85°C, and automatically switches off after 40 minutes of inactivity.

It takes just six minutes to brew a total of 1.3 litres, or roughly 10 cups in six minutes at a temperature between 92°C and 96°C. The advanced flow control setting ensures the right extraction time to get the best flavours from your grinds. This makes it easier to brew a full or half-full decanter of coffee. A brew basket with an automatic ‘drip stop’ functionality can also stop the brewing process temporarily.

The detachable water tank makes filling easy and comes with indicators such as volume and number of cups on both sides.

Constructed in a solid metal housing, the Junior features a brandy glass shaped ergonomic jug with a hinged lid and ergonomic soft grip handle. The design is cleverly engineered to ensure drip-free pouring. It also keeps the flavours and aromas at their peak.

A bonus, is that the filter housing is made of matt-coated brushed metal, ensuring that fingerprints are a thing of the past – all the small things count.

Weighing in at just 2.5 kilograms, and a reasonable price tag of just over $500, I highly consider splurging and spending some dollars on a product that’s guaranteed to lift your filter appreciation this winter, and have you thinking twice about the ease of having filter coffee available for your café customers, or to enjoy at home.

For more information on the Bavilor Junior, visit www.servicesphere.com.au

The Junior features a brandy glass shaped ergonomic jug with a hinged lid and ergonomic soft grip handle.

BACK THE BEAN BOTTEGA

To complement the Junior, every filter machine needs tasty beans and we at Service Sphere have launched an online platform called Bean Bottega to unite Australian coffee roasters in a one-stop-shop for consumers to purchase their coffee products.

This is a great opportunity for roasters to reach consumers who still demand topquality coffee while isolating and working from home.

We want to showcase the best of Australia’s coffee roasters in one platform, have the coffee community come together, and support each other to create the Dan Murphy equivalent of coffee.

Coffee lovers won’t have to go to different stores or websites to try different coffee.

The concept will open consumer minds to different roasting styles and flavour profiles, so the more roasters that sign up, the better it will be for consumers to experience our world of coffee.

Brands available via Bean Bottega include Veneziano Coffee Roasters, dc Specialty Coffee Roasters, Genovese, St Remio, Five Senses, Lavazza, and many more.

Five per cent of revenue raised from sales at Bean Bottega will go towards hospitalitybased charities and My Room Children’s Cancer Charity.

To connect to Bean Bottega and discover a range of coffees to enjoy at home, visit https://servicesphere.com.au/bean-bottega To register your coffee on the website, visit servicesphere.com.au/collaborate

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ESPRESSO YOURSELF

Jibbi Little of Jibbijug is the 2019 ASCA Pauls Professional Australian Latte Art Champion.

Caffé Kangaroo Jibbi Little pulls a kangaroo design out of her pouch that will put a skip in your step and kick into your coffee.

A

ustralia is full of unique and interesting animals that are unlike anything else in the world.

From the platypus to the echidna and the quokka to the cassowary, these curious critters are what spring to mind for many foreigners at the mention of Australia (after the coffee quality… and the death-eating sharks, snakes and spiders). But there is one Aussie animal more iconic than any other, and that is, of course, the kangaroo.

The kangaroo is a symbol of Australia, popping up on the coat of arms, as sporting teams’ mascots, and is even used on the ‘Australian Made’ logo. A big part of why it has been so embraced as a symbol of this country is the kangaroo’s unique and easily recognisable features.

The long feet and tail, shorter arms, and arched back are hallmarks of the kangaroo and are key to any illustration of the animal. These are all featured in my latte art design, and create a pattern better suited to experienced latte artists.

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Many techniques are used in this design, starting with the body. It requires good control and knowledge of how your actions will affect the shape of your pour. It might help to think of this step like the first leaves of a large rosetta.

Full rosettas appear throughout the design, adding texture to elements like the tail and chest, helping them stand out from the smoother body and legs.

Dragging adds to the shape of the pattern, really bringing it to life.

Performing the two drags that link the tail to the head will take time for newer latte artists. Finally, the cunning eye technique is used to give the kangaroo shape to its facial features without the need for etching. It has become a popular and useful technique among latte artists thanks to 2018 World Latte Art Champion Arnon Thitiprasert.

If you are just starting out in your latte art journey and struggle with the complex design, don’t give up. We were all joeys before jumping out of the pouch.

1.

Build the base with the handle at 12 o’clock. Begin with a drop to the right of a centre with a slight wiggle to give it a more oval shape. This creates the torso.

3.

Turn the handle to 3 o’clock. Along the top of the cup, pour a six-leaf rosetta, followed by a second one starting slightly below and to the right of the first.

5.

At the other end of the body, to the right of the leg, pour a 10-leaf rosetta that curves to end near the handle.

7.

Pour a second ear to the left, followed by a longer and wider loop pointing to the left. Use the ‘cunning eye’ technique to fill in the face while leaving space for the eye.

2.

Drag a line from just right of the middle of that drop towards the rim of the cup, followed by a thin loop pointing downwards. This forms the leg and foot.

4.

Along the left of the cup, starting from the torso, pour a nine-leaf rosetta to create the chest and neck.

6.

In the same movement, drag a line along this tail and the torso. Start a new drag along the neck, up to the edge of the cup and looping back down to form an ear.

8.

Halfway down the neck rosetta, pour a ^ shape for the arm. Finish by dragging a line that connects the two loose rosettas, turning them into a tree.

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TRAINING TACTICS

Jared Chapman is Group Customer Manager at Suntory Coffee.

Back to business Jared Chapman speaks about the importance of clear communication and how to implement correct safety precautions to give customers full confidence as cafés reopen.

Build trust with your staff by keeping them informed of changes and protocols to adhere to.

W

ith the rollercoaster ride that 2020 has been (and continues to be), many café owners are turning their attention to how to navigate reopening or refocusing.

While many people have been quick to adopt a relative sense of normality, it is no surprise that many others are still quite nervous about venturing out to their local restaurant or café. It is likely that some of your staff may be feeling the same way, even if they haven’t mentioned it to you.

As a business owner, the most important thing you can do is have a strong and clear plan for how you are going to operate in this new reality.

A good place to start is checking out health.gov.au as well as your state government website. Not only do they

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have some great resources such as posters to print on social distancing protocols and how to use hand sanitiser correctly, but checking in regularly with these websites will ensure you are always aware of the latest legislation so you can avoid the hefty fines that come with breaking the rules. Given how often the rules are changing, I recommend having a quick look each day for updates.

Once you’ve checked out the latest regulations, the focus of your plan should be to keep your staff and customers safe, and give them confidence in their safety. When building up your plan, consider how you will comply with social distancing, keep a record of customers, implement hygiene practices, clean daily, and maintain the health of your staff.

These considerations are also spelt out in detail on the government websites. Some

things you should think about include: • Mapping out the area of your café and ensuring you’re complying to the latest regulations on number of people within your space.

• Making hand sanitiser available at the entrance for your customers.

• Marking out 1.5-metres spacing in the areas where your customers line up and wait for their takeaway orders.

• Having customers wait at the front of the café to be seated.

• Ensuring staff who are unwell know they need to stay home. You may need to speak to your staff about being a little more flexible to cover shifts last minute. A small sniffle that wouldn’t normally make someone stay home will at the moment.

• Separating staff breaks as well as start times.

• Having an easy-to-follow process for tracking customers who come into your café – creating a Survey Monkey with a QR code is an easy way to do this.

• Increased cleaning of surfaces using disinfectant and putting in place measures to avoid customers and staff having to touch surfaces where possible – for example, by propping a door open.

• Removing shared table items such as sugar jars and encourage staff to ask when taking orders.

• Insisting on cashless payment transactions.

• Providing gloves and face masks for all staff to wear should they feel more comfortable to do so.

• Installing glass protective shields at the order counter to prevent direct transmission of germs.

As you create your plan, it is important

As per government restrictions, dine-in customers need to adhere to 1.5-metre social distancing rules.

to ensure you consult your staff so that you are able to address any of their concerns as part of the plan. By doing this, the team will be more likely to take it seriously and follow the guidelines.

At a time like this, your staff will look to you for leadership and guidance, and it’s important you take their trust seriously and do you best to accommodate their safety, and that of your customers’, which is of upmost importance. Once you’ve put the plan in place, check in regularly with the team on what is and isn’t working, and make adjustments where needed.

When it comes to your customers, clarity and consistency are key. Having plenty of posters that clearly display the restrictions in your café will help educate your customers. Make sure your staff know that there are no exceptions to the rules. You should also be sure to let your customers know the measures you have in place around cleanliness and sanitation to help build their confidence. It’s a good idea to also post this on your social media page or website if you have one.

If you’ve made changes to the way you operate, let your customers know about it.

If you’ve changed opening hours, make sure you have a sign displaying the new opening hours and update it online/social media. It’s frustrating for a customer when they check your Facebook page and see you’re open until 3pm only to turn up at 2pm and find you’ve packed up.

If you are implementing a time limit on seating, make sure you let people know while they are waiting for a table. Once again, it’s a good idea to update your online presence to reflect this information and promote booking ahead, if possible. If you’ve got a long wait because of limited

seating, let people know when they arrive. Maybe suggest a nice park nearby that they can grab something from your takeaway-friendly menu, and go and sit in the sun.

Last but not least, now is the time to deliver amazing customer service, every time. People will remember the way you made them feel at a time they may not be feeling their best. Some of the restrictions you put in place will inevitably impact the customer experience, but if you’re friendly and upfront about them, people will understand.

I recently had a poor experience when eating at a restaurant with my wife and a friend. We arrived, were seated, and told that the waiter would return with some water. Five minutes later, the waiter returned with water and asked if we were ready to order. When we let him know we didn’t yet have menus, he told us they weren’t providing them, and we could find the menu online. Ok, no problem.

He left us again and we chose some tasty sounding margaritas, and a few dishes to share. When the waiter came back again to take our order, it turned out we were looking at the wrong menu on their website, not the ‘restricted COVID-19 menu’ they had up on Facebook.

What could have been a simple and enjoyable experience with some clear communication ended up leaving us frustrated.

A smile and a look of sympathy of understanding goes a long way. We don’t have a crystal book to predict the future.

We don’t know what’s next, but we do know what we can control. As a business owner, it’s important you do your part to ensure your staff feel comfortable in coming to work, and your customers are confident in your cleaning precautions.

In fact, if I saw a waitress wipe down a table with Glen 20 disinfectant or wait an extra 30 seconds for my takeaway coffee after watching a barista apply hand sanitiser after each cup they handed to the customer, then I’d be happy to wait.

Normally, as baristas and café owners, we should be more worried about the cleanliness of our coffee machine and making a regular preventative maintenance plan, but now the health of our coffee shops are just as important.

Take it one day at a time. Cafés around the country are at different stages.

Some in regional and suburban areas have flourished and tripled their sales.

Others in CBD locations or in some towns, are struggling with lockdown 2.0 and takeaway service only. Whatever stage you’re at, know that this is unique journey you share with the coffee community.

You may be sick of hearing it, but we are one big coffee community, and we really are all in this together.

Provide gloves and face masks for staff to wear to ensure they are comfortable and safe at work.

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R&D LAB

Dr Monika Fekete is the Founder of Coffee Science Lab.

Why fresh is best

Dr. Monika Fekete on how to store coffee beans and why correct packaging comes before freezing.

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t was wonderful to see Melbourne streets animated again with people enjoying sit-down brunches, albeit shortly lived. However, as cafés reopen around the country, baristas and managers may find themselves evaluating how to maximise their roasted coffee bean supplies. Rapidly changing consumption volumes over the last couple of months has potentially meant that some coffee has been sitting on shelves longer than usual. But is it still fit to serve, and how can we keep coffee fresh for longer?

First, let’s look at what happens to coffee once it’s been roasted.

Coffee roasting creates more than 800 compounds, nearly 300 of which are important aromatic compounds. These compounds are key indicators of freshness but are easily lost to diffusion.

Apart from this radical change in the chemical composition, physical changes inside the beans also accelerate staling.

The build-up of hot gases during roasting breaks down barriers between cells, leading to increased porosity. Volatiles and carbon dioxide (CO2) are adsorbed inside the pores, making an important contribution to cup quality. However, increased porosity also leads to an accelerated loss of volatile compounds, as there is a larger surface exposed to the environment around the bean.

FRESHNESS INDICATORS

1) Carbon dioxide: the amount of CO2 produced and retained inside the porous structure of the beans increases with roast temperature. However, retention begins to drop once roast temperature is above 220°C because cell walls lose their elasticity and cracks start to form, letting CO2 escape quicker.

2) Volatile aromas: along with CO2, volatile Maillard reaction products (MRPs) are also lost to diffusion. Studies

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Figure 1. Shelf life of coffee as a function of oxygen availability during storage. Adopted from Cardelli and Labuza, 2001.

have shown that the majority of aroma loss is due to a few key compounds.

Methanethiol has a sulphury smell we might find unpleasant on its own, however, in coffee, we recognise it as one of the most important indicators of freshness. Strecker-aldehydes and dicarbonyls are responsible for fruity, malty, flowery, honey and buttery aromas, all closely related to that beautiful, fresh coffee smell.

3) Lipids: in roasted Arabica coffee, lipids account for about 15 per cent of the dry weight. When these coffee oils come into contact with air, they can oxidise and degrade, leading to a rancid smell we immediately associate with stale coffee.

STORAGE ENVIRONMENT

The overall shelf life of coffee depends on environmental conditions. The biggest enemy of roasted coffee is exposure

to oxygen, followed by moisture, temperature, and light.

1) Oxygen: fresh coffee’s worst enemy The best way to prolong the shelf life of roasted coffee is to keep it away from oxygen, which accelerates staling reactions in many ways. All freshnessindicating aromas are very susceptible to oxidation and can be lost quickly after roasting, while lipid oxidation causes rancidity.

Sensory studies have shown that even a very small amount of oxygen strongly affects coffee quality over time. Figure 1 shows just how powerful the impact of oxygen is on shelf life. In this example, shelf life was reduced by approximately 20 times when oxygen levels during storage increased from 0.5 per cent (a low-oxygen environment) to 21 per cent (in air).

Another point to note is the dramatic drop in shelf life between 0 and 5 per cent oxygen. Shelf life effectively

halved when oxygen concentration increased from 0.1 to 1.1 per cent. Every additional 1 per cent increase in oxygen concentration accelerated degradation by another 10 per cent. While such low levels of oxygen are difficult to achieve in packaging, it shows just how crucial it is to keep coffee away from oxygen in order to preserve freshness.

of degassing by 1.5-fold for whole beans and three-fold in the case of ground coffee. These losses are most dramatic within the first few days of coffee storage. Refrigerating or freezing coffee has been used as a method of preservation because staling reactions slow down at colder temperatures.

4) Light Light acts as a catalyst in many chemical reactions and can accelerate staling. Luckily, most types of packaging protect coffee from exposure to light. Packaging is the most important factor we can control to improve shelf life.

Let’s look at some standard options for coffee.

2) Moisture: the second biggest threat Roasted coffee is a dehydrated product, with only approximately 0.75 per cent moisture on a dry basis.

This makes coffee shelf-stable against enzymatic and microbial spoilage.

However, it also means that coffee can absorb moisture from the air, which accelerates the loss of volatile compounds. Physically, the brittle and fragile structure of the bean gradually loses its characteristic crunchiness and crispiness due to moisture uptake.

3) Temperature Even though temperature gets probably the most attention when it comes to coffee storage, it is in fact the third most important environmental factor affecting coffee freshness.

This means that we should turn our attention to storage temperature once barriers against oxygen and moisture have been established by selecting appropriate packaging.

The effect of temperature on CO2 and volatiles release can be described by the Arrhenius equation, which states that chemical reactions proceed at a faster rate at higher temperatures.

This has been demonstrated by Maria Cristina Nicoli’s coffee staling experiments. In this study, every 10°C increase (studied between 5°C to 45°C) resulted in an increased rate

Air packaging is the most basic type of coffee packaging. It protects the coffee from light and moisture, but the presence of large amounts of oxygen means that staling reactions will proceed easily. This type of packaging can only be applied to coffee that had been previously degassed to avoid bursting from continued CO2 release. Adding a one-way valve can help solve this problem. It helps expel excess air, while CO2, due to its larger molecular weight, tends to sit lower, blanketing the beans. Some CO2 and volatiles will still escape, dulling cup taste.

Vacuum packaging is an old and widespread technique, applied to a variety of foods. By reducing the amount of available oxygen inside the package, it helps prevent oxidation reactions detrimental to shelf life. Its main disadvantage is that the vacuum effectively sucks the aroma out of the coffee: volatiles escape as soon as the package is opened.

Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) is a highly effective way of excluding oxygen from product packaging and thus gain unprecedented improvement in shelf life. MAP is currently used by large international coffee companies to preserve coffee freshness for overseas export. Nitrogen flushing of coffee bags is also becoming popular with small specialty roasters, although sensory outcomes are debated.

Pressurised packaging is an interesting option. It allows CO2 and volatiles to build up until pressure pushes volatiles back effectively into the beans, where they dissolve in coffee oils or bind to melanoidins. The pressure helps spread the oil inside the call walls, forming an additional barrier to oxygen inside the beans. As a combined result, aging in pressurised containers can improve cup quality. The drawback is the higher cost of materials.

Active packaging is a system in which the product, package and the environment interact in a positive way to extend shelf life. The most widely used active packaging technology today are oxygen scavengers, mostly iron powder.

The scavenger can be added to air or MAP packs in sachets or incorporated into the inner walls of the packaging.

Table 1 shows the advantages and drawbacks of each type of packaging, and the shelf life it can help achieve.

To help coffee survive for longer, look at packaging options first, and storage temperature second. Once a packaging type is chosen, during storage, temperature becomes the key factor affecting primary shelf life. So, bring on the freezer-once you’ve got your bags sorted.

TYPE

PROTECTS FROM

DISADVANTAGES

SHELF LIFE

Air +1-way valve (16 – 18% O2)

Humidity Light Bursting

Aroma escapes with CO2

1 – 3 months

Vacuum (4 – 6% O2)

Humidity Light Oxygen

“Sucks out” aroma Coffee has to be degassed

4 – 6 months

Inert Gas (N2 or CO2) + 1-way valve (1 – 2% O2)

Humidity Light Oxygen

Liquid gases needed (safety risks, increased cost)

6 – 8 months

Pressurised (<1% – O2)

Humidity Light Oxygen Positive aging effect

Rigid box and safety valve needed ($$$)

18+ months

Active

O2/Co2 scavenger

Extra cost

Table1. Standard coffee packaging options.

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ASCA

Kieran Westlake is the President of the Australian Specialty Coffee Association.

Stay strong A setback is not the same as failure. It’s just a learning opportunity for us to strengthen and move forward with renewed commitment.

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t time of writing, a return to stage three restrictions in Melbourne has returned many businesses and individuals into a state of uncertainty, while the rest of the country is starting to open back up to domestic tourism. We all remember how difficult the first few weeks of these restrictions were for us across the country. Hopefully, this sacrifice by the Victorian community will be successful, prevent further lockdowns in other regions, and enable the full Australian community to be on the road to recovery leading into summer holidays.

However, despite the gloom, I personally remain positive for our members and our communities at large.

Throughout this pandemic, I’ve been blown away by the compassion of our industry and members. Despite their own struggles, people and businesses have done what they can for their customers, suppliers, co-workers, employees, and the wider community. From making meals for those doing it tough to providing support to our international community that has missed out on Australia’s robust safety net provided by JobKeeper and JobSeeker.

At the Australian Specialty Coffee Association, we’ve thought about what we can do to make things better. The first step we wanted to take was to make things easier for our members.

Many baristas have lost work or hours but want to remain involved in the specialty coffee community. The same goes for the enthusiasts that, at the end of the day, buy the coffee our members and industry are brewing. Even those on JobKeeper may have lost income or be uncertain about their future.

For those who have been affected by or had loss of employment due to

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ASCA is reducing membership fees for people affected by COVID-19 restrictions.

COVID-19, or are on JobKeeper and JobSeeker payments, ASCA is offering a 50 per cent discount to individual memberships, under the Barista and Enthusiast categories.

The discount is available to new memberships and sign ups, or any renewals from March 2020 onwards.

People who qualify but have already paid for their membership can request a rebate in the ASCA Member Area.

For more information about the discount, please send an email to baristaguild@aasca.com.

This is only one way ASCA intends to continue supporting the industry.

Another, is to deliver a symbol of hope for the future. This is why the ASCA Board, in partnership with all our committed sponsors, will march on with the 2020 Condesa Co Lab Australian Coffee Championships.

Some countries, where the pandemic has hit harder than in Australia, have decided to suspend their national competitions this year. Despite what’s happened in Victoria, we believe there will

be an opportunity to host the competition later in the year and for an even wider audience.

Before COVID-19, the community’s appreciation for specialty coffee was at an all-time high and we need to keep that momentum going to help the industry recover.

We’ve been working hard to find the best solution possible for the competitors, members, sponsors, and judges. Currently, we believe a modified Virtual National Competition event will accommodate changing government restrictions across the country.

This will allow us to maintain the health, safety, and well-being of all involved. While I can’t confirm the details just yet, I believe this will provide the competitions with a new platform, reach, and longevity that will ripple through further national events.

Sign up for our FREE newsletter at www.australianspecialtycoffee. com.au

NZSCA

Emma McDougall is the Communications and Administration Co-ordinator of the NZSCA.

Celebrating the ladies who roast

Roasting is no longer a boy’s club, and the New Zealand Specialty Coffee Association recognises the women paving the way.

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ack in 2016, the hashtag #ShesTheRoaster was born, highlighting women in coffee who are setting examples for others trying to advance in the industry. More recently, a throw away comment of “there aren’t many female roasters in New Zealand” had us thinking: “How many ladies are out there roasting?”

We asked the community to point us in the direction of any female roasters they knew, and we were introduced to many amazing women.

The number surprised us. There are at least 30 women roasting, one company had six, operating one-kilogram sample roasters through to behemoth 240-kilogram models.

This potentially represents 10 to 15 per cent of the coffee companies in our small land. With these ladies forging a path though, we hope this number will swell. More interesting was who inspired them, how they got where they were, and any obstacles they had overcome.

Their answers were encouraging and

Betsy Tipping of Rush Coffee in front of her roaster, “Roasty McRoastface”.

creative. They all have similarities in who introduced them to coffee, how they approach roasting, and many are passionate sustainability advocates.

The machines that the roasters use varied as did the number that each company seemed to have. “Get to know your roaster like it’s your best friend,” advises Alla Heta from John Burton.

Most of our roasters singled out Ethiopia as their favourite origin to roast and drink. The way they brewed their coffees mirrored the many ways they roast, but was always with consistency.

We also asked their tips and hacks for smooth roasting. Anna McGregor from Coffee Lab in Auckland says, “manual log each roast as well recording everything for referencing. Agtron analyses the bean and ground of every roast. Roast single-origin and get as many different ones as you can, taste the way you want to brew, cup before you buy, never stop learning, and ask questions whenever you can.”

As for Betsy Tipping from Rush Coffee in Wellsford, advises “pay attention to details. Consistency is key – and so is regular cupping. Don’t be afraid to tweak blends and experiment with new roast profiles to ensure you are providing the most consistently delicious product possible.”

An elective bunch who brew in every which way possible, each roaster looked at the broader picture of the industry as a whole, rather than concentrating on their own cooling tray. As Jessica Macdonald from The Roasting Department in Auckland says, “changing people’s mindsets [is key]. If you can pay $18 for a wine that’s literally poured into a glass you can pay more for the coffee that’s freshly

prepared for you.”

Many of them could single out a person who remained influential to their roasting career. But many more cited a multitude of people, proving that it takes more than a village. Kylie Norton of Vanguard in Dunedin says, “it’s a tie between my current employer Jason Moore/Mr Miyagi and my former employer Mark Dundon/ The Dude – both out there speaking the truth and always looking to do right by the coffee farmers.”

Our pages lit up with positive praise and encouragement from the companies who became involved looked into this question, creating a boost in a time when we could all use it most. The stories of “Our People” caused a spike in the range of our followers. We loved that companies were championing their roasters by sharing to their customers too.

The roasters suggested that connecting with each other via an online support network would be a great asset and tool.

From this insight, we are looking forward to creating events with them to grow their skills and give back to the next generation.

They all have “that thirst for knowledge” as Sally Quantock from Ebony Coffee Roasters in Palmerston North says.

This article is a snap shot of some of the many stories. We hope you are heartened by the strength and skill of the ladies who roast in New Zealand. We invite you to brew a special coffee, head to our website and, read all about their moments in roasting.

For more information on the New Zealand Specialty Coffee Association, or to join, visit www.nzsca.org

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E-SCENE

Every edition we highlight BeanScene’s digital coffee community, hearing from Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram followers.

For more information, visit www.beanscenemag.com.au

STUART AND MELISSA HIRTH Melissa and I live in Brisbane’s Southern suburbs and grow and process our own coffee. Our journey began when we discovered a coffee tree in our yard, which had been growing unnoticed for about 30 years. In a moment of ‘why not?’, we have been gathering trees from around Brisbane’s nurseries. This year, we have harvested about 1.5 kilograms of green beans, or approximately six kilograms of coffee cherry.

Most of our 80-plus trees are only three to five years old. They won’t begin to heavily bare until 2021 and 2022, but by then, we could be harvesting upwards of 100 kilograms of coffee cherry. As we work our way through nurturing our trees, to picking cherry, removing the flesh and drying, to hulling and winnowing off the parchment, roasting, brewing and finally enjoying home grown coffee, one really does appreciate a good cuppa.

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PETER WILLIAMS

Medical school is physically and psychologically draining.

Sleep-deprived, you walk through the morning ward rounds like a zombie, nodding aimlessly at your boss as they give you instructions for the day. It’s only once your boss calls out “coffee break” that you feel life being drawn back into your battered body. In a day with such chaos and stress, the 10 minutes you get with your team over a coffee remains one of the few treasures in medicine. Regardless of your background or your career aspirations, all doctors seem to find themselves bound by one common interest – a love (and need) for caffeine.

For me, it’s a double shot cappuccino. First-year medical students only get a small latte that won’t last long, but for most of the senior consultants, the coffee of choice remains the piccolo. Is it to be time efficient? Or is it the strength? Perhaps it’s a reflection of 40 years of drinking coffee and needing that extra punch to your morning. I have been endlessly reminded though, that once you start drinking ‘real’ coffee (piccolo), you can never go back. Who knows, maybe I’m on that same journey too.

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GREG LAWSON AND SHARON LUU

Although our coffee journey may have started many years ago, it only really took off when we began work in the R&D Lab for Arkadia Beverages.

Since then, our love for coffee has been exponential, inspired by the many cafés and roasters Melbourne has to offer. Soon enough, we were blessed with working closely with many of our favourite roasters. Our work quickly turned into a hobby, researching all things coffee, amateur photoshoots, and doing the occasional inhouse cold brew tasting session.

In our jobs we had many opportunities to take part in trade shows, both locally and worldwide – Milan, Dubai and Berlin, to name a few, even further expanding our love and knowledge of coffee.

Our latest venture is an, albeit often futile, attempt to recreate the latest BeanScene Espresso Yourself latte art, which naturally turned into a friendly competition. Leaf, heart and blobs are the winning entries so far. Happy sipping.

WE WANT YOU! Have a coffee passion you’re dying to share?

We’d love to see it. Email a 150-word bio about your love of coffee, your favourite coffee moment, and a little about yourself with a high-resolution image (1MB or greater) to BeanScene Editor Sarah Baker: sarah.baker@primecreative.com.au Follow us on @BeanSceneEd

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