Espresso Blog

Julie Beals

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Three Ways Millennials Will Change Your Business

Dana Manciagli , Contributing Writer, Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal

Last year, millennials surpassed Generation X in the workplace.

Today, in the U.S., one in three workers is a millennial, someone between the ages of 18 and 34.

They’re numerically the largest generation, standing strong at an estimated 80 million.

But beyond the numbers, the millennial mindset is changing traditional views of business, creating challenges and...

A Cupping Guide For New Staff or Customers — and Maybe Even Yourself

It’s a weird word, cupping. Yet all it is is ground coffee and hot water, with no fancy brewing process to affect its flavor. It’s what you’ve got to do to evaluate the characteristics of coffees, to understand their nuances — their basic tastes and defects — and how they compare to other coffees. And it’s something you can share with your customers with weekly or monthly cupping events — perhaps during a slower weekend hour.

Three — or more — coffees is sufficient for a cupping session. Sometimes when you try just one coffee, it can actually be harder to pick out the flavors. But when you...

SCAA's new flavor wheel groups together different flavor attributes of coffee

smithsonian.com
The SCAA's Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel was updated last week. More science went into the updated wheel than you might think. Sensory scientists at Kansas State University created something called the World Coffee Research Sensory Lexicon, a kind of dictionary of the many different attributes of a cup of joe. Each flavor is tied to an actual object so that roasters can describe both a type of flavor and its intensity when they talk coffee. The lexicon was used as the basis of a kind of lingua franca among tasters—a language that lets...

2015: The Year In Coffee Culture

by Liz Clayton

Originally published at eater.com.

This year, coffee culture went from specialty to mainstream.

The contemporary specialty coffee movement, whatever you wish to call it, has long been entwined with what many people have viewed (and embraced) as groups that are outsider and indie. And while it's true that fancy coffee places haven't really been "for geeks, by geeks" for some time now—and some never were—the shifting sands of this once outlying culture had not, until this year, seen quite such bold steps towards mainstream.

While ardent coffee fans may have already noticed this...

Non-Dairy Milks: Which Ones Are Best With Espresso?

Dairy milk may still rule the latte universe, but a variety of alternatives have been threatening its dominance since soy milk started showing up in cappuccino cups in the ’90s. And with almond and hemp milks — and even macadamia, cashew and coconut — to contend with, baristas can find themselves juggling a variety of steaming techniques as they try not to burn non-dairy milks while getting them hot enough to add to espresso. 

Soy’s Superiority

For vegans and the lactose intolerant, soy milk is still the standby. It’s also the non-dairy choice of baristas because it creates the best foam,...

For The Love of Coffee: Work Injuries Among Baristas

This article appeared on the Australian website, safetyculture.com.au.

The café industry is booming and the demand to consistently provide the best product and service is taking its toll on baristas.

Work-related injuries among baristas are on the rise due to repetitive stress from slinging coffee. Coffee tamping using manual pressure can increase the risk of barista elbow, repetitive strain injuries (RSI), and barista wrist.

Treatments for these injuries include analgesics, physical therapy, and ultrasound therapy. Severe cases may require more aggressive interventions including surgery.

...

Tea Infusions: Add subtle sophistication to your drink menu

Tea is all about soothing flavor — flavor that whispers instead of shouting. It’s a subtle touch that adds a gourmet feel to other beverages, and can enable anyone to develop a signature drink that is truly unique.

And with so many types of tea to experiment with — green, black or oolong for purists, or flavored spice or fruit teas for nonconformists — you can enhance everything from lemonade and lemon drops, to hot chocolate and hot toddies. The vast array of flavor profiles offered by tea makes the possibilities nearly endless. 

Add the fact that 87 percent of millennials drink tea...

Iced Coffee Versus Cold Press: Is Therecold_brew_and_iced_coffee A Clear Winner?

Cold brew coffee and iced coffee are arguably the trendiest summer drinks in coffeehouses around the country — but they hold their own in winter months, too. In a Dunkin Donuts poll, 56 percent of those surveyed said it is never too cold for an iced coffee. Devotees aren’t deterred by dropping temperatures — maybe they just wear gloves. 

But many are torn between the two methods. To cold brew or to ice, that is the question. Here we’ll break down the differences.

Cold Brew: The Smooth, Low-Effort Concentrate

With a brew time that lasts up to 24 hours, you’d think cold brewing would be a...

How To Sell More Than Coffee in OCS

by Emily Refermat

Article first appeared on vendingmarketwatch.com.

OCS is a lucrative business in most regions. That is especially true when upselling locations to specialty hot beverages. This was the focus at a 2015 NAMA OneShow OCS-focused panel, which centered on a few ways to give  users coffee service they love while maintaining good margins.  The key is to look to coffee shops for inspiration, experiment, highlight the SKUs and services already offered and charge service fees.

Offer many options, see what sticks

Panelist moderator Mike Tompkins of Coffee Products Associates, noted that...

SCAA's Green Guide Helps Coffee Shops Reduce Waste

Article first appeared on Nation’s Restaurant News (nrn.com).

Poll of 105 coffee drinkers:

Customers have traditionally chosen a restaurant on the basis of factors such as quality, convenience, service and value.

Today, a growing number are using an additional benchmark as well — the sustainability of its menu, business practices and supply chain.

They ask questions like these: Where do the ingredients come from? How are they processed and handled? What effect does that have on our air, water and soil? Were the farmers or producers compensated fairly? Such considerations affect where...

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