It’s taken me a while to get this entry put together.  But here are some thoughts from competing in the Canadian National Barista Competition held in Montreal this year.

I need to begin by thanking the team that I had behind me, from the brothers working with me to create the blend, to Mike our Master Roaster I worked closely with to produce the roast we took, and to all the friends and family who supported me through the experience.  I literally could not have done it without you

I also need to acknowledge the competitors.  One and all they are a class act and I consider my self EXTRMELY fortunate to count myself among their number.  It’s very nice to be able to put faces to the names and I’m looking forward to seeing everyone again and to keeping in touch.

I hate to admit that I did not watch any of the other competitors on the day of the finals, I was going last and it was all I could do to keep my wits about me listening to them. (Read the rest of this post)

Many coffee roasters, ourselves included, pride themselves with the consistency of their roasting team.  This is unfortunately hard to measure unless you are always drinking the same coffees from the same roasters.  If not, you’re left to simply believe what your coffee roaster tells you….that they are indeed consistent.  At Fratello this isn’t ‘just talk’, its something we are constantly improving, and constantly testing. 

We begin in the coffee lab with the sourcing and cupping of fresh coffees received direct from Origin.  Often this is after we’ve traveled to Origin and worked directly with the farmers.   These coffees are then analyzed using the Cup of Excellence cupping strategies/methods.  This helps guide us to the right region, cooperative and farm we want to work with in a particular country.   Each sample is cupped a minimum of 4 times before moving on to the final round of cupping.  (Read the rest of this post)