There are many key points in the coffee journey that are important to producing that special cup of coffee served to your guests. If the farmer, processor, or roaster falls short of attaining a high level of quality, the coffee is typically doomed from the start. Once the coffee is roasted, packed, and on its way to the final destination before brewing, real expertise is needed at the preparation level, especially when it comes to espresso. Training in a high level of attention to detail is critical for making that perfect shot.
Here are a few tips to ensure that your café or restaurant staff are up-to-date with the latest training in coffee and coffee brewing:
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Make sure you have a solid training foundation: Whenever we begin accounts, we like to ensure that we spend ample time with the stakeholders in the coffee brewing process. Ideally, our coffee training takes place in two locations: first at our roasting facility and second on the equipment at the customer's location.
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Develop a written training manual: Most establishments have a comprehensive database of standard operating procedures, and coffee brewing processes along with cleaning protocols should definitely have a home in this database. We keep both written and visual instructions available for our coffee partners to help develop these manuals.
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Rely on regular quality control checks: Coffee has several points in the brewing process that are easily checked to maintain quality. Temperature, amounts of coffee, time of espresso shot, and visual checks are all easy ways to ensure that you and your staff are producing top-quality coffees.
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Have daily huddles with points of emphasis on training and quality control: Discussions should be a daily occurrence, and regular meetings or huddles are the perfect opportunity to create the point of emphasis for the day. Also, this allows for minor refreshing opportunities for specific parts of the brewing process.
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Schedule in-depth refresher courses with your roaster: Whenever permitted, we like to link up regularly with our coffee partners to ensure their baristas are comfortable with our products and the coffee brewing process. This not only answers any immediate questions but also builds trust and a relationship to better foster an open line of communication.
Making the time to ensure that your staff is properly trained both initially and on an ongoing basis is a worthwhile investment. We pride ourselves on working with a variety of businesses to develop a training program and schedule that meets the needs of the wholesale partner along with the final customer who will enjoy the fruits of our coffee partnership.
Please drop us a line if you would like to hear more about our training program.