Coffee Education: Extract Coffee Roasters and Boston Tea Party
By Dan Lacey At its best, education can transform a coffee business. It inspires and engages employees, and it enhances customer loyalty and experience. Developing, retaining, and attracting talent are vital activities for business growth and success. So why is formally recognized training so often treated as an afterthought or a ‘nice to have’? So …
Statement on Selection of Dubai as a Host of the 2018 World Coffee Championships
World Coffee Events, an event management organization owned by the Specialty Coffee Association, announced today that Amsterdam, Dubai and Belo Horizonte would be hosting World Coffee Championships events in 2018. Dubai was selected to host the Cezve/Ibrik Championship, World Brewers Cup, World Cup Tasters Championship, and World Coffee Roasting Championship next September.
Building A Coffee Career: Perspective from a Cup Tasters Champion
By Freda Yuan Seven years ago, I was battling with bulimia and depression. Life was miserable rather than enjoyable. My emotions were up and down, sometimes happy and sometimes sad. It was so extreme that I hit a wall several times a day. At that point, I was trapped. This experience was replayed over and …
Kalle Freese | Specialty, Minus the Pretentiousness
Kalle Freese on the failures, successes, and insights he’s gained on his mission to make great instant coffee. This talk was recorded at #RecoDublin in June 2016.
SCA Lectures Podcast #5: Changing Power Structures
Michelle Johnson and Tracy Ging moderate a panel on intersectionality, a term Dr. Kimberlé Crenshaw coined as a cross-section where various forms of oppression exists (she explains the concept in this TED video). Women of color and those who identify outside of the CIS-normative, experience a unique set of challenges that often go unheard. This …
Coffee Culture in Turkey
By Özgün Sarisoy Do you know the words for “breakfast” and “brown” in Turkish?(1) The Turkish language has many words related to coffee in its vocabulary. Turkish culture has deep roots in coffee, with traditional ballad songs, as well as different brewing and serving rituals for this beloved beverage. Turkey’s coffee culture is one of the oldest, but today …
New Coffee Skills Program Foundation Level Materials and AST Logos Now Available
The SCA’s Education department is pleased to announce that the Foundation level exams and curricula for the new Coffee Skills Program (CSP) are now available. These materials are currently only available in English but translations will be available in the coming weeks. ASTs should note that the function to add new CSP courses is not …
Peter Giuliano | Collaborative Research in Action
Peter Giuliano on the story of the collaboration involving two scientific studies, two institutions, three countries, and hundreds of participants that helped create the Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel. This talk was recorded at #RecoDublin in June 2016.
SCA Lectures Podcast #4: Trees Are Cool
Jon Ferguson moderates a panel discussion on coffee agroforestry systems and its nexus with farm productivity, quality, climate change mitigation, and the market forces.
Challenges and Opportunities: The Guilds
By Hannah Davies Within the coffee industry, the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) is a body that provides support to the professional development of baristas, roasters, technicians—and now producers—through our Guild structure. Our challenges lie in finding the best way to deliver that support and the most effective way of reaching our various communities. The work …
SCA Lectures Podcast #3: Molding All Star Baristas
Anna Gutierrez on how specialty coffee business owners and managers can implement a training program to mold all star baristas.
Ida Steen | Measuring Sensory Performance
Training for subjectivity can be time-consuming and expensive. At Re:co Dublin 2016, CoffeeMinds sensory scientist Ida Steen presents her PhD work on identifying sensory learning strategies and training, to close the gap between subjectivity and objectivity as effectively as possible.