Archive for category Caffè Culture 2010

The speciality sector shows itself off at the London Event at Caffè Culture

Jun 21

Posted by admin in Caffè Culture 2010, SCAE, SCAE Conference, Speciality Coffee Association of Europe, World Barista Championships | 1 Comment

I’m really excited—because we are about to launch the Association’s largest-ever event: our 2010 London Event at Caffè Culture.

All the planning and work of dozens of different people from every part of the sector comes together in the next few days, and we will be seeing the results with a busy Conference programme, four tracks of practical Workshops, and of course our five much-anticipated World Championships. (Even those who are not actually able to be here with us for these thrilling contests can plan to get in on the action by joining the live feed on both www.scae.com and on www.worldbaristachampionship.com).

Speaking of planning, this year visitors to Caffè Culture will need to do a bit of that themselves, because there are so many exhibitors that we have filled both the Grand and National Halls at Olympia. I would recommend looking at www.caffeculture.com to see the floor plan and plot your route around the show, because the latest innovations will be everywhere, and every important company in the sector will be represented. Want to see an Aeropress in action or taste an exquisite Indian speciality coffee? Caffè Culture will be the place!

It’s not only in the Championships where you’ll find the world’s top baristas. You can meet a number of world and national champions on the stands themselves—have a look at the CMA Astoria, Anfim, Kerry and La Spaziale stands, for a start: each of these will feature champions showing their expertise up close.

Of course, if you don’t meet all your colleagues and friends on the show floor, we have also arranged an enticing Social Programme (so enticing, in fact, that some of the events are unfortunately sold out!). There are still places at the Waterside pub evening on the Thames, however, and the ever-popular, quirky and surprise-filled Barista Party really looks like a winner this year too! (You can get tickets for both of these evening events at the SCAE stand in the SCAE Village area).

Our annual Event is always a good place to meet the most interesting members of the coffee business, but this year should be special, because not only are we showing off what our Association does, but also what our vibrant speciality coffee sector has to offer. You only need to look at the special London coffee map on the WBC website to see how impressive that sector is now—so, while you’re in London, experience it for yourself!

I look forward to meeting many of you in London, and I wish you all an enjoyable show!

Mick Wheeler
SCAE Executive Director

SCAE Guest Blog 5 – Colin Smith on the Awards for Coffee Excellence

Apr 12

Posted by admin in Awards for Coffee Excellence 2010, Caffè Culture 2010, SCAE, Speciality Coffee, Speciality Coffee Association of Europe | No Comments

The human desire to win, to be acknowledged for achievement or to be recognised just for aspiration hasAward Trophy been the foundation of all progress in any field of life. In our coffee industry, the second largest in the world, there are so many aspects to the business that ultimately focus on the survival of the fittest.

The Awards for Coffee Excellence that the SCAE gives acknowledges people and organisations in different parts of the industry that work towards our aims for better quality in culture, production and presentation.

Nominated by members, and this year voted for by members too, the Awards acknowledge the effort made by individuals or groups. You can see the various categories of Award for 2010 by clicking here to visit the website. They will be presented during the SCAE Event at Caffè Culture in London this June.

The inspiration for the Awards came from Alf Kramer, who was behind the first presentation, when we gave out some “fun” Awards at our event in Rimini in 2004. The topics then were ‘Bold Initiative’, ‘Endurance’, ‘Miracle Maker’, ‘Producer’s Interest’, ‘Silent Achiever’, ‘True Sustainability’, ‘Vision of Quality’, ‘Worst Mistake’ and ‘Young Entrepreneur’. As you can see from the website, the number of categories is now much smaller, but they cover the main aspects of the trade and industry, and incorporate all of our ideals.

The actual trophies are based on a design inspired by the work of the Norwegian sculptor, Gustav Vigeland, (see right) whose monolith can be seen in the Vigeland Sculpture Park in Oslo. It interprets the human aim to reach higher levels of excellence by helping and supporting others in order to move upward together. Since 2006, we have had the Award trophies made by a Kenyan woodcarver, living near Mount Kenya in the coffee growing area.

Over the years, winners of the Awards for Coffee Excellence have been coffee shops and individuals that have incorporated novel ideas to promote their businesses, biased towards the quality of the coffee; coffee people who have spent time educating others in coffee technology and technique; and some who spend much of their free time inspiring others to enjoy the benefits of a well produced cup.

The producer has not been forgotten either, and we have recognised origin farmers who are experimenting all the time with methods to improve the crop, mills trying new ways of preparing the bean and others looking at the storage of the parchment before export. The award for Lifetime Achievement has been running since 2005, and it shows our appreciation for an individual who has dedicated much of his life to the promotion of quality.

Please look at the website and put forward the names of those that you think justify recognition for their efforts to improve coffee quality. We look forward in June to acknowledging the most inspiring people in the coffee business.

Mick Wheeler’s Blog 07/04/10 – Change – The Only Constant

Apr 7

Posted by admin in Caffè Culture 2010, SCAE, SCAE Conference, Speciality Coffee, Speciality Coffee Association of Europe | No Comments

SCAE Conference

‘The only constant we have in this world is change’…… François de La Rochefoucauld, 17th century writer

From the 17th Century to today, and for sure tomorrow, this will still ring true. So the focus of this year’s SCAE Conference at Caffè Culture could not be more apt, as it is all about change. Not change for change’s sake, but changing to keep abreast of our vibrant coffee industry as it develops to meet the needs and demands of the ever-changing 21st century.

Day One is entitled ‘Managing Change’ and focuses on change management strategies. Industry experts from international groups such as Starbucks and Caffè Nero will describe how they are meeting challenges and how they think it best to tackle them. Whatever size your business is, a strategy needs to be in place. Who better to listen to than Jeff Grout, a motivational business speaker who has advised, inspired and motivated those in industries as diverse as Morgan Stanley, Tesco, UBS and Saracens RFC.

Day Two, ‘A Whole New World’, is an exploration into different concepts for different markets. From the UK to Scandinavia, and mainland Europe to New Zealand, our guest speakers will share their knowledge of the latest developments in their corners of the coffee globe. So, if you want to adopt a fresh approach that has already been tried and tested on another continent, or if you are looking to expand into new markets, these experts could turn on that light for you.

Day Three is ‘Design 2020’ and provides an insight into the evolution of the café bar concept, which today has to carefully balance a combination of leisure, retail and workspace. Consumer trends are constantly being forecast, monitored and recorded –- and the demands put upon the coffee/café bar are frequently cited by other industry experts as the barometer of our times.

Our leading industry expert on this final day is David Schomer of Vivace in Seattle whose own unique insight has led him to determine what works most effectively for both the operator and the customer.

Be inspired, come and question – but don’t miss this opportunity to network the challenge of change.

Mick

SCAE Guest Blog – Stephen Hurst, Mercanta The Coffee Hunters

Mar 11

Posted by admin in Caffè Culture 2010, Coffee Bean, Fair Trade, Rainforest Alliance, SCAE, Speciality Coffee, Speciality Roasters, World Barista Championships | No Comments

I have been asked to put some thoughts down for an SCAE Guest Blog – maybe a trademark rant, maybe some top down view of the specialty coffee business, maybe a wide angle perspective, maybe some punditry for the World Cup this Summer? What could I write? The World Cup is appealing, not least because I will be going two days after the
SCAE/WBC/Caffè Culture show is over. But the SCAE is not about football, so I will have to get back on track.

It is tempting to look at the specialty coffee business in light of the unprecedented financial chaos that has engulfed the world in the past 12-18 months. By all rights, the speciality coffee business should have suffered alongside the rest of the economy – but it appears (at least to us at Mercanta as a supplier to speciality roasters in 30 countries) that the opposite is true. Defined provenance, innovative and exciting packaging, pure and natural source, widely differentiated prices, presentational awareness in fine food venues, vast shelf space on retailer shelves, completely international – coffee?

No, water. And that is my point. If a product that honestly (besides being ”free” from a tap) tastes quite similar from one bottle to another can develop into a differentiated multi-billion dollar international mega-business, does anybody really think coffee (where at least eight totally distinct consumer aware flavours can be readily identified – let alone one thousand nuances) will not eventually be bigger still? It is inconceivable that coffee will not become a widely appreciated and differentiated product – finally about the bean itself and its own inherent taste and source.

So financial meltdown or not, speciality coffee is on a roll. It is not about the High Street coffee bar chains, it is not about Fair Trade, it is not about Rainforest Alliance, it is going to be about coffee. Coffee: the bean with its own character, its own source, its own taste, and, when you know who you are buying it from, you get all the ethics and environmental protection and authenticity that consumers really want. Information, professionalism and education about coffee will lead millions to make a better more informed choice; buy what you like, but buy it for the right reasons.

If you think a regular feature blog on the SCAE website might be interesting, there are plenty of subjects to cover from our perspective as the sourcing people, and based on our truly international reach. Please do let us know if you would like to see more.

Wishing you all health, prosperity and happiness in 2010.

Stephen Hurst
Mercanta The Coffee Hunters

Mick Wheeler’s Blog 04/03/10 – Why Championships are just the tip of the SCAE’s iceberg

Mar 4

Posted by admin in Caffè Culture 2010, Café Europa, SCAE Gold Cup Programme, Speciality Coffee, Speciality Coffee Association of Europe, World Barista Championships | No Comments

UKBC 2010 winners

Before starting this week’s blog, I should mention that one of the industry’s greats, Emilio Lavazza, passed away recently. I cannot say that I knew him well, but did meet him on a number of occasions, most notably at the Lavazza plant in Turin about 10 years ago. He was a knowledgeable man with a passion for coffee and innovation. He will be missed.

You can almost feel the excitement and tension now rising throughout Europe and beyond as our national champions in five of the coffee disciplines head towards the World Championships in London in June.

The crowning of national champions is a great thing, and certainly brings the whole speciality coffee movement into the media spotlight. But it is important not to forget why we have the Championships—and also to emphasise that, as an Association, we have a great deal more to offer than just competitions and training for competitions.

Let there be no doubt, the SCAE’s Championships fulfil an important part of the Association’s mandate to promote quality. They do this by emphasising and reinforcing the message that attention to detail and excellence at every stage in the marketing chain is paramount—be it the barista making the final cup, or the cup taster selecting the best coffee. Championships are an extremely important tool in the arsenal we use to generate excitement and commitment to quality, but they must NEVER be seen as the only thing that we do.

We do so much more, and I urge you all to look beyond the competitions to the Gold Cup Programme, the trips to origin; the fantastic education programme at our events, the research programme, Café Europa, the monitoring of EU legislation and the fact that we act as a voice for the industry.

So yes, enjoy the Championships, celebrate the winners, commiserate with the losers, but remember: there is more to the Association than competitions. Above all, get involved!