Walking into a coffeehouse is like walking into my own living room.
No matter which shop it is, no matter if I've been there before, no matter if the coffee is terrific, or terrible; whenever I walk into a coffee establishment a sense of ease and comfort encompasses my entire being.
Another reason that I LOVE being in the specialty coffee industry is that it's a community. As a barista, and a Barista Guild of America member, I get to visit all types of shops around the country, especially here in Southern California. LA is definitely NOT San Francisco, Portland or Seattle, never mind Orange County! With that being said, we have some amazing shops that I've had the privilege of attending.
Intelligensia, Cafe Dulce, Spring for Coffee, Paper and Plastiks, Coffee Brew Bar, Alta, ad infinitum. Whenever I walk into these shops (among many other independents) I feel at home, because I get to see these houses of coffee worship in the eyes of a barista, or a coffee deacon if you will.
I get to check out all the different equipment, how they use the equipment I have, taste new coffees, compare techniques, share experiences, teach something, learn something, pour lattes, taste signature beverages, swap competition war stories and common customer complaints, complain about customers, tell stories about our favorite regulars, debate EVERYTHING and discuss industry standards (and criticize the standards and how they are just that, standards, not the end all be all of coffee - but that's another blog all together). The best comparison I can make is this - a barista walking into another coffee shop is like a fanboy walking into Comi-con San Diego... we've arrived amongst OUR people, finally! Yes, I just called us all geeks, but I am proud to be a coffee geek.
The coffee industry is also a very small community. It may not seem like it to an outsider, but we are! Those of us that are involved with the BGA or SCAA, we all know each other, know of each other or will meet each other because our events and conferences are attended by "regulars". The same way we have regulars come into our shops, this is the way we all attend these events, regularly! For example, once you've joined the Barista Exchange (which is like a Facebook for coffee people) you'll notice the same people responding as well. If you subscribe to Fresh Cup, Barista Magazine or other coffee media, a lot of the same people submit articles! People that win competitions, work for awesome importers, give certification exams, respond to posts on the exchange, write books, submit articles, host lectures, teach classes and attend SCAA and BGA events; theses are all the people that we as mere baristi remember. I personally remember other baristas that have challenged me, inspired me, had incredible talent or simply stood out from the crowd! The really "famous" ones, like Pete Licata, Heather Perry, Mike Philips, Lorenzo Perkins, Chris Baca... I like to call these folks "coffeelebrities".
Walking into another shop that knows me is the kindling to the fire in my soul.
I am definitely NOT a coffeelebrity... yet, but I do my part to visit a lot of shops, participate in events, host classes, guest barista and participate in growing our trade - in short, there are people out there that know me and treat me like a "regular" in the industry. That feeling is indescribable.
En route home from Las Vegas last week, after I saw the shooting star and after having my moment of clarity about my life, I made an executive decision - I was taking a 40 mile detour to Redlands to visit the amazing crew at Augie's Coffeehouse.
I was still pretty emotionally drained from all my new found realities about my life, but as I pulled into the parking lot of Augie's, that sense of ease and comfort came over me... I was home.
Please, keep in mind that I had only met a few of the Augie's crew just a week or two before at the throw down my shop hosted. They were really cool people and they gave me the most amazing compliment! - Some of the staff told me I was "Winnie Cooper" hot! Slap me silly and call me Winnie! For my generation, that's super sweet! I am suppose to host lecture and guest barista there sometime this month, so why not stop and get the lay out, right?
I walked into the shop and two of the four folks I had met were there to greet me. I was greeted with smiles, hugs, excitement and so much coffee love!
All of the discoveries I had made about my life came to materialize in that very moment. Nothing mattered but playing on their machine, making drinks, swapping brew method theory, trading coffees and enjoying the here and the now, with a completely delicious espresso (which Augie's has!). I had such fun with the Augie's crew and their coffee was awesome! Nothing beats great service with great coffee to compliment a cozy environment, not to mention, they are geeks, just like me. I even got invited to a Harry Potter Christmas party!! Isn't that delicious??!!
In short, through all the emotional chaos I had been through that week, all the soul searching, tears, laughter and discovery, all I needed to do was go home to where everybody knew my name, Alex, Ms. LittleJohn if you're nasty!
Thanks to Augie's for being my kindling on a cold November evening; the fire will live to burn another day.
No comments:
Post a Comment