Coffee is a distinctive drink that is highly sensitive to the climatic factors that affect it at its various stages, starting from its cultivation to its processing, roasting, and grinding. This makes coffee one of the drinks most affected by the fine details. Many consider coffee preparation to be a fine art that only professionals with deep knowledge of coffee types and different preparation methods can master. For this reason, owners of projects specializing in coffee or high-end restaurants rely on the "barista", an expert who has high skill in preparing and brewing coffee with complete professionalism.
Article Contents
Who is the barista?
What are barista tools?
Daily barista jobs
What drinks does the barista serve?
Skills needed for a barista
How to become a barista?
Coffee Luxury Store for Barista Tools
Who is the barista?
A barista is a person who prepares and makes coffee, and is fully responsible for it due to his specialization in it. It is worth noting that a barista is more than just a coffee maker, because he is considered an artist with a high sense, as he presents a distinctive art to the farthest limits. The term barista first emerged in Italy, where it was given to the waiter who serves drinks in general, including coffee in its various types. Now the term barista is given to people trained and professionals in making and preparing coffee, especially espresso in its various types and flavors.
Read also: The best types of coffee and beverage cups
What are barista tools?
First: Basic tools:
- Espresso machine: It is the basis for making and preparing coffee, and it works to extract coffee from coffee beans in a concentrated and rich manner.
- The grinder: It is one of the essential factors in any coffee project, as it grinds coffee beans perfectly, according to the desired degree of grinding.
- The plunger: It is used permanently in making specialty coffee, as it is used to press and compress the ground coffee inside the basket. The barista here relies on the pressure not being strong, so that the water can be allowed to penetrate the ground coffee beans evenly through the filter, resulting in high-quality espresso coffee with a distinctive taste.
- Portafilter: There are two types of it, the compressed type, which is the easiest to use, and the other type, which is called the exposed type, which is the professional type that allows the barista to have complete control over the coffee extraction process and can follow it accurately and directly.
- The foam or the beater: It is one of the important tools, as it is used to steam the milk to obtain the foam that enables the barista to draw on it and present a wonderful artistic painting to the customer. The higher the quality of the steam, the easier it will be for the barista to draw. To draw distinctive paintings, the head of the beater must be sharp, to obtain the best results.
Second: Secondary tools:
- Milk frother: Frothing milk to a creamy consistency, this is an excellent alternative to a steam wand.
- Coffee scale: It is one of the important tools for the barista to weigh the amount of ground coffee and the amount extracted, to ensure that the same amount is added to the basket every time, to achieve the same quality every time. It can be considered one of the basic tools due to its importance to the barista.
- Thermometer: This is a tool that monitors the milk while it is steaming, in order to obtain high-quality coffee every time. To do this, the milk must be heated until it reaches 65 degrees Celsius, which is the ideal temperature for the sugar grains to begin to dissolve inside it. A professional barista may dispense with a thermometer, as he relies on his experience and professionalism, but the thermometer remains an important tool for obtaining accurate results.
- Digital coffee scale: It is responsible for giving ideal results in the ratio of water to coffee, for ideal preparation.
- Cold coffee maker: It is used to make and prepare cold coffee.
Daily barista jobs:
- Customer reception.
- Explain the menu to the customer, to make it easier for him to choose, and whether he wants to try a new type of coffee.
- Use of manual and electric mills.
- Monitor the maintenance and cleanliness of his equipment.
- Monitor the shelves and replenish them if they are low.
- Surface cleaning.
- It can prepare and serve all other drinks besides coffee.
- Providing excellent customer service.
Read also: Your comprehensive guide to bar tools
What drinks does the barista serve?
- Espresso is the most popular and widely consumed drink in the world.
- Americano, a shot of espresso, diluted with water.
- Cappuccino is one of the most popular and sought-after drinks around the world. It consists of a shot of espresso with a layer of condensed milk and a layer of milk foam on top.
- Latte is a drink derived from espresso, and is prepared by mixing a shot of espresso with condensed milk.
- Flat white is one of the modern drinks in the world of coffee. It is very similar to latte, as it is a shot of espresso with condensed milk and distinctive artistic drawings.
- Café Ole, which is coffee mixed with milk.
- Ristretto, which is similar to espresso and more concentrated than espresso.
- Lungo, which is a double shot of espresso.
Skills needed for a barista:
- The advantage of communicating and providing excellent customer service.
- Attention to detail.
- The speed of work and the extent of its completion.
How to become a barista?
To become a professional barista, you must master the art of espresso:
- Espresso machines, the barista relies on espresso machines and tools on a daily basis, which vary between simple, medium and complex, and between manual tools that are easy to use with attention to their smallest details to automatic tools and machines, in reaching an understanding of how to operate these machines and adapt to them is very important, to become a professional barista.
- Other tools, such as how to deal with heating the milk and getting a good foam that is easy to draw on, and steaming the milk as well, there are many espresso drinks such as cappuccino and mocha that depend in their preparation mainly on milk foam, mastering this step is one of the necessary things.
- Customer service, a positive customer experience is one of the things that a barista seeks, whether dealing with the customer directly or otherwise. Creating that language of communication is something that only a professional barista can do, who is highly aware of the extent of the customer’s requirements and the extent of his service.
Read also: The importance of coffee packaging bags
Coffee Luxury Store for Barista Tools:
Rafaat Al Qahwa store provides coffee lovers and enthusiasts with everything they need to prepare a distinctive cup of coffee with professional quality. Through a variety of specialized barista tools, the store seeks to provide the ideal coffee preparation experience for both beginners and professionals. The tools include distinctive machines, advanced grinders, and precise steaming and weighing tools, which help prepare coffee in all its details with personal touches that reflect your own taste. Whether you are looking to prepare a great espresso or a specialty coffee, you will find at "Rafaat Al Qahwa" everything that enhances your daily coffee experience. Shop now.