Coffee gurus spread the espresso word
Caffeine’s demo coffee shop offers training and hands-on experience of different machines
What’s the right coffee machine for your operation? A 2 group compact? A bean-to-cup machine with a steam wand? Traditional-barista or bean-to-cup? And what about training? Where can you go to get coffee training on pulling the perfect espresso shot and foaming milk, along with all of the maintenance and upkeep of the machine? Now the coffee gurus at Caffeine Limited have opened a demo coffee shop which displays a large array and variety of different machines that’s designed to answer all these questions. What’s more, training and advice is free for customers and potential customers.
“There’s nothing like hands-on experience to tell you which coffee machine is going to be right for your operation,” says Justin Stockwell, managing director of Caffeine. “We go to so many places where the wrong machine has been selected – too big, too small, too many bells and whistles or, occasionally, not enough. Customers can come here and try out all sorts of different types of machines and see which is going to suit them best.”
The demo coffee shop has a variety of different machines, large and small, ready to operate. The traditional units are manufactured by Conti, the bean-to-cup models are Schaerers, plus there’s a selection of coffee grinders and other ancillary equipment. “For example, most pubs and bars will want a relatively small model. There’s no point in having a four-group traditional machine – it’ll take up valuable space and won’t be working efficiently. Depending on how skilled the staff are, a small bean-to-cup or a two-group traditional unit will do the job perfectly saving you space and money.”
Training is an area that gets Caffeine very hot under the collar. “There are so many bad practices out there,” says Justin. “Increasingly there are poorly trained people serving coffee who really don’t know their latte from their flat white. We want to change that, right here.”
The demo coffee shop has room for up to 12 trainees comfortably, plus there are seating areas for discussion and advice. Training is delivered by expert baristas and covers everything from key coffee parameters (temperature, brew rate, grind size and extraction time) to milk stretching and latte art.
To arrange a visit to Caffeine’s demo coffee shop call 01707 278400, email sales@caffeinelimited.co.uk or visit www.caffeineonline.co.uk