Barista Magazine

JUN-JUL 2014

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When asked why the world needs a better coffee brewer, Blos- som's Jeremy has a ready answer: "'Why?' is always the question, and in our case has everything to do with where many of use see coffee moving as an industry," he says. "Customers are demanding consistent experiences: They want experiences they can count on. If we as an industry want to move out of cream-and-sugar territory, we need to move to the point where the average customer knows the difference between an African coffee and a South American cof- fee. In order to do that, we need to provide consistent experiences. That's where precision coffee brewing comes in." Precision technology doesn't just apply to automatic brewers, immersion brewers, and espresso machines: There are other com- panies whose focus is on repeatability and consistency, and whose work makes manual brewing techniques more appealing and ap- proachable, too. Bonavita, for instance, has developed a wide range of efficient, reliable, and consistent electric kettles (among other tools), simply because the company's leaders recognize the vast im- portance of water and slurry temperature, along with flow rate, to the quality of the brew. Roger Wittman, brand manager for Bonavita, speaks to the im- portance of collaboration among equipment manufacturers as a key to successful brewing. "As much as it pains us to say it, the grinder is the most critical piece of equipment," he admits, despite his oc- cupational focus on water. "Second on the list would be a kettle that reaches and maintains the correct water temperature. Thankfully, this is a niche we excel in. The additional thermal mass of the in- tegrated heating element in [Bonavita] electric kettles keeps the water hotter, longer." Anastasia Chovan of Unic, which has partnered with Blossom for exclusive distribution rights, agrees, and believes that by joining forces and combining resources and talents, companies can push each other to achieve better brewing. "Why wouldn't we want to raise the bar?" she asks. "That's how you evolve. I think the only way we'll ever advance as an industry is to collaborate." Aesthetics are also a theme in the newest round of equipment: While beauty might be in the eye of the brew-holder, there is defi- nitely something to the notion of form following function—another theme that many manufacturers speak of when describing their in- spiration and product development. While many machines are gor- geous to look at, one mark of quality is that the appearance is more of a by-product of the highly specialized and complex work they do, rather than simply razzle dazzle. Tymer Tilton, vice president and principal designer at Alpha Dominiche (manufacturers of the show-stopping Steampunk brew- er), says: "Our main focus has been making the function visible to both the customer and the barista. The Steampunk's siphon process is unique and beautiful, and from day one we have focused on build- ing a machine that keeps the focus on the process." Tymer echos Jeremy's sentiments about the evolving role of the barista in the course of specialty-coffee brewing by design and tech- nology: "For the rest of the machine design we focused on keeping a clean and minimal aesthetic that could fit into any shop and not distract from the brewing experience. The Steampunk definitely acts as a talking point, which helps to open up various conversations about coffee. The highly visual process makes people take a closer look, and sparks interest in customers which generally results in them asking questions about their coffee." On the other end of the spectrum are workhorse machines from some of the biggest and best-known equipment manufacturers in coffee, like Bunn and Wilbur Curtis, both of whose latest brew- ers set the standard for small-batch brewing that's designed for high-volume performance and, perhaps most importantly, durabil- ity. Bunn's Trifecta features industrial chic and cup-to-cup custom- izability, making it an especially appealing option for the café owner who's interested in offering single-serve brews without the flourish and fanfare that comes with showpiece technology. Wilbur Curtis, on the other hand, just debuted a sleek new un- der-counter batch brewer called Seraphim at SCAA in Seattle; which updates the company's aesthetic. Designed to appeal to a more specialty-coffee vibe, the Seraphim still offers the kind of re- liable and user-friendly technology the manufacturer's known for. Says Wilbur Curtis marketing manager Brant Curtis: "I get the feeling that we [at Wilbur Curtis] are seen as a little bit of 'The Man,' but one of the benefits that we have when we develop stuff A great brewer will not make bad or stale coffee taste good, no matter how precise, beautiful, or efficient it is. A great brewer will not make bad or stale coffee taste good, no matter how precise, beautiful, or efficient it is. 68 barista magazine B o o k 4 7 - 9 2 . i n d d 6 8 Book 47-92.indd 68 5 / 1 5 / 1 4 1 0 : 4 5 P M 5/15/14 10:45 PM

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