Specialty Coffee - Is It Really Better?
Not all coffee are created equal, but all coffee are good.
"What the hell is Specialty Coffee?" was my first thought when I came across the term in 2023.
I was really getting into it, spending money on coffee pods to be consumed in the office and eventually getting a secondhand Nespresso machine off Carousell. I even invested in a cheap manual coffee grinder, some reusable pods, and time to learn the differences between a ristretto, espresso and lungo. Oh, I also got a french press, because why not? I wished I had photos of my "coffee set up" back then, because it was not bad for things I kept in my bedroom.
I went on to buy readily available coffee beans from the supermarket, not caring about the taste but wishing to get that sweet, sweet caffeine into my body. I had a manual grinder, and 2 methods of making coffee, so why not?
Growing up I wasn't much of a coffee drinker. My mum made coffee from Kapal Api/Tanker coffee powders, which were so charred and would pool at the bottom of the mug. I made the mistake of vacuuming the last of the powder and never touched coffee again.
Not until I was in polytechnic when I started going out and discovering café lattes and whatnots through second wave coffee chains like Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf.
Anyway, back in 2023, during my block leave, I had time and Skillsfuture credit to use, so I signed up for a barista course with Bettr Academy which was also Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) certified.
I know! There is a Specialty Coffee Association? What?!
But that's how I got into the world of specialty coffee. I did my barista course, passed it, and set it aside because there was no way I could cough up thousands of dollars for an espresso machine and all its little accessories. Plus, I was living with my parents. Where the hell could I put such an elaborate set-up?
It was when I quit my full-time job in 2024 that I decided to take the leap and work at a coffee shop. Learning during a course, fun. Learning on the job, not so much. I was plagued with a lot of self-doubt and wondered if it was all worth it.
In the end, I guess it was.
I learned a lot of skills related to working in a café (which isn't as cutesy, quirky and pain-free as a lot of people think...) and dealing with people (those who know, knows). But I also learned a lot of what goes into a cup of coffee, the flavour profiles of beans from each country and the techniques to bring out certain profiles from a coffee.
I haven't reached the stage where I can taste a single origin coffee and know where it comes from. But I do know how to describe coffee. I have a coffee flavour wheel pinned to our bulletin board...
Most importantly, I've reached a stage where I have my coffee preferences. I know exactly how I like my coffee and how to make them.
Though I think, sometimes, friction happens when specialty coffee professionals meet non-specialty-coffee-drinkers and come across as exclusionary or snobby. Which we can be, sometimes.
I know a lot of "regular" people who do not like specialty coffee which can sometimes be a little sour and/or acidic and you know what? That's OKAY. We can be specialty, third-wave coffee professionals without being exclusionary and snobby towards those that do not agree with our subtle and oh-so-trained tastebuds, who do not understand the coffee flavour wheels, and not trained by the gods of SCA.
Yes, these include coffee hobbyists too.
People can love their dark roasts with 2 packets of sugars and a splash of milk. Or caramel sauce with pumpkin syrup and whipped cream. Fantastic.
And what do we do? WE MOVE THE FUCK ON.
Coffee is a legal drug to keep us awake. It's really not that deep. Let's be inclusive in our coffee discovery and learning journeys.