The making of a barista in 24 hours
If coffee is the new wine, then hotels and restaurants will soon be hiring experienced baristas the way they import sommeliers.
A school in Hong Kong promises to train homegrown staff to be world-class baristas.
Barry Yuen, director of the Coffee and Tea Academy of Hong Kong, provides beginner and professional courses for the coffee curious.
Twenty-four hours of intensive training would make anyone an expert barista, Mr Yuen said.
This course is offered to people who wish to have a comprehensive understanding of the coffee-making process. Students will get an opportunity to learn how coffee beans are grown, processed, roasted and packaged.
The classes are designed to master skills such as adjusting the grind, pouring and perfecting presentation skills.
The programme also focuses on maintenance and cleaning of the espresso machine. Students are then taught to design an extensive coffee menu.
Although there is no way of telling how many baristas there are in Hong Kong, Mr Yuen said requests for his courses were increasing.
'Many hotels send their staff here for training,' he said.
