Speciality coffee depends on a chain of small decisions: freshly roasted beans, an accurate grinder, consistent dosing, controlled extraction and well-textured milk. Baristas dial in recipes daily, adjusting grind size, dose and yield as beans age after roasting and as temperature and humidity shift the way coffee behaves. Water quality and filtration matter as much as the machine, because scale and the wrong minerals can ruin both flavour and equipment. Grinder burrs wear, group heads need back-flushing, and steam wands need purging and cleaning, so maintenance routines make as much difference as skill.
Milk alternatives such as oat now take a large share of orders and each behaves differently when steamed. Coffee margins look healthy per cup, but they depend on volume, speed of service and waste control, and rising green coffee prices squeeze them hard. Great coffee bars also build relationships with roasters, and through them with farmers, so the story behind the cup is honest.
What we ask on the show
- How do you dial in your espresso each morning?
- What do customers misunderstand about the price of a flat white?
- How has the rise of oat milk changed the job?
- What makes a great relationship with a roaster?