Following a visit to the Coffeena exhibition this year we decided to look into latte art and see what all the fuss was about! So on the first Friday in August I made my way to South London to talk to John Gordon who is somewhat of an expert on latte art having won the Speciality Coffee Association of Europe’s (SCAE) UK Latte Art Competition in 2009 and then come sixth in the world competition at Coffeena 2009 in Cologne, Germany. John hails from Melbourne, Australia, and used to work in the security and personal protection industry – but four years ago he became interested in coffee and trained as a barista; he and his wife Jess then relocated to London and joined Ristretto in 2008. Ristretto is a company based in South Wimbledon owned by Joseph and Anne O’Hara that specialises in providing mobile espresso/coffee for corporate events (recently Ristretto were able to produce 480 high quality espresso’s in 15 minutes for a corporate dinner party in London – somewhat of a record).

John Gordon, Ristretto

John is a truly nice guy and I spent over two hours chatting to him about coffee, world championships and his hopes for the future. And eventually I got round to talking to him about latte art. I wondered if the designs were that complex, how long it really took to do (and would the coffee get cold)? Before I had time to ask, John had made me a latte and in a jiffy there was a fabulous fern design, which was a fine example of ‘free pouring’ (this was the first time I have ever photographed a cup of coffee before drinking it!) Apparently, any barista worth his salt can do some basic designs and it doesn’t take long to do – but it does add a mark of quality to a coffee, which just isn’t there when someone just plies the chocolate shaker.

John's fern design, that took seconds!

The steamed milk has to be just right and then the pour is started in the centre with rather complex designs being made by the contrast between the white of the milk and the nut brown colour of the coffee. John’s trademark design, and the one which saw him win the UK championship, is a single leaf tulip design in a macchiato that has taken him nearly three years of practice to perfect. He explained “it’s all about practice and with such a complex design stage fright is a problem… this year I entered the UK Championship just for fun with no real expectations but I won and then at Coffeena I was really nervous because it was the World Championship.” Of course John’s ambitions will be a bit higher for 2010 when the World Championships are on ‘home turf’ at Cafe Culture 2010 in London (23–25^th June). He hopes to be in the running for the Latte Art title, the overall Barista title (won last year by Gwilym Davies) and even the Cupping (coffee tasting) title. Already John is looking for two coffees (he has two Brazilians in mind) to form the basis of his entry and he is working closely with Steve Leighton of Has Bean Coffee (www.hasbean.co.uk) who knows a thing or two about coffees from around the world. In fact, we’re running a fantastic competition this month to win a 3 month subscription to Has Bean’s ‘In My Mug’ video blog, whereby the winner will be sent coffees each week to try while watching the tasting guide (visit http://www.bestcuppaintown.com/offers.php to enter).

The artist in action ...

John’s favourite coffee at the moment is Zege from Lake Tana in Ethiopia (you can get it from Has Bean Coffee), which he used for the World Championship. [Incidentally John’s tip for a good espresso machine is the Synesso Cyncra produced in the US (a small company who only produce about 50 machines per year).]

In the meantime there are a few other things going on as Ristretto is branching into specialty coffee roasting, trading as Alchemy (www.alchemycoffee.co.uk). Jess will run the 12 kg Probat roaster from Germany for this venture. John himself has started a small business turning custom hardwood handles for tampers (Gorilla Tampers).

Perfection in a cup ... my first ever effort (not really!)

 I can only wish John good luck for the competition next year and say I will be there to cheer him on. He’s a nice guy, has clearly got a passion for coffee, and he deserves success.

Lavazza is the most recognised brand of coffee across the world (the company sells 62% of its production in Italy), with sales of over €1.1 billion in 2008 and sales growth of 8% over the last five years. With success like this behind the company and the future looking decidedly bright it is no wonder that they have turned their attentions to a sustainability project. This is the Tierra Project, which has been running in three previously disadvantaged coffee growing communities in three different South American countries – Honduras, Colombia and Peru. The initiative began in 2002, and has, in the last seven years, seen three communities produce premium quality Tierra coffee (purchased and marketed by Lavazza) and more importantly improve their environmental, economic and social wellbeing.

Tierra Colombia

When the initiative began Lavazza in conjunction with VOLCAFE (leading green coffee trader) provided technical expertise, equipment and assistance, as well as training to make the three plantations sustainable and potentially profitable. The enhancements were geared toward improving standards and working practices and by 2005 Rainforest Alliance certification was achieved by compliance with their nine key principles. The project also saw the construction of a green coffee drying and processing plant and the development of schools, housing and health clinics (Honduras also benefited from two micro-credit banks) – living standards were improved immeasurably. Mario Cerruti is Lavazza’s supply chain director and the project’s manager and he commented about the project, “Lavazza has shared with the farmers the coffee-processing expertise acquired during its hundred-year history… Tierra is not a one-off, fixed-term project; in view of its success, the enthusiastic response it has received and the fact that it is continuously evolving, Lavazza is now looking at future measures.”

Tierra Honduras

Tierra is a directly managed project where progress is monitored and changes made as required with new objectives being set every year (new schools and a test farm are among the latest projects). The project has two overall aims in that it provides guidance in coffee production and also improves the living conditions of the growers.  According to Mario Cerruti, “Ultimately, Tierra is about bridging the gap between producers and consumers of food and drink, because the future lies in returning to traditional high standards of quality, taking a long-term view and making sustainable development a reality… Tierra has no presumption of becoming a new sustainable development model, but it is undoubtedly an important experiment. Our goal is to cooperate with the local communities to give them the know-how and technical assistance necessary to improve the product’s quality. This means that small producers can become competitive, marketing their coffee for what it is effectively worth.”

Tierra Peru

Some of the improvements have included new technology to improve quality and the levels of production. For example the Peruvian farms have introduced a new coffee bean processing system which uses solar powered driers – this means that in these remote areas there is no need for fuel and the environment is protected. In addition, farmers have also adopted a new coffee plant pruning process to encourage higher yields and improved quality. Lavazza have underlined a model that should be encouraged in other commodity production being undertaken in similar disadvantaged areas of the world.