8 WORLD OF COFFEE
Becoming a
Full of ideas, full of beans
PEOPLE With the UK experiencing the next phase
of the coffee revolution Craig Butcher looks at
the movers and shakers and the new generation
that is shaking up the coffee scene
STEVE LEIGHTON, THE
ONLINE ENTREPRENEUR –
HAS BEAN
In a former life, Steve was a prison
officer. These days, he’s a roaster
selling coffee direct to the public
online and to selected retailers, as
well as being a well-respected fig-
ure in social media.
How did you get
into the coffee
world?
I used to buy green
coffee from the U.S.
and roast it myself
because no one else
in the UK was. I then thought if
one person wanted this service, there
must be others. So I rolled up my
sleeves, bought a small roaster and
started roasting coffee in the garage.
What inspires you?
The coffee farmers – they’re some of
the most amazing people I’ve met.
Humble, hard working and so kind – as
are the community of roasters too. I’m
friends with lots of people in the indus-
try. Competitors or not, we all tend to
work together and there’s an enormous
amount of respect between us all.
Where is coffee going?
Varieties will play a much larger
part in the industry than they have.
It used to be that knowing just the
country was enough, then people
wanted to know the farm, now they
want to know the person who made
it and their processing methods.
What’s your favourite coffee?
El Salvador is one of my favourite ori-
gins. But Bolivia is always very special
to me. We buy from a small farm out
there near, La Paz called Machacamar-
ca. We buy everything it produces and
if we could buy more, we would.
www.hasbean.co.uk
I had no previous
experience in
coffee and had to learn
everything from scratch
GWILYM DAVIES, PRUFROCK
COFFEE
A proud Yorkshireman, World
Barista Champion 2009 and cof-
fee consultant, Gwilym operates
two coffee carts in East London
and advises Nuova Simonelli es-
presso machines and United Cof-
fee amongst others.
How did you get into the
coffee world?
I travelled around Asia for six months
and then worked at Atomic Café in
Auckland for a year. It showed me
coffee could be treated as a fresh cu-
linary product not a jolt of caffeine.
The coffee was roasted in the café and
viewed in the same way as the food
produced in the kitchen.
What inspires you?
Coffee satisfies me with a wide variety
of aromas, flavour and taste. It frus-
trates me how difficult it is to repro-
duce consistently but excites me when
I realise how much we have to yet dis-
cover with regards varietals, processing
methods (how the cherry flesh is taken
barista – the
Speciality Coffee
Association of
off the bean) and brewing. We’re at the Europe is one of
start of a very exciting journey.
a number of
What should coffee shops organsiations
be doing?
The public are starting to discover that offers barista
coffee that doesn’t have to taste like
burnt toast – it can be sweet, clean
courses
and juicy. The era of story telling is
over. Use fresh coffee, clean your ma- The word barista
chines, train your staff and start roast-
ing, brewing and serving coffee well. is Italian for bar
What’s your favourite coffee?
tender.
It depends what time of the year it is As customers
as not all coffees are in season all year. I
always enjoy the arrival of coffee from demand better
Kenya, Ethiopia and El Salvador but coffee barista
I also relish a surprise from the other
origins as they arrive after harvest. training is
prufrockcoffee.com
becoming more
sophisticated.
Meanwhile
the number of
barista
competitions
held around the
world is growing
How did you get into the
coffee world?
LOUISA HENRY,
INDEPENDENT COFFEE SHOP
I was managing a property letting
business and from there found the
OWNER, OPPOSITE CAFE
With no previous experience in
perfect site for a café below the of-
fice. I had no previous experience
coffee, Louisa now owns two ac-
claimed coffee shops in Leeds.
in coffee, or even food and had to
learn everything from scratch.

I entered the UK Barista Cham-
pionships six months after setting
up the business and unexpectedly I
was placed second in the UK. This
introduced me to the most amazing
and inspirational people in the spe-
ciality coffee industry and the pas-
sion grew from there.
What inspires you?
The constant learning challenges.
As soon as you think you’ve crossed
a boundary by getting a new piece
of kit or gaining a new morsel of
information, a whole new raft of
questions opens up. It’s this con-
stant and fascinating search for un-
derstanding that drives a lot of the
speciality coffee industry.
What’s your top tip for the industry?
Keep trying out and pushing new
ideas. The market is more open and
receptive today than it ever has been.
Independent owners should be striv-
ing for individuality and they should
use their creativeness and resource-
fulness to push the boundaries.
www.oppositecafe.co.uk
STEPHEN HURST, SPECIALTY
COFFEE MERCHANT,
MERCANTA
A former coffee trader within the
commodities division of Gold-
man Sachs, Stephen is regarded as
a pioneer of specialty coffee. He
I could spend a
founded Mercanta in 1996 sourc-
ing quality coffees for high-end
lifetime learning about
brands and is involved with the
Cup of Excellence programme,
coffee roasting
the world cup of coffees.
How did you get into the
coffee world?
I joined the coffee trading divi-
sion of Goldman Sachs Group in
1986, where I learned my craft.
The specialty business, where
I work now, is a very different
place, far removed from the va-
garies of the commodity market.
What inspires you?
Many people just don’t know how
good – and how diverse - coffee
can be. But a relatively small, niche
company like Mercanta can make a
phenomenal difference by provid-
ing international market access for
coffee growers, supporting ground-
breaking programmes like the Cup of
Excellence and educating consumers
and industry through our London
School of Coffee. I can confidently
say that in my lifetime the job of
explaining coffee as a differentiated
product won’t be completed. For me
that’s an inspiring challenge.
What’s your number one tip for
the industry?
Concentrate on the coffee. Make it
about the beans themselves - their
provenance, well roasted and clear-
ly explained to customers.
What’s your favourite coffee?
Sometimes a fine espresso, but most
frequently filter. Filter is a fantastic,
and very simple, way of enjoying
pure, unadulterated coffee – and if
you start off with great beans there’s
really no need to add anything else.
www.coffeehunter.com
JAMES HOFFMANN, WORLD
BARISTA CHAMPION 2007
AND OWNER, SQUARE MILE
COFFEE ROASTERS
James Hoffmann is a leading
light supplying some of the big-
gest names in the independent
coffee sector through his coffee
roasting business.
How did you get into the
coffee world?
By mistake – I had walked out of
a job at a music publishing com-
pany without lining anything else
up and needed something quickly.
I didn’t like or drink coffee, but
took the job as an espresso ma-
chine demonstrator in a depart-
ment store. I began reading up on
coffee. I found it fascinating and
just wanted to learn more. I start-
ed training within the company,
and moved into teaching about
coffee full time with a company
called La Spaziale. I left there to
set up Square Mile.
WORLD OF COFFEE 9
What inspires you?
Coffee is just so fascinating, such
a big industry that covers the en-
tire world and is so multifaceted.
I could spend a lifetime learning
about coffee roasting, let alone
growing coffee, processing, sourc-
ing, brewing and all the rest. The
coffee industry itself is incredibly
friendly and welcoming. Globally
as well as locally, the community is
incredibly strong and open.
What is your top tip for the
industry?
The biggest potential for growth
lies in quality. We need to invest in
education in order to achieve this -
in all aspects of the industry.
What’s your favourite coffee?
Given the choice I’d probably just
take a properly brewed French
press of a fresh crop coffee. I don’t
have favourites, I am something
of a neophile though – new and
interesting are best!
shop.squaremilecoffee.com
JOHN GORDON, UK
BARISTA CHAMPION 2010
AND 2009 UK LATTE ART
CHAMPION
Australian-born to an English
father and Italian mother, this
one-time security man grew up
in Queensland and is currently
the UK barista champion. He is
based in London and runs a cof-
fee accessories business, Gorilla
Tampers.
How did you get into the
coffee world?
I worked in the security indus-
try for several years until I met
my fiancée. We moved to Mel-
bourne where she started roast-
ing for a small café and my in-
terest developed. I realised that
there was a hell of a lot to learn
about coffee and started working
alongside her.
What inspires you?
Many things, but mostly the fact
that I can push myself to learn
something new about coffee.
Whether it’s the effects of water
quality, coffee species or cultiva-
tion. The more doors I open, the
more I realise how much I need
to learn. The never-ending chase
is exciting.
What is your top tip for coffee-
lovers?
Taste! Taste what you’re drinking,
what you’re making, what you’re
roasting and what you’re growing.
There’s a big difference between
tasting and drinking.
What’s your favourite coffee?
It would have to be filter, brewed
through a Hario V60 or a Hario Sy-
phon Brewer, using a Square Mile
coffee from Ethiopia, Suke Quto.
www.gorillatampers.com