Bitter Barista
Caffeine|December - January 2018

The people who make your coffee are important to you, and you can make a real connection with them – but that doesn’t mean they’re there to fulfil all your spiritual needs, argues our resident Scrooge. This Christmas, spare a thought for the browbeaten barista

Martin Kingdom
Bitter Barista

This the season. The tinsel is out, the trees are up and the weeks are full of Christmas parties, travel arrangements, deadlines and buying gifts for those you love. As well as the festivities, this time of year is also notable for the added pressures and increased expectations. Truth be told, for many, the respite of the new year can’t come soon enough.

Wouldn’t it be great if it was in some way possible to hit pause on the festive mayhem? 

Taking a break is largely why people like you and me hit their favourite coffee shop. Ordering a coffee is often about getting a shot of “can-do”. But that warm, positive glow you feel as you leave a coffee shop is actually emotional energy that the barista has generously given to you – it takes 10 to 45 minutes for caffeine to be absorbed into your system.

This story is from the December - January 2018 edition of Caffeine.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the December - January 2018 edition of Caffeine.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM CAFFEINEView All
The Future Of Decaf?
Caffeine

The Future Of Decaf?

A US company claims its pouch extracts caffeine without harming flavour

time-read
1 min  |
Issue 42
Great Coffee Shouldn't Cost The Earth
Caffeine

Great Coffee Shouldn't Cost The Earth

Caffeine’s editor-at-large Tim Ridley explains how to lower the environmental impact of your coffee-drinking habit

time-read
4 mins  |
Issue 42
What The F**k...Is Honey Processing?
Caffeine

What The F**k...Is Honey Processing?

Apart from natural and washed coffees sits a whole other category, as Sierra Wen Xin Yeo explains

time-read
3 mins  |
Issue 42
The grind
Caffeine

The grind

SEASONAL COFFEE

time-read
1 min  |
Issue 42
Tea with purpose
Caffeine

Tea with purpose

Michelle and Rob Comins explain how tea can be a force for good

time-read
2 mins  |
Issue 42
Ten years on
Caffeine

Ten years on

We celebrate the London Coffee Festival’s first decade with a look at its successes

time-read
3 mins  |
Issue 42
Chocolate and espresso pavlova with fennel roasted grapes
Caffeine

Chocolate and espresso pavlova with fennel roasted grapes

This year I’m giving coffee centre stage on the Christmas dessert table. I firmly believe coffee shouldn’t just be an afterthought to accompany dessert, it should be the dessert – but aside from that, it just makes sense.

time-read
2 mins  |
Issue 42
Bitter Barista
Caffeine

Bitter Barista

Latte art competitions have been milking it for too long – they used to be fun, but now their focus on the wrong things is harming barista skills, says our cantankerous columnist

time-read
3 mins  |
Issue 42
What The F**k ...Is The Maillard Reaction?
Caffeine

What The F**k ...Is The Maillard Reaction?

It’s just one of the elements you need to know about if you’re going to roast coffee successfully, as Edgaras Juška explains

time-read
2 mins  |
Issue 41
Work Wonders
Caffeine

Work Wonders

Coffee gets people through the working day. So it stands to reason that better coffee produces better work – and in some places the two are in perfect harmony, says Phil Wain

time-read
4 mins  |
Issue 41