Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/612330
STiR tea & coffee industry international 53 Today, the typical French home has adopted several single serve systems including Douwe Egberts' Senseo and Mondelez's Tassimo system. In fact, Douwe Egberts, France was the only manufacturer that saw a sales increase in 2014. This good performance, according to Euromonitor, comes from the success of the L'Or brand which offers supermar- ket available pods that are compatible with Nespresso machines. This wide acceptance of single serve demonstrates that the French clients are ready for quality coffee, according to Mc- Cauley. Part of the positive fallout from these single serve systems is that it has pushed coffee professionals to bring their beverages to a higher level. France is approaching a new era of coffee emphasized Young, with a grow- ing awareness that has helped cafes awaken to the possibilities in the bean. Café Rich- ard has responded to this demand by offering Specialty Coffee Association of Europe (SCAE) level training for baristas at their Academie du Café. "We definitely see a difference in attendance with the training sessions. We are actually adding sessions instead of cancelling them," said McCauley. The SCAE and the world barista championships have helped nurture this curiosity in the gastronomy of coffee. Membership in the SCAE France has more than doubled in the past two years, states McCauley, growing from 70 to 180 members. Education and positive consumer experiences will continue to push this drive for a quality cup. In the last 10 years, Café Richard has seen a shift to pure arabica and single origin. Galhenge has seen a similar shift. "Imagine the difference for those accustomed to drinking 70% robusta, 30% arabica blends, that was ground four days ago and extracted in 1 min 45 seconds," says Galhenage. "Now these same customers are tasting the lemon notes of an Ethiopian Yirgacheffe, they're going to be shocked. The typical, standard comment, is "Is this coffee?" One positive thing about launching speciality coffee in France for Galhenage is their customer's appreciation for terroir and gastronomy. "I know that certainly in England and probably in North America as well, wine and coffee culture are still seen by a great chunk of the population as preten- tious. In France, never," said Galhenage. "They respect the product. They listen to you, they may not like it, but they listen to you," he said. Trained waitstaff with professional certifications are gradually making the French aware of how to prepare coffee and treat it with proper respect. McCauley emphasizes that this edu- cation is essential for the continued suc- cess of coffee in France. "It will happen, but the French are not early adopters," said Galhenage. "I think it's a bit like friendships here, it's slow to happen but once it does it's a life long relationship." Perfecting the cup: Barista Benjamin Wright, above, a the Loustic Cafe, Paris Cupping for quality SCAA judge and trainer Michael McCauley Photo by Jesse Morgan London Manchester Amsterdam Netherland France Belgium Luxembourg Brussels Paris