Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/556538
14 STiR tea & coffee industry international / Issue 4, 2015 (August/September) By Dan Bolton NEWS AVEIRO, Portugal Dispensing the Many Dimensions of Quality The magic of blending is that done well, the experience is richer, more gratifying than its components. In June Nespresso hosted a diverse cadre of experts to explore "The Quality of the Experience" initiating a discussion of the elements of coffee quality that was the theme of its 2nd Coffee Conversation Symposium. The event was organized by Britta Folmer, Nespresso science manager at the Swiss company's Lausanne headquarters. Presenters included an American responsible in part for articulating the essence of the specialty coffee movement in that country; a professor of anthropology to analyze social behavior elicited by the brew; a professor of chemistry to relate the compli- cated alchemy that is coffee and an industrial designer who described the impact of sophisticated packaging and design on the consumer experience. The intimate half-day gathering drew energy and expertise from CoCoTea 2015, an international scientific congress of researchers from 37 countries that is convened every two years to share the latest findings on the makeup of coffee, cocoa, and tea. Peter Giuliano, who runs the Specialty Coffee Association of America's (SCAA) annual symposium, introduced the notion that from its inception coffee was a focal point for social interaction. Preparing coffee is a comforting ritual that begins in Ethiopia with beans roasting over a communal brazier. The sight, sounds and smells of preparation heighten anticipation and encourages friendly exchange. Enjoying coffee began as a simple, primitive, holistic experience. It subsequently underwent a tortuous route through the industrial age. The experience of sharing conversation over a cup was laden with complexity as coffee permeated the Arabic countries and spread to Europe, the New World, and Asia. As coffee exited Africa cost made it a luxury exclusive to the elite. In time it infiltrated the masses fueling the working class with a predictable decline in quality that ultimately reduced consumption. During two centuries of industrialization the "gathering was broken," said Giuliano. Professor Melissa Caldwell, who teaches anthropology at the University of Santa Cruz, California, described the modern transformation in coffee appreciation. Drinking coffee became synonymous with a place. But specialty coffee shops did not reprise their role as the fabled 1700s English coffee house where rich and poor mingled in thought- ful exchange. She described modern coffee shops as a place you go to "feel not alone." In America coffee shops are a "familiar place with friendly strangers," she said. Social interactions have a lot to do with the perception of quality, she explained. "How do people experience spaces: Is it fondly, peacefully, aggressively, anxiously – what are the emotional dimensions?" she asked. Sílvia Rocha, Melissa Caldwell, Peter Giuliano, Rick Schifferstein, Georg Riedel, Karsten Ranitzsch, Luis Sottomayor with Dean Sanders Karsten Ranitzsch, Nespresso Georg Riedel, Riedel Glassworks Photos by Dan Bolton/STiR