Different things.
We're making 12 espresso-based drinks in 15 minutes. Each of those 12 shots of espresso needs to be exactly what we want it to be. Through a process of elimination we have selected our beans and our roaster, and we have worked those beans for weeks and months. We have tried various roast profiles. Various dose weights, shot times, brew ratios etc. We work tirelessly on our barista skills. Eventualy we feel ready.
Competition day comes. We are given one hour of practise time on the competition machine backstage. It is the first time we have had proper access to this machine - time to truly familiarise. It is not our machine. It is different.
- It is set to brew at 92 degrees Celcius. Our own machine is set to 92C too, or at least as best we can gather without a Scace2. Maybe the temperature probe is in a different place in the group. Maybe there is a 0.5C difference. That matters.
- This machine has its own basket design. It is different from ours. Smaller. The sides are more angled. That matters.
- Our tamper doesn't quite fit it the same as it fits our own baskets. That matters. We probably should have brought a different tamper - maybe a range of tamper sizes.
- Our machine is a single boiler with a heat exchanger. We have an exacting flushing routine to achieve a specific temperature profile. This is one of our skills. But the machine before us has separate boilers for each group, temperature-managed by a P.I.D. It is very different. What happens to the temperature when we flush? Does it increase? Decrease? Do we even need to flush? How long for? Should we adopt flush-and-go, flush-and-wait, or something else? This matters.
Barista skills. Competition skills. Different things. Which are we being judged on?
My Espresso Scoresheets
Cappuccinos, tick. Sig drink, tick. Just the espressos remaining. I was just about to grind my first two shots of espresso. I heard the timekeeper say something, but I couldn't hear him as he was standing about 8 metres away, behind the judges. I thought he said "Four minutes". That can't be right. They don't timecheck you at four minutes. I asked him to repeat it. "One minute remaining" came the response over the PA system. "Shit!" I said. Nobody heard. Crap microphone. In one split second it was clear. It was all over. I began reciting the rest of my script, whilst grinding. The judges couldn't hear me. Under pressure, I sped up. The grind was wrong by this point too. Dosing. Tamping. Shot timing. All sub-standard. Shot quality... low. I ploughed on.
"Time."
15 mins 37 seconds.
OK. Let's talk to Jeremy.
Key Learnings from Judges Scoresheets
Although there are specific lessons to learn from the judges, poor competition skills really let me down because they prevented me from utilising barista skills. That, and of course the differences.
One thing I note is how literally the words in backets on the scoresheet are assessed by the judges. Hazelnut. Dark Brown. Reddish Reflection. Sweet. Acid. Bitter. The judges place half marks, full ticks or two ticks against them. I had believed them to be examples of what the judges might assess the espresso upon, not actual 'checkboxes'. Perhaps I'm misunderstanding. But I'm not sure why I would be assessed on whether my espresso crema is hazelnut, or dark brown, if I never intended it to be a hazelnut or dark brown. I can't help wondering whether all judges apply the same understanding to the scoresheet, or whether some have a different understanding from others.
To be concluded in UK Barista Championships - Epilogue (Part Six)
I saw a video recently of a nordic barista championship , the contestant verbally told the judges that the crema wouldnt be plentful or dark as it was a light roast and this was intentional....she scored very well overall.
ReplyDeleteLook at Tim Wendleboe vimeo videos , its on there from memory
Thanks Gary. Yeah, that's how I understood that it SHOULD work. If a competitor describes his/her espresso's appearance then that is what the judges should look for... not the "Hazelnut", "Dark Brown" or "Reddish Reflection" shown on the scoresheet... descriptors that should be completely ignored. So I think that when judges tick these words it implies that they are not applying a consistent approach to assessing the competitor's espresso. I could be wrong, of course, and this is why I think we need better clarity between the SCAE-UK judging community and competitors... in the form of a Competitors Calibration session.
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