Portraits of Coffee

Two weeks ago, we stopped by Café Rhubarbe on a half-grey, half-sunny day. Taking advantage of a short accalmie, we spoke with Laurent about his very recent opening and what drives him. We talked about values, local expertise, and conscious consumption. Feel free to ask for the translation! 🫰🏼☕️

(Send us a message below for the translations 🇨🇴🇬🇧) We met Thomas to talk about roasting, specialty coffee, sustainability and business challenges, and how things are moving in the south west of France. It was super interesting, thank you Thomas for your time and engagement 🌿☕️

@carlelecafe nous a reçu chez NOIR où elle est formatrice depuis 18 mois, une conversation passionnante sur le rôle du barista, les enjeux de son poste et les perspectives du café de spécialité 🌞 | swipe for EN / FR

🇫🇷🇨🇴☕️ [automatic here ↓] 1. What’s happening in Italy in terms of specialty coffee : Roaster and entrepreneur Tommaso Bongini (GearBox, Mokarico) offers an insider’s perspective on how a new generation is reshaping specialty coffee habits while respecting Italian tradition. 2. Beyond the dark roast, an untouchable tradition In Italy, coffee is an untouchable institution: short, intense, and dark. For a long time, the idea of delicate filter brews and light roasts felt less like a trend and more like a nemesis against a century of tradition, but a closer look reveals that a new generation is proving something different: specialty coffee isn’t here to replace the Italian espresso, it’s here to elevate it. A proof of this change is Tommaso Bongini, the roaster and driving force behind GearBox Coffee Roasters. 3. Italy’s specialty coffee scene didn’t first take off in major hubs such as Milan or Rome; instead, it emerged in historic cities like Florence, Bologna, and Venice. Particularly, Florence, one of the country’s most vibrant specialty coffee scenes, where its coffee ecosystem has been shaped by pioneers such as the micro-roastery Ditta Artigianale, co-founded by Francesco Sanapo, a three-time Italian Barista Champion. Now, smaller cafés are redefining how Italians experience specialty coffee, while still staying aligned with the country’s deeply rooted espresso culture.

🇫🇷🇨🇴 (automatic ↓) [slide 2] “Bo’s sister asked me: ‘Hey Vee, what do you want to do with this space, a coffee shop?’ I just accepted. Then we had to learn everything about coffee, from commodity to specialty.” [slide 3] FROM CURIOSITY TO CRAFT 8 years ago, Double Slash was born from a spark of curiosity. What followed this question was a year-long immersion into coffee, at a time when self-learning was still the only option in Thailand. Through studying, practising, and experimenting, curiosity gradually transformed into a disciplined coffee practice.  This intense learning process and Vee’s design background shaped both the philosophy and visual identity of the first-born, Double Slash: precision, humility, and continuous experimentation. While Vee pushed his expertise further, entering competitions, Bo supported the operations and communication side. This four-handed effort gradually led the duo from a small café to multiple locations and a roasting operation. Since then, the mindset has remained the same: coffee is something you constantly refine and question.  [slide 5] A (VERY) FAST MOVING MARKET Today, the duo is witnessing a rapid evolution in the Thai coffee landscape, where social media acts as a powerful catalyst for exposure and partnerships. Farmers in the northern regions are gradually moving away from large-scale commodity production and experimenting with higher-quality varieties such as Geisha, Java, or Bourbon. At the same time, consumers in cities like Bangkok are becoming more curious and knowledgeable about coffee, asking about origins, processes, and brewing techniques. Positioned between farms and customers, Double Slash has moved away from generic blends to focus on coffees that highlight the potential of the local ecosystem. In doing so, they contribute to this transformation, connecting local production with a growing interest in Thai specialty coffee.

¿Cómo resaltan los cítricos las notas ocultas del café? Y una receta de cóctel al fin ! Me avisan si quieren que les pase la traducción al español ✨☕️ - The Citric Tonic Float #mocktail • 60ml de Cold Brew (de tueste claro, por supuesto) • 120ml de tónica de alta calidad (Premium) • 15ml de jugo de naranja recién exprimido • Decoración: Una cáscara de naranja y una ramita de romero.

[🇫🇷 and more languages with automatic translation] Adolescent, Chatchalerm ne sait pas tellement ce qu’il se voit faire plus tard. Quelques années plus tard, lui qui aime prêter attention aux odeurs et saveurs de ce qu’il mange profite de l’aide d’une amie pour commencer à travailler dans un coffee shop, un peu par hasard. Plus pour l’atmosphère que pour le produit en lui-même, au départ. Taiseux mais curieux, il devient barista, se forme sur le tas et rencontre une communauté d’aguerris qui se challengent et explorent le café sur la scène thaïlandaise, encore peu connue et reconnue. — Les formations en tant que telles ne sont pas monnaie courante ; les baristas s’auto-forment et s’entraident. Chatchalerm s’intéresse et goûte à tout ce qui se prépare au coffee shop, s’en souvient, tandis que chacun vient de temps en temps avec une recette ou un batch différent. Finalement poussé puis coaché par son amie, Chatchalerm va entrer en compétition, et pas des moindres. Il ne lui aura fallu que quelques mois pour passer de la scène thaïlandaise à la scène internationale, et remporter le World Cup Tasters Championship (qui récompense le ou la dégustateur/trice professionnel(le) de café démontrant le plus de rapidité, d'habileté et d'exactitude dans la distinction de cafés de spécialité - SCA). — Lorsqu’on lui demande pourquoi le Cup Tasting, Chatchalerm nous dit à voix basse : « parce que je ne suis pas très à l’aise à l’idée de parler, et que finalement le cupping est la compétition qui demande le moins de discussion ». Désormais, le prodige thaïlandais est de plus en plus sollicité, mais cela n’enlève rien à son humilité. Il poursuit son travail pour Roost, une micro-torréfaction avec un objectif inébranlable depuis sa création : développer et faire valoir le café de spécialité thaïlandais. Avec Roost, ils espèrent faire davantage rayonner ce que la Thaïlande a à offrir, et faire comprendre, tant localement qu’internationalement, ce qu’est le café de spécialité et que l’origine Thaïlande a sa place à jouer.

Slide 1 “A splash of orange juice in your coffee?” “Ugh, gross!” Slide 2 That’s exactly what we thought. Yet, across Asia, this wave is impossible to ignore. Before you even see an Americano or a Latte, the menu is dominated by a palette of orange, grape, cherry, or lemonade coffees. At first, as traditional purists, we asked ourselves: « Seriously? » Slide 3 But when China boasts the fastest consumption growth in the world, when all of Asia is following suit, and when Luckin Coffee overtakes Starbucks in number of locations... it’s time to get curious. So, we tried it. And it was good. Sometimes, even excellent. Slide 4 From Orange Americanos on the go to sophisticated coffee mocktails, the « reimagined coffee » is everywhere. It moves away from the reliance on milk—cow’s milk, which can be heavy, or oat milk, which often overpowers. It actually makes sense: the focus here is on aromatic clarity. Specialty coffee naturally possesses notes of bergamot, lemongrass, or red berries depending on its variety and origin. Adding a citrus or botanical ingredient doesn’t mask the bean; it highlights a note that was already latent. Slide 5 The acidity of citrus acts as an enhancer, balancing the bitterness to reveal the coffee’s hidden profile. It’s surprising that this trend hasn’t taken hold more firmly in France—a land of gastronomy and mixology. After all, we’ve long accepted adding cloves and orange to our « sacred » mulled wine... so why not coffee? Slide 6 The rest of our journey coming soon in our next posts. @PortraitsOfCoffee

📍pour croiser Etienne, ce sera dans les Coffee Shops de Paris, à L’Arbre à Café, ou sur les événements comme le Paris Coffee Show sur lequel nous avons eu la chance de le rencontrer pour la première fois ! 🇨🇴 : en los albores de una revolución
“La manera de presentar y de consumir el café era mucho más acorde con mi forma de ser.” Étienne llega a la escena del café en un momento en el que su carrera literaria, y los moldes que la aprietan, ya no le encajan. Ve surgir conceptos inspirados en los códigos anglosajones: el mismo nombre de bebida que en las brasseries parisinas, pero una experiencia radicalmente distinta, mucho más alineada con su estilo de vida. Luz, la posibilidad de quedarse a trabajar o llevar la taza para llevar, Tupac de fondo, alimentan un universo que rompe con el entorno tradicional que él conoce. Descubre una comunidad donde la edad importa poco, donde el compartir es inmediato y sin ego. De observador, pasa rápidamente a ser actor de esta transformación, decidido a preservar ese espíritu de pasión y de transmisión. 👉🏼 continua leyendo en los commentarios

🇬🇧 We often realise that when we’re deep into something, certain things that seem obvious to us actually aren’t—and we forget that we also had to learn them at some point: coffee, at the very beginning, is a cherry! Little catch-up session 👉🏼 1. the plant produces a flower 2. which then becomes a cherry (of different colours, sizes, and densities depending on the variety) 3. this cherry contains two seeds (soft and sweet, a bit like lychee) 4. which are fermented to extract as many aromas as possible 5. then they are dried 6. and later roasted (cooked) 7. to finally be ground… 8. and enjoyed!

Heureusement tout ça est automatisé… 🙏☕️ Vous voulez en savoir plus sur le critères de sélection, l’automatisation du tri et les standards ? Dites nous, on vous répond ! 👇🏽

📍La Maison du Barista, 17 rue Beaurepaire, Paris (entre Répu et le Canal) 🇬🇧 : From Disenchantment to Revelation
“Coffee — they talked to me about it with stars in their eyes. I didn’t understand: to me, it really didn’t taste good...” When Alexis started working, coffee meant a burnt taste, bitterness — just a reflex to start the day, even when tired. Until his path led him, almost by chance, to meet baristas, roasters, all passionate. Then he dug deeper, tasted, learned. He passed every certification and started competing. 10 years later, he’s a recognized expert, competitor, consultant, and trainer, all skills he now puts to use at LMB. Behind this name lies a clear mission: to make the expertise and pairings of specialty coffee visible and accessible. —— A Purpose-Driven Company
“She said to me: come on, let’s build a project with this level of quality, this level of finish — and make it all accessible to the general public.” The idea for LMB was born backstage. Betty, his partner and associate, was there and pointed out the paradox: “You have the best coffees in the world, the best recipes, the best baristas — but only a few people can taste it. It’s not possible.” Alexis and Betty combined rigor and vision, and from their intuition emerged a unique space, conceived like a home. Several rooms, several purposes: tasting, retail, training. The barista’s craft regains its full nobility, coffees are sourced with care before being co-roasted, and water is given the value it deserves, with France’s first water bar in partnership with @Brita.France [end in 1st comment 👇🏼]