What are the questions for interviewing baristas in boutique cafes? What should I pay attention to when making hot lattes?

When interviewing baristas, boutique cafes will give a corresponding assessment, including "literature" and "martial arts", "liberal arts" is the basic theoretical knowledge of baristas, and "martial arts" is the practical ability of baristas. Although the specific content may vary from cafe to cafe, "making a hot latte" is a must (mostly) in any cafe.

Then a friend who came to the store yesterday expressed confusion that the quality of the flower pattern would not directly affect the taste of coffee, but why can the production of hot lattes become a necessary assessment item for "every household"?

It is true that the quality of the pattern does not affect the taste of coffee, but asking baristas to make a hot latte is not just a test of baristas' skills, but there are other considerations. So today, Qianjie will share a little bit about why a small hot latte can become a necessary assessment item for every coffee shop.

First of all, in the process of assessment, the first thing that needs to be checked is whether the operation process is standardized. Although the production of latte seems simple, if we separate its steps, there will be grinding, weighing, cloth powder, pressing powder, extraction and concentration, milk foam mixing, flower drawing, finishing, and so on.

From whether the whole operation flow is smooth and standardized, we can see whether a barista has the basic skills and the ability to control details. The more skilled baristas are, the more adept they are at operating them. Even if the machine they are facing is very strange, they can still pull flowers at a passing level, which is the first element that can be detected when making hot lattes.

Although the beauty of the pattern does not affect the taste of coffee, from the fineness and complexity of the pattern, we can see whether the basic skills of a barista are solid.

Because a good-looking pattern requires the barista to repeat boring exercises behind his back, only after constant practice to make the muscles remember, the final pattern will have a high degree of fineness. Therefore, from the fineness and complexity of the pattern, we can see whether the barista has a solid foundation in basic skills.

Third, the thickness of milk foam in addition to the pattern, whether the thickness of milk foam is up to the standard is also a major factor that needs to be tested. Why? Because from the thickness of the bubbles, we can see whether a barista has a thorough understanding of the basic theory.

It is well known that the biggest difference between dissenting milk cafes is the thickness of their bubbles, such as Australian white foam is the thinnest, latte foam is in the middle, and cappuccino foam is the thickest. Different thickness of milk foam will have a direct impact on the taste and touch of coffee. So after testing the flower pattern, the interviewer in the coffee shop usually uses a small spoon to poke away the foam to see if the thickness of the foam meets the standard of the latte.

Fourth, the temperature of milk when the surface of the project test is completed, the next need to drink to test the latte of the other two standards, one of which is the temperature of milk!

Because milk has the best sweet temperature range, that is, 55 °C ~ 65 °C ±3 °C. In this range, milk lactose is activated, resulting in a higher sweetness experience; but when the temperature is below this range, the milk is not only not so sweet, but the foam dissipates very quickly; when the temperature of the milk is above this range, the milk will be denatured due to overheating, lactose will begin to decompose and sweetness will be reduced. At the same time, because other substances are destroyed by high temperature, the taste will be much worse.

Therefore, it is necessary to drink to check whether the temperature of the milk is up to the standard. Although this can be tested by a thermometer, as Qianjie said, there is another criterion that needs to be tested by drinking, that is, "the degree of integration".

Fifth, the degree of integration finally needs to be tested is the degree of fusion of coffee and milk! In "these steps are not done well, no matter how sweet the latte will be bitter!" Qianjie mentioned in this article that the quality of integration is crucial to the quality of a latte.

Because the quality of the fusion is closely related to the neatness of the liquid surface of the flower and the balanced taste of the milk foam on the surface of the coffee. If there is no good fusion, then the coffee flower will have a dirty and messy "background board", and the taste of the milk foam will be the outstanding bitterness of the coffee oil, but if the fusion is good, not only the pattern will be clean and tidy, but the taste of the foam will also be softened by the balance of bitterness and sweetness. Therefore, the quality of integration is also a standard that needs to be tested. Generally speaking, the reason why a hot latte will become a necessary assessment item for every boutique coffee shop is mainly because it can comprehensively test whether the barista's skills and basic skills are solid. By examining the hot latte, the coffee shop can quickly screen out baristas with solid basic skills and detail control ability, so as to reduce the difficulty of screening.

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