She is not only the champion of the hand contest, but also a coffee craftsman.

Li Jiahui, 23, is one of the few Starbucks "black apron" coffee masters, the director of Starbucks Kerry Center's flagship store, and the champion of Starbucks North District handrace. As a "coffee craftsman", Li Jiahui hopes to convey the exquisite coffee culture through the coffee made by herself.

Would you like to meet this skilled barista? Would you like to participate in Starbucks' free hand-flushing classroom? This summer, the Wealth Group will make an appointment for everyone! The registration method is at the end of the article, and the quota of 16 people is limited until it is full.

Written by: Zhang Fan

Photography: Xiang Dake

What does coffee mean to you? Foreign imports? A necessary cardiotonic on a weekday? Or is it a part of daily life? For the famous musician Bach, if he doesn't drink coffee in the morning, he will be exhausted, like a dried roast mutton. For the writer Balzac, coffee began to stir his mind from the moment it reached the stomach sac. But for the barista we are going to know today, a thin girl with strong muscles as a result of day-to-day practice, coffee fills the small ten-foot gap between her and her guests.

Li Jiahui

When the cup fell, Li Jiahui handed me a cup of hand-made Kenyan coffee that had just been made. In an instant, from the rising dense, a strong fragrance came to the nostrils. "your Kenya." She smiled and said, revealing two rows of small "steel teeth".

Standing behind the hand-washing platform, Li Jiahui looks very thin and small. When making coffee by hand, Li Jiahui, who is only 1.60 meters tall, even has to lean forward slightly and hold her hand much taller than the average person. But just the momentum between hands and feet, a sincere smile with wide eyes, let me as a guest instantly let go of the tension.

When I took a closer look at the polite barista in front of her, I found that black top hat, black bow tie, black pointed leather shoes, all black ornaments on her body, without exception, are the accessories of one of the most important objects. that is the black apron that only Starbucks "coffee master" can have.

Li Jiahui

Starbucks is my "university"

This year is the fourth year that Starbucks black apron coffee guru Li Jiahui has worked in the store. When it comes to her relationship with Starbucks, she seems a little shy. "I didn't go to college. Starbucks is my 'university'."

At the age of 18, Li Jiahui had planned to study abroad, but failed to do so for various reasons. As she did not apply for the domestic university entrance examination, Li Jiahui was idle. She, who lives in Xidan Business District, stumbled upon Starbucks standing in a corner of Zhongyou Mall and began her working career there.

"at that time, I was 18 years old, and my friends in the store took good care of me. At the beginning, I was so timid that I blushed when I ordered. But it will get better slowly. " Li Jiahui remembers that she once met a foreign couple who was confused when ordering because she could not see the menu above the console. "so I brought them the menu and explained to them the Chinese-style Starbucks drink." Later, before leaving Zhongyou Starbucks, Li Jiahui found a small note left by the couple in the customer suggestion box, full of words thanking herself for helping them.

Li Jiahui

I have never been desperate because of a moment of trouble, and every practice brings me a surprise.

She left Zhongyou Starbucks because Li Jiahui followed the store manager at that time to the current Starbucks Kerry Center flagship store. It was only when the Kerry Center store began to raise money that Li Jiahui officially began to learn hand training, but because she was a barista as a career, she would go through a lot of "training" every day and made rapid progress. "when I first came into contact, I couldn't make it right. The coffee powder left on the filter paper was jagged. In order to stabilize the current, I began to practice filling water on the cup with a kettle every day. Not only me, but every one of our partners here has been through this period. "

Hand-made coffee

In addition to learning how to make coffee by hand, for Li Jiahui, whether it is the increase in coffee knowledge or the refinement of hand-brewing coffee, constant practice will always surprise her. "when I first started drinking black coffee, I didn't feel anything. I couldn't feel any fragrance or characteristics. But once, when I was practicing making coffee in the company, I chose the East African mixed coffee beans of the season. When I smelled it, I actually felt the oncoming citrus flavor. This is the first time I have felt the 'flavor' of the so-called coffee. Up to now, Li Jiahui, who has become a store manager, has tasted coffee beans from almost every country that produces Arabica in the world.

Li Jiahui demonstrated hand-made coffee at the scene of the final of the Starbucks North District hand-to-hand Competition.

She practiced hard and won the championship at the Starbucks North District handshake in April this year. In September this year, she will represent the northern region in the national Starbucks hand rush finals. Of course, in addition, Li Jiahui is also working towards her goal of becoming a coffee minister who can wear a brown apron.

Li Jiahui "hid" all kinds of hand tools at home.

The "coffee artifact" purchased by Li Jiahui in order to practice her hand-brewing technique, according to Acaia, can calculate the water injection force, the amount of water injected, set the brewing process, and so on.

My favorite is the sentence "the last ten feet are in your hands" (The last ten feet are in our hands)

Li Jiahui's treasured black apron

In Li Jiahui's treasured black apron, the words "The last ten feet are in our hands" are carefully embroidered (the last ten feet are in your hands). This is a concept that Starbucks hopes to inherit with a "black apron", implying that the coffee beans that have been carefully picked, processed and roasted by dozens of hands will eventually become a perfect cup of coffee to be presented to customers, and the opportunity and mission are in the hands of every star barista.

"when I was studying with the Starbucks manual, all I read was the knowledge and culture of coffee. But it wasn't until I read this sentence in the book that I realized that Starbucks was not just coffee and beans for me, but also a process of communicating with guests and spreading coffee culture. I cherish the ten feet between me and my guests. " In fact, this is the life of baristas, honing their skills day after day, sharing the most perfect drinks with others.

Li Jiahui Q & A

Q / do you think you should have a sense of ritual when making coffee by hand?

As far as I am concerned, the matter is divided into different occasions. When I was working at Starbucks, when I was serving my guests, I thought I was expressing this sense of ritual. Barista's every move, the treatment of beans and water, all this is a performance of intensive cultivation, we will use our own movements and methods to convey the exquisite feeling that coffee brings to our guests. When I am at home, I will be more relaxed, enjoy the process of making coffee, and do as I like. Of course, in the coffee culture of different countries, whether hand-brewed or concentrated, it can be their own favorite form.

Q / do you have any impressive memories between you and your guests?

Yes, there is! Once there was an old Singaporean named Thomas, who had many years of coffee tasting experience and was also a regular customer in our store. He liked to come to the store to discuss with us about hand-made coffee. He is of Singaporean Chinese origin, and we also call him Professor Tian. He speaks Chinese and has no barrier to communication. He occasionally brings his own good coffee beans to share with us. Sometimes, we invite him to make a cup of coffee in the shop. I was impressed by the fact that he often came with his wife. Every time he finished making coffee, he would pick up the coffee pot, look at the lamp carefully, then tilt his head slightly and sigh to his wife, "look at this color, how beautiful it is." I am often moved that a person, probably only he loves coffee deeply, can stare carefully and taste every cup of coffee carefully for so many years.

Q / do you do what the customer orders?

The problem varies from person to person. There are some guests we are very familiar with, and I usually make their favorite flavor for the things they order. However, there are also many guests in the workshop who are admired, and their opponents do not know how to make coffee so well. Then I will chat with them first, and in the process of talking and chatting, I will be able to understand what kind of drinks they like. After that, according to the taste expressed by the customer, make the corresponding recommendation, so that the coffee we make is generally in line with the customer's taste.

Q / Coffee novice how to taste coffee flavor?

The flavor wheel of coffee is evolved from red wine. Therefore, the taste of coffee is similar to that of red wine. Usually we can't drink the flavor of coffee because our sense of smell has no memory and contrast. For example, you say that this coffee tastes of cinnamon. For those who taste it for the first time, it may not even be familiar with the taste of cinnamon. Only by trying again and again to produce a comparative memory of the taste of coffee, it is easier to identify different flavors.

Source: fortune School author: Zhang Fan