Has Australia’s coffee boom de-valued the role of Australia’s baristas? Today, Australia boasts a vibrant coffee culture, consuming 2.4kg of coffee per capita annually compared with just 0.6kg 50 years ago. “We take our coffee seriously, recently earning the reputation as the country that rejected the Starbucks model, and we are a country where for many the day doesn’t start until they have had their caffeine fix. A good barista has become a valuable resource, instrumental to the success of a coffee outlet and the development of a loyal customer base,” said Wendy Mead, managing director of Pinnacle Hospitality & Travel People.

“Hotels, restaurants and cafés have come to acknowledge the value of their baristas and are now being more thorough in the recruitment of baristas who can make great coffee, make it consistently, make it quickly and who can connect with customers.”

The word barista was relatively unknown five years ago and referred to someone who devoted their life to the art of espresso. Now the title is becoming increasingly blurred to refer to anyone who has a job making coffee.

“What qualifies someone as a barista is hotly debated. Some believe it is an apprenticeship under a decorated barista, master roaster and genuine coffee connoisseur, others qualify baristas on their years behind a coffee machine or the qualifications they possess,” said Ms Mead.

For Wendy Mead, a barista is someone with a real passion for coffee, who knows their customers’ orders when they walk through the door and can make espresso coffee quickly and consistently. A true barista knows the difference between blends, how to texture milk effectively and the ins and outs of their coffee machine including cleaning it at least twice a day to avoid coffee oil build up. Beyond this a great barista will consistently perfect their technique, preparing the grind according to the weather (if it’s humid, coffee will retain more water and need to be ground more coarsely) and listening for when the milk is perfectly heated to 65-70°.

Salvatore Malatesta, owner of St Ali café in South Melbourne, takes his coffee very seriously. St Ali roasts its beans on-site, all roasters and baristas have a relationship with growers, with baristas taste-testing their product up to 15 times a day. Mr Malatesta believes a true barista has excellent overall coffee knowledge and an understanding of the whole coffee process.

“A barista is not just a machine operator but someone who has a detailed understanding of the complexity of coffee and has a direct link with the growers to gain an understanding of the beans they are working with,” said Mr Malatesta.

“Baristas are in demand, we are constantly on the search for truly talented baristas and not just those looking for a café job,” said Ms Mead.

Supplying talented staff at five-star hotels, restaurants, cafés and events, Pinnacle ensures all staff have developed skills and are not just looking for a quick way to make a buck. All barista candidates are tested in-house to ensure correct technique and qualifications.

However, Ms Mead highlighted that given the continued debate over what qualifies a barista, Australia needs a more defined professional standard, beyond the government barista accreditation standards released in 2003, to give the title of barista the respect and acknowledgement it deserves.