What is good automation in coffee brewing? I asked the question via Twitter and here were some of your responses:

@PaulCoffeeFreak: Brewing profile programming based on barista research. Pressure/temp profile programming. see Trifecta and Strada EP

@Nathanaeljm: i think it varies depending on skill, knowledge & personal style. no matter what, it should be easily controlled.

@CremaRoasting: Water temperature control.

In my opinion good automation [in any trade] is a tool designed to allow great control and repeatability which elevates the end result beyond what can be produced using traditional methods alone. Good automation will have enough variability and control that it must be carefully ascertained and when placed in the hands of a skillful tradesman will result in brilliant results.

Allow me to explain further using a real life example that has nothing to do with coffee. A family member of mine was recognized as an art prodigy at a young age. He can work wonders with almost any medium to produce visual art with striking realism and stunning detail. Some of his greatest works have been created using oil on canvas but he now uses what some artists would consider a more automated way of painting – digital painting. He is currently creating concept art and backdrops for the upcoming Superman movie. His digital paintbrush and computer canvas allow him to create works that are easily manipulated to suit the movie’s needs. Traditional painting would cause overwhelming revision and hours of painstaking detailing to change the way the stars look in the night sky. However, using the digital tools he is able to make a few clicks and the skyline can transform from sunny to stormy while preserving the elements of the city. Individual pieces of this digital art can be extracted and manipulated to adjust things like color, size, or even their presence at all. Instead of removing the artistry from the trade the digital tools and automation allow the artist more control and the ability to produce results not possible using traditional methods.

Coffee, unlike art, has a high level of repetition required. We want to find the perfect cup and create it time and time again. Furthermore, we desire to have manipulatable variables at hand that affect extraction and result in an overall better brew. Finally, our method must be measurable and/or quantifiable. It takes a great tradesman to create this brewing environment using traditional tools which is why we have begun to see technologies emerge in recent years.  PID driven espresso machines such as the Strada and Slayer have begun to offer us more and more control over our brewing parameters for espresso; the Extractor and ICB brewers have helped us in the area of batch brewing. I believe these are all steps in the right direction towards good automation in the coffee industry. With so much passionate artistry in the coffee industry I believe we must continue to move towards good automation that allows us to present our trade in new and brilliant ways.

P.S. We would love to have your comments. To leave a comment you must first have an account with trifectaexperience.com Click on "access my trifecta" at the top of the page to sign up.

The 2012 Season of Regional Barista Competitions is about to get under way. Last year was the first Brewers Cup Competition as well as the first year for BUNN to sponsor. It was an exciting year where we all learned a lot.


My biggest learning curve was in dialing in so many coffees with trifecta. Each event has a host - usually a local roaster - who provides a feature coffee used for round one of Brewers Cup. I spend some time pre-show with the coffee to get it dialed in and ready for the audience. The real test comes, however, when it is time to dial in the Brewers Cup Finalists' coffees; often times I have less than 30 minutes per coffee.

This rapid-fire way of dialing in coffees, while not ideal, has taught me a great deal and forced me to improve my understanding of the trifecta variables. A similar situation could happen in your retail shop if you switched between lots or even roast dates during the course of a day. I believe testing oneself is a good exercise for stretching knowledge and growing ability.

If you would like to attend the NWRBC check out details at the US Barista Championship website. To take your learning one step further you are also invited to brew on the trifectas during the NWRBC. Sign up for a volunteer slot here.

See you soon!

As the holidays approach and I wrap up another glorious year in the world of Specialty Coffee I can't help but reminisce on a few of the items that have been invaluable to me this year. This year has been a little different as I've done more traveling and embarked on a whole new journey in brewing. This new journey has meant that I've needed to add to my coffee tools collection.

1. My little pocket scale: I couldn't live without it! The one I most always carry with me is my FastWeigh 600g scale, accurate to 0.1g. I use this accurate little cutie for weighing out beans, water, whatever. Oh, and the best part - it's highly affordable!


2. My trifecta Bodum glasses: Lets face it, nobody likes burned fingers or cold coffee; the double-wall pavinas from Bodum combat both. Look for these beauties at the next trade show or in your trifecta welcome kit.


3. My notebook with graph paper pages: Perfect for everything! You can play battleship with friends or record trifecta recipes. If I lose this little guy I will seriously cry.


4. My BGA carabiner mug: Best travel sipping device. It is so easy to travel with this guy since it clips on the outside of my book bag. Nothing like supporting the BGA!

Many of you are familiar with trifecta for coffee but have you considered tea? Well Adagio Teas sure has! In fact they recently added one to their newest location on State Street in Chicago.


Since my background is mostly in coffee I have quite a learning curve when it comes to tea. The folks at Adagio, however, are heavily steeped in knowledge (yes, pun intended) and willing to share. They offer classes that cover everything from general tea knowledge to advanced tastings.

We spent some time together discussing the theory behind trifecta and how it can be used for tea. I took a stab at creating a couple recipes and the Adagio team took the ball and ran. When I visited their store last week I was overwhelmed by their technique and the diversity of the recipes they are using for their teas. The one that really stands out to me is their Oolong Ti Kuan Yin. Instead of a single infusion they have created a recipe that steeps 6 oz at a time and they brew twice to create one 12oz cup. This double steeping really releases the depth of flavor that this tea offers. But don't just take my word for it ... stop in and taste for yourself.


You have several options when it comes to brewing tea with trifecta. One is the ability to control temperature so precisely from 165F to 205F. Also the controlled power of the turbulence allows for gentle agitation that aids in the unfurling of tea leaves. Finally, full immersion extraction is the preferred method of tea infusion and only trifecta offers it in combination with the other technologies. Possibilities are truly limited only by your imagination.

If you'd like to discuss more about tea in your trifecta send us a message on Facebook or Twitter or leave a comment below.

Understanding and testing variables is an essential part to coffee brewing. Without following some type of organized method it is pretty hard to move forward in your brewing journey. Journaling and/or documenting your brewing can be done in numerous ways … just do it!

Whether you’re brewing on your V60, pulling shots on your Strada MP, or extracting on your trifecta you can apply the same general rules to tracking your work. First step is to identify and list your brewing variables – time, turbulence, dose, temperature, etc. After listing them you can then figure out how you want to track them. Graph paper, spreadsheets and Moleskines are all great for recording your data. I’m a nerd so I prefer spreadsheets. Proof follows below...


Write everything down as you do it and create your first brew. When it is completed write down notes about the resulting cup. I use the same rules as you would for cupping – aroma, mouthfeel, acidity, flavor notes, finish, etc.

Now comes the hard part: after tasting your brew choose one thing to change. This is definitely the most challenging for me because I always want to make three or four changes at once. However, I’ve come to learn that if I change more than one thing I may not be able to link the resulting change to the correct variable. (Remember middle school science class and learning the Scientific Method?) Make the change in whatever variable you’ve chosen and, keeping all else the same, brew again.

Repeat this process of brewing, tasting, notating and variable changing until you are satisfied with your brew. Your record on paper or in some digital form will allow you to go back and reference how different variables affect different aspects of brewing. Over time you’ll be able to even identify patterns that may apply to coffee variations such as origin, process and density.

My own collection of spreadsheets has proved invaluable for me when I have a new coffee to approach. I can most always find a similar coffee to use as a starting point for something I’ve never tried before.