Espresso Love

Matt Goddard, Café Kubal owner, says the introductory classes will be just one part of a full curriculum of 12 or 13 classes on topics such as the history of coffee and a one-week seminar on how to grow coffee. Each class has a maximum of four people so that every participant can work closely with the instructor. “There is a lot to learn,” says Goddard, who contends the classes are offered so people will be able to “appreciate the finer nuances of coffee” and obtain the skills necessary to “run their own coffee shop if they so choose.”

Katie Huntington, head barista at Café Kubal and the instructor of the introductory courses, agrees the classes offer benefits other than just knowing how to brew a cuppa joe. “These classes are great because we are offering job training to anyone who has ever wanted to become a barista. Nobody wants to hire you without experience, you can’t get experience if no one will hire you,” says Huntington.

Whole latte love: Students who take Café Kubal’s barista classes will learn how to create special designs with the foam that enhances many coffee drinks. MICHAEL DAVIS PHOTO

Although Huntington admits she knew little about coffee when she first began working as a barista at Javamoon Coffee in Bradenton, Fla., she taught herself how to get creative. “I knew the basics and I just took mental notes about certain things that made each drink come out better. Eventually I taught myself to pour some latte art. I liked to call it abstract,” she says with a laugh. “I was able to pour hearts in the foam, and do some etching with the thermometer. I didn’t even know there were other things you could pour with your foam.”

Once Huntington began working with Goddard in the summer of 2007, however, everything changed. “I realized that he knew a lot about coffee and that we shared the same passion for quality over quantity. We both believe that every drink can be the perfect drink, and should be perfect,” says Huntington, who then trained with a national barista contest winner who taught her “to pour rosettas {a flower-like design}, be even more consistent with {her} shots, and milk steaming.”

The introductory classes start with the basics, like how to properly steam milk, and move to more difficult classes on topics like latte art. While all the fall classes will be geared toward beginners, Goddard says they hope to offer winter and spring classes at a higher skill level. Huntington is excited about the brewing possibility that the café will “host a latte art competition for students and local baristas.”

Participants that take all the classes to become true coffee connoisseurs will be awarded a roaster’s membership and a certificate that entitles them to a 15 percent discount on coffee beans at Café Kubal. “Basically {a roaster’s membership} says ‘know about our coffee and we’ll sell it to you cheaper,’” jokes Goddard. Aside from saving on coffee bean purchases, there is another obvious monetary benefit for barista students. “We also are providing our loyal customers a way to save money by making good coffee at home,” notes Huntington.

To get in on the action, interested parties should purchase a ticket to the class at the café, and then come to the roasteria at the time indicated on the ticket ready to learn. “My first class had two couples in it. We had a lot of fun,” says Huntington. “There are a lot of people out there who are interested in making and drinking great coffee. Now we are offering a place where they can understand why we do what we do, and grow to be passionate about it as well.”

Café Kubal is located at 3501 James St. For more information, call 299-8300.