Australian and American coffee bars: Their differences, and what they can learn from each other
There are two significant differences in how third-wave baristas serve coffee in the US and Australia. I believe if baristas in each country adopt the other’s practices, it would improve labor efficiency and speed of service in both countries.
Batch brew makes up perhaps 40% of coffee orders in the US, but less than 5% in Australia.
Most Australian baristas “split shots,” while few Americans do.
I believe Australian and American cafes could benefit from adopting some of each other’s practices.
Batch Brew
The obvious benefit of batch brewing is it requires much less time and labor to serve. Given the high cost of labor in Australia, many cafe owners have expressed a desire for customers to embrace batch brew. Unfortunately, customer acceptance has been slower than many in the Australian coffee industry would like. While I’m not an expert on the Australian market, I’d like to make a few suggestions to help customers warm to batch brew:
Do it well. Unfortunately, the popular Aussie choice to use a Moccamaster in a cafe is not good enough. Moccamasters do a poor job of achieving even extractions, and their brewer/carafe design causes excessive heat loss during brewing. That heat loss, compounded by suboptimal brewing-water temperature, greatly accelerates the aging rate of the brewed coffee. (If you must use a Moccamaster, please use the commercial version with the round spray head and find a way to prevent heat loss from the carafe during brewing.)
Don’t serve old coffee. Most Australian third-wave cafes that serve batch brew hold the brewed coffee too long (as do most Americans). Serving two-hour old batch brew is not going to win converts. I feel for Aussie cafes here: batch-brew machines are generally designed to brew at least two liters at a time, but the cafes don’t serve enough batch brew to brew that much coffee without having to pour most of it down the drain. (The good news is I believe in the next year there will be at least two new batch brewers designed to produce excellent batches smaller than two liters.)
Talk it up. Explain to customers that batch brews offer great extraction quality. Give them free samples while they wait in line, especially to those who order long blacks and americanos. Offer an interesting coffee exclusively on batch brew. Hold events featuring your best coffees on batch brew. Familiarity is the key to acceptance.
Splitting Shots
Italian espresso developed around small doses of 7-ish grams and beverages no larger than 150ml (5 ounces). In the 90s many specialty-coffee markets adopted larger drinks sizes, which require significantly larger doses. For example, if you’re a Starbucks barista serving 20oz (600ml) lattes, it would be reasonable to use doses of 20g or more. (Note: I do not know what dose size Starbucks uses.)
Australians have never warmed to the massive beverage sizes common in North America. Aussie cafes generally serve Italian-sized beverages with the occasional 250—350 ml (8—12oz) caffe latte on the menu. Serving smaller-sized drinks has allowed many Australian coffee bars to split shots, or pull two shots from one portafilter. In a country where few customers order batch brew and almost every coffee is espresso-based, splitting shots is critical to enhance efficiency and control labor costs. Of course, a few third-wave American cafes split shots, and a few Australians don’t, but they are exceptions to the rule.
Specialty shops in the US used to serve a variety of larger beverages, using massive espresso doses. However, as US third-wave shops have gradually adopted the smaller sizes common in Australia, American baristas now have a chance to improve efficiency by splitting shots, and, I believe, improve many beverages. I hope some US third-wave shops will consider splitting shots; as beverages have shrunk and extractions have increased, split shots have become more appropriate than they used to be. Half of a 20-gram dose is plenty for a straight shot of espresso, a 5-oz (150ml) cappuccino, a macchiato, and most hipster-sized drinks (cortados and gibraltars). The full 20g dose is plenty for a 12-oz latte, if a cafe chooses to serve one beverage that large.
The Upshot
While this post isn’t revelatory to anyone who has ordered coffee around Australian and the US, it does bring up some potential ways each country can benefit from the other’s practices. The part of the American market that offers smaller beverages is ready to split shots, which will cut coffee costs and improve labor efficiency and speed of service. Australian baristas have a chance to introduce their customers to batch brew at its best, which would greatly cut labor costs if widely adopted. But winning customers over to batch brew may require best practices and greater familiarity: Brew small batches in quality brewers. Brew into enclosed, appropriately sized thermal carafes with “brew-through” lids to conserve heat. Never brew more than one coffee at a time or two liters per batch. Ditch brewed coffee before it tastes sour and bitter. Feature batch brew at tasting events and demonstrations. Gently familiarize customers with batch brew.