news – No Pressure Coffee

Diploma sociale hygiëne binnen

Na de voorlopige uitslag van het SVH examen voor sociale hygiëne is nu ook de officiële uitslag bekend en het diploma ontvangen! Eindcijfer een negen (9). Toch mooi om in je zak te steken.

Met dit diploma ben ik in staat om een eigenaar van een bedrijf waar alcohol geschonken wordt rechtmatig te vervangen en vertegenwoordigen, mits bijgeschreven in het register van de gemeente. Omdat barista’s naast het espressoapparaat ook vaak achter de bar staan en de rest van de drankjes schenken en verzorgen, is dit een goede aanvulling om mijn vaardigheden. Vanwege mijn sommelier titel is dit diploma ook extra belangrijk daar het mijn inzetbaarheid vergroot.

Dus… heeft u een koffie- en wijnbar en zoekt u naar een goede invaller of vervanger, neem contact op!

Sociale Hygiëne geslaagd

Zojuist online vernomen dat ik 37/40 vragen van het examen sociale hygiëne van maandag 7 oktober j.l. in Amsterdam goed heb. Daarmee is de voorlopige uitslag dat ik geslaagd ben!

sociale hygiene — Sociale hygiëne examentheorie

Dus nu ben ik bevoegd om namens een eigenaar of leidinggevende van een horecabedrijf achter de bar te staan, als bartender en/of barista. Helaas dat barista zijn ook vaak bartender zijn inhoudt, maar heel erg is het ook niet. Het ene kan goed in het andere overgaan. En als Sommelier opent dat ook weer deuren, achter de bar staan.

Meer dagen in Coffee Cabana

Vanaf september zal ik 4 dagen per week gaan werken als barista in Coffee Cabana in Utrecht!

Kom gezellig langs voor koffie to-go in de lunchpauze. Espresso, cappuccino, cortado. Flat white of caffe latte. Alles kan ook to-go gekozen worden.

Of geniet van echt vers gebakken gebak samen met een heerlijke koffie.

We gebruiken een single origin arabica boon uit Brazilië, uit de regio van de grootmoeder van de eigenaresse Galit. Geïmporteerd door ThisSideUp uit Amsterdam. Gebrand door SpotOn Roasters op speciaal recept om de smaak van vroeger, bij haar oma, terug te halen.

Bijzonder lekker met gestoomde volle melk dat het karakter van de boon versterkt. De smaak van rood fruit, caramel en room wordt dan nóg duidelijker.

Maar ook met Oatly havermelk is de koffie erg lekker. Het granen-karakter van deze “melk” sluit super goed aan bij de enigszins notige smaak van de koffie!

Coffee Cabana has a new barista

I will be working as a part-time barista in the wonderful new Brazilian-minded coffee place Coffee Cabana, in Utrecht, starting today!

Single origin Brazilian coffee from the owner’s region where she grew up. Roasted to spec by Spot On Roasters in Amsterdam. We’ll try to bring back the smells flavors of the coffee she grew up with.

They also offer Brasilian bites and dishes for lunch and in between. Many products made from Tapioca flour which is naturally gluten free and vegan. Come check them out! Close to train station Vaartsche Rijn in the Vondellaan in Utrecht.

Coffee Cabana beans from Brasil — Coffee Cabana

Officially Registered “No Pressure Coffee”

No Pressure Coffee is now an official one-man company and registered at the chamber of commerce in Utrecht.

My KvK number, for tax purposes is 75493039.

So I’m available for all your short or long term shifts, projects or events! Use my contact page to get in touch with me.

I’m also on several modern temp and traditional job sites or services. You can find me on:

Look forward to hearing about your coffee business, your plans or your dream! I’d be happy to help any way I can!

Checkout my certificates as well as my services. I have been a member of the SCA since 2018.

What to do with old coffee?

Here is an idea that can come in handy on warm summer nights when you crave a coffee but it’s too hot to drink it.

Sometimes you find yourself buying ground coffee in larger quantities because the store has a sale. But some of these packs may find themselves getting hidden behind other groceries in your closet. And then suddenly they are out of date and you normally toss them in the garbage. But you could do way better! And reduce/reuse at the same time…

Take your old outdated coffee, open it and store it in an airtight container. Use your favorite recipe and method for making coffee and increase the coffee dose approximately 20-30%. Use whatever you like, just use more coffee. Aeropress, Chemex, filter brewer, cafetière, Mr Coffee machine, doesn’t matter.

Get a whiskey glass for each cup you’re making
Fill each glass with 50% ice cubes
Get cold whole milk from the fridge (almond or soy will also work but they lack the milk sugars, so add a pinch or two sugar to taste in those cases)
Stir the fresh made coffee to mix flavors and bitters
Pour coffee slowly on top of ice to instantly cool it; fill so that the ice just floats and cubes clear the bottom of glass
Froth the cold milk or pour straight from carton

Voilà, iced coffee! Nothing special but the milk sugars will hide the somewhat stale flavors of the old coffee and the milk fat will make it creamy and smooth. Especially if you can froth the cold milk!

Out with the old, in with the new

Tickets are set, container has been shipped off already, apartment in the Netherlands arranged.

We leave in three weeks and will be back home by the end of Spring.

I’m selling most of my barista equipment because I can’t use it on 230V or 50Hz or both. Check Facebook and Instagram for good deals.

If you are a coffee house or catering company in Amsterdam, Utrecht or Amersfoort (of anywhere in between) and you are looking for a skilled (head) barista to cover shifts during the Summer, please get in touch with me using the contact form on this site.

Sint Maarten coming to an end

Unfortunately we have decided to leave this beautiful island of St Maarten earlier than originally planned. Family health issues are making us move back to the Netherlands so we can be closer to our parents. While it is not a real issue finding a flight at any given day, being closer feels much better than 10,000 km due East.

So No Pressure Coffee SXM will soon cease to exist and I’ll reopen in the Netherlands in one form or another.

Hope to see you there when the time comes…

Trying Amavida Coffee

I’ve been waiting for a good reason to do so, but now that my beans are gone, there are no visitors scheduled to arrive anytime soon and I really don’t enjoy local supermarket coffee, I had to find a new supplier.

Now, from my experience at the Marketgarden supermarket, I know that Carib Bean Company in Antigua is a good, local and reliable supplier. They make fabulous blends that have stood the test of time, roast on-demand and deliver via airfreight. Fast, but expensive. So I need an alternative. Maybe it can be achieved cheaper, better coffee or faster?

Amavida coffee roasters

So I ordered a couple of small 8-12oz sample orders from Amavida in Miami. I use a US mailbox address that can repack multiple orders into one small package and forward that via boat, DHL or Fedex. MyMalls is fast and reliable but also not as cheap as using local shipping companies such as SCS, Tropical or the Mailbox. However, for fresh roasted coffee it must be fast.

The tropical heat and humidity kill off roasted beans in 15 min when left exposed to air!

So Amavida it is and I’m very excited! They were awarded “Roaster of the Year” in 2018, so my expectations are very high! I hope they equal or surpass my experience with the Ethiopia single origin from Evermore in Rotterdam!

Running out of beans

After having finished the amazing reserves of coffee beans I’ve had brought to me by visitors, the sad time arrives when they run out… This happened last week so now I am resorting once again to supermarket coffee from St Maarten.

“Which coffee do you drink?” is a question I get asked regularly. Well, I don’t make it a secret but bean selection on St Maarten is pretty poor and limited. I’ve tried all the coffees, both ground and whole bean, and my favorites are the house brands from either SuperU or Carrefour. Value/price is super. They both have the same supplier that packages the coffee in custom packages for both, but the coffee is identical as far as I have been able to test and taste.

They come in different “flavors”: Peru, Colombia, Brasil, Ethiopia and Mexico. The Peru and Ethiopia match the best with my tastes. Bold, strong smells and flavors, full bodied strong coffee with enough balance and sweetness not to make it too bitter. They are blends from 100% Arabica beans. Both of them.

Normal recipes call for 30 gr of coffee for 500 ml of water (at 92-96 Celsius) but since this is an espresso grind and not a filter grind (much finer than would should be used), I either use colder water than prescribed (82-86 C) or I reduce the amount of coffee by 10% (3 grams here).

My favorite brew methods are Aeropress in the morning (it makes a more bitter espresso-style cup) and Hario V60 in the afternoon (smoother, milder, less bitter oils)