passion series: magic beans
not jack’s beans
25 minutes after the clock strikes 8, all hell breaks loose. But let’s take a step back.
Every weekend, I wake up at 6:30 no matter how late I stayed up the night before. By 7, I am inside the store looking at our selection for the day. I grab a bag, cut it open, and empty it out into the grinder. This is when the race begins. I pull the first three shots and dump them out to warm up Big Bertha. As I pull the next three, I read the notes on the bag. Today is from Honduras and we are looking for berries and chocolate.
I always start with 18 and go up from there. It’s going to be either 18, 18.5, 19, or 19.5, I just have to find the right one. 18 was too light. 18.5 I couldn’t tell the difference. 19.5 was too much, so it must be 19. Hm, 19 doesn’t feel right, let me try 18.5 again. No, 18.5 is too light. I’m going to do 19.5. Honestly, this happens for about 20 to 30 minutes just to end up back at 19. It’s tricky because if you’re off by five grams, you could ruin someone's day.
But luckily for me, I work at USC’s very own Cafe Dulce where people don’t drink our coffee, they just get our matcha. By 8 AM when our doors open, I realize that I had just drank anywhere from four to nine shots of espresso on an empty stomach and no water. It’s only a matter of 25 minutes before it all hits and I have to run to the bathroom.
So why do I care so much about our espresso if customers are going to drown out the flavor with simple syrup? Because coffee is my passion. Most coffee shops that aren’t Starbucks have new espresso beans every day. With those beans, you have to dial in to find the most optimal flavor. It can’t be under-extracted or over-extracted, it needs to be perfect. It’s a science; it’s an art. And like a true artist, I don’t make art for others, I make it for myself. That’s why I’m willing to put myself through so much suffering every weekend. So next time you come into Dulce, know that I went through the trenches to serve you your vanilla latte with oat milk.
