The age of the barista is upon us

Master barista Bang Dong-koo grabs the portafilter, loads it up with freshly ground espresso and knocks off the excess before deftly tamping it down.

Within seconds he extracts the coffee, steams the milk and squiggles it over the shot, leaving a caramel brown rim and an ivory cap of foam.

The end product - a cappuccino - tastes devilishly good, sweetening the palate with rich, dense foam before sending a bolt of bitterness into the system.

"How is it?" Bang asks.

Delicious. Though this barista whips out his cappuccinos in the streets of Hongdae, they taste like they come straight from the motherland.

"I trained in Piacenza, Italy, near Milan, under Luigi Lupi of Torrefazione Musetti," he explains. "I did not just learn how to make coffee, I also learned about the way of life of a barista."

Bang represents the ultimate barista`s dream. Owner of his own shop, Coffee Lab, he brewed his way to independence, garnering two certificates and the coveted title of Korea Barista Champion before opening his own bar.

In his spare time, the 33-year-old lectures at the Kaywon School of Art and Design, creates drinks for "Coffee Magazine" and serves as a judge and committee member for the annual Korea Barista Championship.

Bang is what a growing number of Koreans entering the profession aspire to.

"Lots of baristas dream of opening their own shop or consulting," said Korea Coffee Academy General Manager Lee Yong-koo, 41.

Into the fourth year of his career, Lim Tae-min, 26, is one such barista: "My goal is to work at my own shop and help other baristas out."

Lim is part of a new generation of coffee experts that are helping Korea`s coffee market grow. And now, an even younger progeny of baristas is on its way.

The barista boom

Korean Coffee Academy student Lee Hwa-young, 25, hopes to be a part of that group. Currently taking classes at the academy, she admits that learning how to make a good cup of coffee is a challenge.

If everything pans out, she will get certified by the Korea Coffee Education Society and find work at a coffee shop, just like many other future baristas who are learning the trade at universities, clubs and academies.

In August, the Korea Coffee Education Society reported 14 university barista courses, 24 university-run continuing education barista courses and 61 barista academies. And that is just the tip of the iceberg.

There are also self-taught baristas like Lim, who turn to internet coffee clubs for expertise and advice.

"Honestly, attending a coffee academy is pretty expensive," said Lim. "I think you need about 1,400,000 won?"

Lim has a point. The average full-time barista does not rake in money. When he first started out in 2001, Lim was working for a pittance.

"I was making 2,700 won an hour back then," he said. "How can you make a living off that?"

"You can`t be a barista if you go into it thinking you are going to earn a lot of cash," Lim added. "This is not like working for a large conglomerate."

"But if you like coffee and people, then it`s worth it."

It looks like coffee and people are exerting more charm than greenbacks and an office desk these days. According to Korea Barista Championship chairman and "Coffee Magazine" publisher Hong Sung-dae, the number of baristas who entered the preliminary round of the Korea Barista Championship this year was double that of 2007.

"In 2003, at the first championship, 20 people applied," the 50-year old chairman said. "This year, 139 applied."

Hong attributes the sudden surge in baristas to various factors.

"The consumption of espresso has rapidly increased," he stated. "Younger generations are accepting the life of a barista as a viable profession. And last year, the MBC drama `Coffee Prince,` clued the public into baristas."

Hong is not the only person to believe that "Coffee Prince" had something to do with the sudden boom in baristas.

"I don`t think one can say that `Coffee Prince` did not have anything to do with the popularization of baristas," said Lim. "Prior to the drama, the coffee market was wavering, but following `Coffee Prince` it got big."

And Lim does not think that this is a fleeting trend instigated by a hot TV series. He thinks it is here to stay.

Hong agrees: "Specialty coffee has a future in Korea."

According to the chairman, the first record of coffee appeared during the reign of King Gojong. But it was Starbucks` first store, which opened near Ewha Womans University in 1999, that led to "the rapid proliferation of coffee throughout Korea."

If Starbucks serves as a benchmark for the relative success of baristas and of the specialty coffee industry in Korea, than coffee aficionados can put their fears to rest.

There are over 250 Starbucks in Korea, around 90 of which are outside Seoul.

"Without Starbucks, coffee wouldn`t have come into Korea," said Lim.

While Starbucks contributed to the success of the Korean coffee market, it by no means represents the increasingly diverse array of specialty coffee shops that are springing up throughout the nation.

Changing tastes

Just one stroll through Hongdae, Garosugil or Seorae Village unearths a goldmine of chic little cafes.

And they are there because the way Koreans drink coffee has changed.

"Koreans really know how to enjoy coffee," said Lim. "Many drink espresso and lungo. Customers also like strong drinks like macchiatos."

"This year more customers prefer espresso, some with an extra shot," he continued. "In the past people used to be afraid of it because it is bitter."

With more and more Koreans developing a taste for the Milanese brew, the level of quality is bound to go up, and we are not just talking about the beans, we are talking about the professionals who make those hot espresso-based drinks.

The world of coffee calls them baristas. Some even refer to them as "coffee sommeliers." They are the people who know coffee inside out. And to prove their merit and worth, they compete annually in championships.

The mother lode of competitions, the World Barista Championship, first started in 2000. And this year, Yoo Jung-hyun from Korea ranked 26 from Round One of the 9th Annual World Barista Championship.

But for this nation, the Korea Barista Championship is where it is at.

The Competition

The Korea Barista Championship, which was first held in 2003, kicks off with a series of preliminary rounds in Seoul, Busan and Gwangju. The final round takes place in late November at COEX.

"There are many reasons why I participated in the Korea Barista Championship," said Lim, who competed in 2007 and 2008. "The title may seem silly but it is acknowledged by fellow baristas."

Watching the Seoul preliminaries that took place this year in early October, one could sense that this event held great weight in the world of coffee.

Required to prepare four espressos and four cappuccinos in a specified amount of time, contestants sweated it out as they tried to extract the perfect cup.

Time and time again, a competing barista would step up on stage, decked out in a pristine uniform, ready the workstation, tamp the grounds and steam milk all under the piercing gaze of two technical judges.

Clocked from beginning to end as they prepared their drinks, they would struggle to time it perfectly, knowing that if it took too long the shot would come out sour, and if it was extracted too quickly, that their shot would be too bitter.

Four sensory judges would then examine the color of the crema (the reddish-brown foam that forms on top) of the espressos and push back the foam of the cappuccinos with a spoon to check if the foam was too thick or too thin.

Afterwards, all one could do was wait for the results.

When asked about the nerve-racking experience, one of the contestants, Park Eun-jung, 26, answered, "I was so nervous I couldn`t focus. I followed my instincts."

According to master barista Bang - who competed and won in 2005 - some people get so highly strung that they cannot even extract an espresso shot within the prescribed 20 minutes.

Even if one does manage to make all eight drinks, it does not count if you do not make it to the final round.

Of the 139 baristas who competed in the preliminaries this year, only 20 passed. Lim, who went on to the finals last year, did not make it this time.

But there is always next year. For the time being, he will go to the final round to cheer his girlfriend-cum-barista on.

And just one month from now, yet another champion will be making headlines in the world of coffee, and people will flock to get a taste of that winning drink.

Coffee Destinations

Korean Coffee Academy: The academy offers a barista master course, a hand-drip expert course, a latte art master course, a roasting master class and a cafe drink menu course. The 36-hour barista master course costs 640,000 won. The 60-hour roasting master class costs around 1,200,000 won. To get there go to Sookmyung University Station, Line 4, Exit 2. For more information call (02) 6080-9833 or visit cafe.daum.net/kca500

Coffee Lab: Run by master barista Bang Dong-koo, his extensive coffee menu runs the gauntlet from a standard cappuccino to more inventive drinks like espresso with beer. Coffee costs 3,500 to 6,000 won. The cafe is located near Hongik University. For more information call (02) 3143-0908.

By Jean Oh

(oh_jean@heraldm.com)