Hey there folks! Well, I wrote this post to commemorate my 1st year as a certified barista! That’s right. I can’t believe that I’ve been pulling espresso shots and steaming milk for a year! I can only describe the experience as magical, miraculous, and spectacular. I still remember my first encounter with specialty coffee. It was during Christmas time, about 4 years ago, in what was then the newest mall in Jakarta’s most elite address, Grand Indonesia. As I passed by Starbucks with my family, we encountered a pop-up stand serving free samples of coffee from a Rwandan coffee farm. Naturally, my mom, who was a coffee lover went and took some samples. The barista in charge then introduced us to a strange-looking coffee pot. When my mom decided to buy the pot, I was automatically in charge of learning and making her coffee using that pot, a Bialletti Dama stovetop espresso pot, or Moka pot for short.

Since I was passionate about food, coffee became a part of my hobby instantly. I love to drink coffee anyways, so it was a win-win solution for me. However, that hobby slowly became a growing passion. Slowly but surely, I began my quest to make the ultimate coffee drink, starting from finding a way to froth milk, all the way to producing crema using Moka pot and finally latte art using the most basic tools. I never found a way to produce crema in a Moka pot, nor have I created a latte art using a milk frother wand, at least not yet. However, the passion for coffee is there. It came to a point where I can use my skills to open a small coffee company for my entrepreneurship assignment, opening up a pop-up coffee shop once a week using coffee grounds supplied by my friend. Until now, as far as I know, only my group managed to sell coffee.

However, my passion for coffee really took off when I had my second cup of espresso with my friend. That cup was so intense, but because I was curious to find out what coffee really tasted like, I started to have a cup of espresso at least once a week. These espresso sessions, my friend’s stories about his coffee experience and the people I met along the way, led me to take a coffee course at Anomali. A few days after that course, I received my first espresso machine and grinder. Ever since then, whenever I travel, I’ll be looking for specialty coffee shops and I’ll bring back some beans to sample at home whenever possible. Coffee has become more than just a hobby for me. It has become a part of me. It’s a part of my identity now.

So that’s my journey so far… I’m looking forward to more awesome years ahead! I want to take this opportunity to thank mi familia, my mom, who unintentionally led his son to his passion, my dad, who tirelessly gives me feedback about the coffee I made, accompanying me in hunting for the best coffee shops around, and my sister for the constant support in all my coffee-related adventures, especially the blog! (let’s not forget the shopping spree! ^^) Thanks to my friends for the willingness to taste my coffee and become my objects of experimentations! The crew at Pandava Coffee, for teaching me tons of new stuff, my trainer in Anomali, Aris, for the valuable basic lessons and discipline, and many other great people that I met along the way, that I can’t mention one by one. I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Most importantly, I want to thank my God, Jesus Christ, for the constant inspiration and guidance. May the years ahead be filled with awesomeness! Salud! ^^