Learn to be a Barista

Posted on: 2016-07-19 2:12 PM

Want to up your coffee IQ? Whether you want to open your own coffee shop, be a barista or just be able to impress your friends with your latte art and lingo, there are plenty of options to learn more about the finer aspects of everyone's favourite morning beverage.
 
Here's a round-up of places to get a coffee education in Toronto.
 
Canadian Barista & Coffee Academy
This is like the Hogwarts of barista training. The Academy has been around since 2001, offering intensive sessions like Barista Levels I, II and III ($279 each), Bean to Cup ($279) and Opening a Coffee Business ($749).
 
Merchants of Green Coffee
MGC hosts four workshops at their café just east of the DVP: Green Beans 101, The Art of Roasting, The Alchemy of Brewing and Cupping & Tasting ($50 each). Their website also has a little digital library of resources for budding baristas.
 
The Espresso Institute of North America Inc.
This espresso training studio and coffee lab is run out of an old tool and dye factory in midtown Toronto. All classes are custom, so pricing varies, and conducted by highly skilled industry pros. They even make house calls so you can learn with your own equipment.
 
Pilot Coffee Roasters
One of Toronto's top roasters, Pilot offer two Barista Training courses: Level One ($150) is called "Espresso Lab," which teaches the basics using theory and hands-on methods, and Level Two ($150) is "Latte Art."
 
Bartender One
As it turns out, Bartender One can do coffee, too. The Buena Barista Coffee Workshop ($99) is a three-hour interactive tasting experience, letting students learn the best way: with their taste buds. From coffee origins to flavour varieties to working with milk, this quick class covers the whole nine yards.
 
Mercury Espresso Bar
For baristas with big dreams, Mercury Espresso Bar in Leslieville offers an intensive, one-on-one nine-session course ($750) taught by highly skilled professionals. Covering everything from the basics to the minute details of crafting espresso drinks, this training is for the Rockys of coffee.
 
Zuccarini
Zuccarini makes espresso machines and other coffee tech, so when it comes to operating one, they really know what they're doing. They offer the Commercial Barista Training course ($150) and the Home Barista Training ($75), both taught by certified barista competition judges.
 
Sense Appeal Coffee Roasters
Whether you own your own café or are simply interested in properly brewing your own morning cup, Sense Appeal wants you to take coffee seriously. They offer four courses in Café Support Training, one of which is Espresso Extraction Level I and II ($80) and Weekend Coffee Cupping, a free (yes!) public seminar for coffee lovers.
 
M Square Coffee
This coffee hub in the Path offers "Brew Camp," ($30) where instead of using espresso machines, they invite students to come in for a training session using either an aeropress or a clever coffee dripper. You get to take home the machine of your choice at the end of the lesson.
 
Port 1 Café and Gelateria
Just outside of Toronto, this cafe offers The Basic Barista Training Workshop ($120) which teaches the fundamentals of crafting espresso and espresso-based drinks. You'll learn everything from proper milk steaming techniques to "dosing, grooming and tamping," and will probably leave feeling much more caffeinated than you did before.