Interview with Tim Wendelboe（Part One）

[BGT office]

BGT： What inspired you to be a leader in coffee industry both as a great barista and righ now a consultant with a coffee company?
站在這行業最頂尖有什麼感覺？尤其是目前你除了barista現職，也從事顧問的工作。

Tim： I have always known that I had to work my way up in society. I have never been a perfect student in school and I have always wanted to start my own business. I think that the reason why I have reached where I am today is because I have worked hard and set high goals for my self. My ambitions have never been to be a leader in the coffee industry, but to be as good as possible at what I do and to enjoy what I do. I take my job seriously and I am also very proud of what I do. I believe anyone can be something in this world if they try hard enough. It is only a matter ambitions.
一直以來我都瞭解，我必須努力前進在社會裡力爭上游。以前在學校時我就不是個好學生，總是希望能早點開創自己的事業。我認為今天之所以能夠走到這一步，因為我夠努力，而且我也習慣為自己訂一個高標準的目標來追尋。成為咖啡界的領導人物從來就不是我想要的，我只是盡可能地做好這份我所喜愛的工作。我很認真地看待我的工作，同時我也非常自豪這份工作。我認為任何人只要夠努力，都可以成就一番事業，關鍵只是在有沒有心而已。


BGT： What advice and tips do you have for a Barista who just getting start ?
如果讓你對所有剛剛開始踏進這行的新人們一些忠告，你有什麼建議？

Tim： Be humble about your skills. Read all the literature you can find about coffee and share as much knowledge as you can with other baristas. It is by sharing and exchanging information that I have learned the most about coffee. Always taste the coffee you prepare. Without tasting the product it is impossible to know what you are doing right or wrong.
In the end it is the taste that matters. Knowledge is only a tool to find the great taste in coffee.
保持一個謙遜的心。所有相關咖啡的文獻與資料都值得閱讀，並且把你所知的與別的barista來分享，藉著分享心得、交換資訊的方式，都能讓我學到最多的咖啡事。經常品嚐檢視自己做的咖啡，不然你永遠不知道你做對了還是做錯。最後我要強調的，最重要的就是去品嚐，所有的知識只是幫你找出咖啡中好味道的工具而已。


BGT： You are a World Barista Champion and the World Cup tasters Competition champion, What kind of ability do you think a barista should have? And how to learn?
你不但是個世界吧台冠軍，也是世界杯測冠軍，你認為一個barista最首要具備的能力是什麼？怎麼來訓練？

Tim： I believe you need the ability to taste and smell. Unfortunately mother nature has not made us all good tasters. I am not a supertaster, but I do have a profound interest in food and drinks in general. This has helped me a lot in understanding what coffee really is all about, the taste. I also have a very humble approach when I taste coffee and other new things. It is by tasting a lot of coffee, food, cigars, and wine that I have gained experience both as a barista and a cup taster.
我相信，最重要的是味覺與嗅覺的基本功。遺憾的是大多數人都不是天生的杯測師，我也不是個超級杯測人，但是我對所有一般性的食物或飲料都有深刻濃厚的興趣，這些幫助我可以瞭解很多咖啡的味道。我也保持一貫謙遜的態度來杯測咖啡，甚至其他的新事物。藉著品嚐大量不同的咖啡、料理、雪茄和酒，從中獲得品嚐的經驗，都有助於我barista與杯測者的工作。


BGT： What is the most common mistake of barista when they making espresso at coffee bars?
你覺得在咖啡店裡，barista最常犯的錯誤是什麼？

Tim： They do not focus on all the factors that affects the brewing process. By this I mean things like, cleanliness, tamping, grinding adjustment, flushing the machine, etc, etc. Many baristas have a routine, but they rarely question their routine. This means that small details often are missed in the brewing process. By missing only one important detail the espresso can turn out to taste horrible. It is really hard to focus on quality when the line is getting longer on the other side of the counter, but if not every customer are treated as good as you would like to be treated yourself, then I do believe you are making a mistake.
通病是不夠專注，這包括沖煮過程中所有足以產生影響的元素，像是清潔、填壓、研磨調整、放水....等等。絕大多數的 barista有一套操作程序，但是卻很少對這個慣常的程序做檢討，這意味著在沖煮過程中會有些小細節經常被忽略，而偏偏一個小失誤就能讓 espresso變得難以下嚥。我也知道全程的專注是真的不容易的事情，尤其是櫃臺的另一邊等待的客人越來越多的時候，但是只要你沒有對待客人沒有像對待你自己那麼講究的時候，我相信這時候錯誤立刻就要出現了。

 
BGT： Right now you create a roast factory do you think a good barista should know how to roast coffee? Or even to practice roasting? And what is your suggestion of barista to cooperate with roaster?   
我們知道你現在正在籌備所謂的自烘店，你認為一個好的barista應該去瞭解烘焙嗎？甚至是去學習烘焙工作？你覺得barista跟roaster之間如何配合？

Tim： I definitely believe that all baristas should have knowledge about roasting and how roasting affects the taste of the coffee. You can have one coffee and roast it in many different ways and get different results in the cup. I believe that all baristas should try to open a dialogue with a roaster and try to get at least the roasting date on the bags they buy along with other vital information. I also believe that roasters and baristas should taste more coffee together. This way the barista can help the roaster get better by giving feedback and the roaster will help the barista gain more knowledge. It is a win-win situation for all of us.
我絕對相信所有的barista都應該具備烘焙知識，去瞭解烘焙如何對咖啡風味造成了影響，相同的咖啡會因為不同的烘焙方式，而造成不同的口感結果。我認為所有barista要嘗試著與烘焙師對話並交換意見，最起碼知道袋子上烘焙日期的意義以及其他伴隨的重要資訊。我也覺得烘焙師跟barista必須一起同時杯測各種咖啡，藉由這樣意見回饋的方式，讓烘焙者更精準掌握沖煮需求，也讓barista 自己瞭解更多烘焙相關知識，這絕對是一個創造雙贏的方式，對大家都好。


BGT： Do you think Barista is just as a career， or barista maybe just a passing job?
你覺得barista該是個終身職志，抑或是一個騎驢找馬的過渡工作？

Tim： I am the living proof that it can definitely be a career. I started as a full time barista and worked my way up to become manager of 8 coffee shops before I quit my job at Stockfleth’s. Now I am opening a coffee school, a roastery and an espresso bar in Oslo. I believe it is always up to every person what they make of their job. But don’t believe everything will happen for you if you do a good job. Responsibility is never given to a person, it is taken by the person. So my advice to all is to take responsibility of your own future.
我就是一個活生生的例子，這絕對會是一份能當作終身職志的工作。我在Stockfleth’s從一個全職吧台努力做起，在離職前，我已經負責八家咖啡店的經理事務。我目前正在奧斯陸籌辦一所咖啡學校、一間烘焙廠和一家咖啡店。我相信每個人可以決定他的工作應該是什麼樣子，但是千萬別以為你做了好事，幸福會自動來敲門。責任不會落在人身上，而是靠人自攬，所以我相信，所有人都應該主動為他的未來負責任。


BGT： If have the chance do you want to visit Taiwan and expand your business ?
如果有機會你會訪問台灣嗎，甚至拓展你的事業？

Tim： I definitely would like to visit Taiwan. Right now my schedule is really tight because of my new establishment. But if a good opportunity comes around, I would not hesitate to jump on a plane and fly to Taiwan. Asian culture is something I need to explore more. Especially when it comes to food and drinks.
我當然希望有天去台灣看看，但是因為新公司的成立，我的行程已經排得滿滿的了。但是只要有好機會，我將毫不猶豫地跳上飛機來台灣，亞洲文化是我必須去探究更多的，尤其是涉及到飲食的部分。

[年輕的老頭]

請問是否可以對 Tim Wendelboe 的背景與經歷做個簡單的介紹？
我想可能不少朋友不知道他是誰，我也只是一知半解 

[BGT office]

看過Stockfleth's Move的影片嗎？大多數人開始對Tim有印象是從這裡開始的。
[gv=475,325]-3705485316541852747[/gv]

1998～進入Stockfleth's從事全職barista，開始他的咖啡之路，這年19歲。

1999～做到Stockfleth's的分店manager，並第一次參加Norwegian Barista Championship得到第五。

2000～拿到Norwegian Barista Championship亞軍，當年冠軍Robert Thoresen也是第一屆WBC的冠軍。這一年Tea & Coffee Trade Journal雜誌曾經介紹了Tim's barista suitcase（所有barista工具裝在一個007手提箱裡）。

2001～終於拿到挪威全國冠軍，並在WBC得到第二名。

2002～蟬聯挪威冠軍，也仍然拿到WBC亞軍。這一年Tim有本共同著作"Bønner I byn"，談的是咖啡文化。

2003～擔任丹麥及挪威的barista大賽評審，並擔任Eirik Sand Johnsen的訓練師（WBC季軍）。代表挪威贏得Norwegian Barista Championship（國際團隊比賽）。這年Tim也為了研發Stockfleth's espresso blend，到挪威當地有百年歷史的Solberg & Hansen正式參與烘焙、配豆工作。

2004～挪威冠軍，並於號稱WBC史上最激烈的一屆賽事內，勝了Sammy Piccolo(Canada)跟Klaus Thomsen(Denmark)，終於一圓金把手之夢。這一年他也開始任職所有Stockfleth's八家店的co manager，負責咖啡品質。

2005、2006～贏得World Cup Tasters Championship冠軍。正式從Stockfleth's離職。從事教學、顧問，也開始籌畫他自己的事業。這年開始barista界的超級四大賽都邀請他擔任評審（除了WBC、WCC，還有World Coffee in Good Spirits Championship、World Latte Art Championship），其他各國的賽事也爭相邀請他，他也參與各國選手培訓均能擠進WBC前20強，成績斐然。這二年他也在各重要媒體大量發表文章，分享他的心得。

2007～今年28歲，入行第十年。他將帶著他訓練的挪威冠軍Einar Kleppe Holthe赴日本參加WBC。而他自己的烘焙廠、咖啡店、咖啡學校也將在夏天正式開幕。

[BGT office]

奧斯陸是個小地方，人口不到60萬，但卻是全球物價最貴的地方，更勝東京。在這樣的彈丸之地，不只咖啡業，我想各行各業的壓力都很大。當這篇1/2專訪登出之後，有些朋友說歐洲數百年的咖啡文化風氣就是他們最堅強的後盾，也有些朋友說人口少所以競爭少，分到的餅比較大，更有人說WBC這樣的比賽不代表什麼....每個人的解讀不同。

他習慣替自己訂定一個高標準，換句話說，他很難對現有的成就滿足，甚至不認為那是成就。他似乎永遠知道自己需要什麼，要做甚麼，未來在哪裡，而不是走一步算一步。他很明白自己不是天縱英才，尤其在咖啡這一個接近工藝的產業裡，DNA沒辦法提供任何幫助，他除了自己要努力，還要多方接觸，多謙沖請益，要讓眼界更廣，才有為自己找到創造未來的可能。

不知道各位從Tim的身上看到了什麼？
我想我看到的是謙遜的氣度，堅定的企圖心，天助自助者。