Coen van Sprangs favourite coffee

I would serve cracking coffee and do without pets

This month, Specialtycoffee started a new series in which the men and women ‘behind the coffee’ step into the limelight. In the first episode (sorry only Dutch) Boaz Bosboom of Screaming Beans in Amsterdam took centre stage. For this week’s episode, we invited the 2011 DBC Champion Coen van Sprang to share his innermost coffee-stirrings with us. Coen started off as a barista at LEBKOV & Sons in 2003 and has been the manager of its Rotterdam office for the last 5 years. 

Favourite coffee?

"Early in the morning, a full bodied, zesty, fruity espresso from Africa! Or a chemex, always a good thing."

Peak experience?

"My fist visit to a coffee plantation in Bogotá, Colombia, during the 2011 WBC. When I set eyes on coffee plants for the first time in my life, my jaw dropped, literally, out of sheer amazement and happiness. This was a huge thing to me. And so was, of course,  winning the Dutch Barista Championships in 2011!"

Colombia, Cartagena

Where did you taste your best coffee ever?

"When I got my first taste of specialty coffee at the WLAC 2009 in Cologne. I was invited to join Henk Langkemper and Maarten van der Jagt on their trip to Germany. At Menno Simons' Trabocca stand I drank my first specialty coffee. And despite being prepped for the occasion by Maarten, I was deeply impressed. My first reaction to Maarten sort of went like this: ‘Huh? What is this, is this coffee? Is this for real? Can I have another one, do you reckon?' Maybe, in hindsight, it was not the best coffee I ever had, but it impressed me more than any other."

Any unsettling ‘coffee usances' you can think of?

"Cacao on top of your cappuccino. Where did this come from? All it does is add a dry, bitter, warped taste to your sweet cappuccino. Why?!"

 

Best feedback?

"At an indoor market in Rotterdam, where I was brewing coffee together with Yakup Aydin. A woman of around 70 visited our stand, full of wonder and admiration. ‘Oh, is it really you? I've seen you on telly. You are the best coffee maker in the Netherlands, aren't you?' And I replied: ‘Yes, madam, what coffee can I brew for you?' Then she said: ‘Will you really brew my coffee? Who would have thought I'd live to see this!'"

Favourite espresso machine?

"For a long time I worked with La Marzocco's Linea. A good machine that will deliver what you ask it to. But I prefer the steaming mechanism of the Nuova Simonelli Aurelia: a real pleasure to work with. On a different note, I can't quite make up my mind about whether I should bring a GS/3 or a Speedster into my new home. Both Yakup and I are actually most eager to get our hands on Maarten's La Marzocco GS/3, because we both love the extraordinary espressos it keeps churning out." 

With John Gordon in Bogotá

Exemplary barista?

"Yakup Aydin (DBC Champion 2010) taught me the tricks of the trade. We would watch many presentations by John Gordon (United Kingdom) and Pete Licata (USA) together. The American is a walking coffee-bible."

What espresso bar or city thoroughly merits a visit?

"London, for us in the Netherlands, is the nearest city with a well developed specialty coffee culture. The number of quality espresso bars is very high and they are often located within walking distance of each other. New York is another city I would recommend. Clovers, Slayers, in NY nothing is too weird. Australia is still on my wish list."

 

What would be the dos and don'ts if you were to start up your own espresso bar?

"I would serve cracking coffee and do without pets."

 

What coffee producing countries did you visit?

"Until now I only visited Colombia. My second coffee trip,  to Ethiopia, is scheduled in February. In preparation of my WBC, Yakup, Maarten, Henk and I will visit plantations that will possibly provide my championship coffee. Then we will get to taste newly harvested coffees, fresh from the coffee plant."

 

Any recommendations for home baristas?

"Get a grinder, grind your own coffee. If a high quality espresso machine is beyond your financial means, just brew filter coffee at home and go out for an espresso or cappuccino."

 

Plans for the future?

"Getting into the final at the coming WBC in Vienna!"

Where can we find you?

LEBKOV & Sons

Stationsplein 50

3013 AK Rotterdam

www.coenvansprang.com

ESPRESSO MACHINE

La Marzocco Linea

Coffee

LEBKOV Houseblend - 80% Brazil 20% Nicaragua

With Kim Staalman at the DBC 2011

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