the world's premiere networking website for the specialty coffee industry

Simon James's Page

Simon James 40 Melbourne, Australia: 2szdlyvmde0rw; Share

Discussions (1)

Simon James's Friends

View All

Simon James's Groups

Australian Barista's (4 members)
Coffee-to-Stay - Idea Exchange (60 members)

The Espresso Quest Group (9 members)
AASCA - Australasian Specialty Coffee Association (11 members)

Social Projects. (55 members)

View All

Simon James's discussions

What Made Starbucks Successful?

Replied Jun 9

View All

Latest Activity

Simon James joined the group Australian Barista's Jul 12

Simon James and Kyle Glanville are now friends

Jun 28

Anya and Simon James are now friends

Jun 23

Carl Sara left a comment for Simon James Jun 14

Simon James commented on the event World Barista Championship Jun 10

Simon James decided to attend the event World Barista Championship Jun 10

Simon James replied to the discussion What Made Starbucks Successful? Jun 9

Simon James left a comment for Carl Sara Jun 7

Profile

What is your position in the coffee industry?: barista, barista trainer, industry professional

Where are you located? ( City and Country ): Melbourne, Australia

How many years have you been in the industry?: 8 Years

If you are a barista or shop, are you interested in a barista exchange with another coffee shop/barista?: maybe

What cities or countries are you interested in traveling to?: Everywhere!

About Me:: I love coffee and music.
I love toys for making coffee and music.

About My Company:: I'm the Victorian Barista Trainer for Michel's Espresso.
We have 50+ stores around Melbourne and Victoria. (Many more nationwide.)
Instaurator roasts our coffee in Sydney, and it's a great, Gold Medal winning product.

What is your favorite thing about the coffee industry?: Exposure to more and more awesome Specialty Coffee.

Website:: http://sdotjames.wordpress.com/

Comment Wall (16 comments)

You need to be a member of Barista Exchange to add comments!

Join this network

At 4:55am on June 14th, 2008, Carl Sara said…: Where are youmate? Just at Heathrow waiting for the final flight to Copenhagen. give me a sms when you get in. +6421389965

At 9:20pm on June 6th, 2008, Carl Sara said…: Cool. I get in on the 14th as well. staying at the Hotel Angsar. give me a text when your about.

At 6:49am on May 30th, 2008, Joon-Suk (Jason) Kim said…: Yeah i think it is a good time to start some networks around the world :P and mingle with other baristas

cheers Simon

At 7:20pm on April 30th, 2008, Jason Haeger said…: Your signature drink sounds delicious. (and complicated)

I hope someone snaps some pictures of your performance.

At 6:20pm on April 30th, 2008, Jason Haeger said…: I placed 3rd in my regional. Like you, I had a "bad day at the office" in the final round.

I had top place after the 1st round. (it was only two rounds)

I had only 4 hours of sleep the night before (one hour commute home, and I wasn't just competing, I was also networking when I wasn't competing). Doing all my own stuff. I had to run it alone, and it's always harder without help. Enough excuses.

My signature drink was called Café Hermosa, and it was warmed orange blossom honey, a single shot of Finca Vista Hermosa (Guatemala, and one of the inspirations for the name), and clove-infused milk foam. It was quite tasty, but the coffee had no body.

I hope you do well in your national comp. I will be competing in next year's USBC, however. Unfortunately, that's an entire year away from now.

Good luck!

At 10:35am on April 30th, 2008, Jason Haeger said…: Hi Simon. I went to the regional leading up to the upcoming USBC (but I will not be competing in the national comp this year).

I saw that you have competed recently. I saw that you were in the final round. Congrats!

At 1:37am on April 1st, 2008, Instaurator said…: Hey Simon Well done in the Victorian champs. Keep going for it! Mr Makin told me this is the last Victorian comp he is going in!

At 12:11pm on March 17th, 2008, Instaurator said…: Hah! Wolfie is probably just wanting to know so he can pass it on to Dave Makin. (Just joking Dave!) Hey tips for winning barista competitions or tips for surviving in tact? The guys who go all the way and win are extraordinarily dedicated and disciplined without exception. They also play the game smart! Because much of competitions are about human emotions rather than coffee taste and this can be very tricky. I'm not sure what percentage coffee taste plays in the total score in reality. I'd say at this stage of competition development it is probably the human pr element which dominates. So its probably more about winning people over rather than nuances of coffee blends. For me though as you know, I'd rather taste coffees blind and not know who made it or how, unless of course it was something that tasted extraordinary. Then I'd be deadly curious and travel to the remotest head-hunting jungle at the end of the eath to try and find out what made the difference. Good luck is about all I can say!

At 12:09pm on March 17th, 2008, Instaurator said…: Hah! Wolfie is probably just wanting to know so he can pass it on to Dave Makin. (Just joking Dave!) Hey tips for winning barista competitions or tips for surviving in tact? The guys who go all the way and win are extraordinarily dedicated and disciplined without exception. They also play the game smart! Because much of competitions are about human emotions rather than coffee taste and this can be very tricky. I'm not sure what percentage coffee taste plays in the total score in reality. I'd say at this stage of competition development it is probably the human pr element which dominates. So its probably more about winning people over rather than nuances of coffee blends. For me though as you know, I'd rather taste coffees blind and not know who made it or how, unless of course it was something that tasted extraordinary. Then I'd be deadly curious and travel to the remotest head-hunting jungle at the end of the eath to try and find out what made the difference. Good luck is about all I can say!

At 12:09pm on March 17th, 2008, Instaurator said…: Hah! Wolfie is probably just wanting to know so he can pass it on to Dave Makin. (Just joking Dave!) Hey tips for winning barista competitions or tips for surviving in tact? The guys who go all the way and win are extraordinarily dedicated and disciplined without exception. They also play the game smart! Because much of competitions are about human emotions rather than coffee taste and this can be very tricky. I'm not sure what percentage coffee taste plays in the total score in reality. I'd say at this stage of competition development it is probably the human pr element which dominates. So its probably more about winning people over rather than nuances of coffee blends. For me though as you know, I'd rather taste coffees blind and not know who made it or how, unless of course it was something that tasted extraordinary. Then I'd be deadly curious and travel to the remotest head-hunting jungle at the end of the eath to try and find out what made the difference. Good luck is about all I can say!

View All Comments

Welcome to
Barista Exchange

Sign Up
or Sign In

Barista Exchange Partners

Chat with who's Online!

Click on the images above to chat with members.

bX Job Postings

Post a Job! $10 for 30 days

Keep Barista Exchange Free

Are you enjoying Barista Exchange? Is it helping you promote your business and helping you network in this great industry? Donate today to keep it free to all members. Supporters can join the "Supporters Group" with a donation. Thanks!