Star Barista and Consultant Cole McBride Talks Seattle Coffee

McBride (Facebook photo)

When you are widely regarded as one of the most knowledgeable and skilled baristas in what is arguably the world’s most knowledgeable coffee city, it is assumed you know a thing or two about coffee.

The Seattle Weekly tested that assumption during a recent Q&A with native Tennessean Cole McBride who, despite his youth, is a veteran coffee man in Seattle, with stints at Caffe Ladro, Espresso Vivace and Stumptown Coffee Roasters. McBride, now the director of education and consultant at Visions Espresso, shared with the Weekly some interesting perceptions of Seattle’s cafe industry, while also declaring which is the better of Seattle’s most renowned cafe neighborhoods: Capitol Hill or Ballard.

On Seattle, McBride told the Weekly’s Chelsea Lin:

Let’s start with the fact that I love this community, as I have been a part of it for so long. There was a time when it seemed like there was no community at all, and all the shop owners, roasters, and baristas were more concerned with fighting about who was the best instead of growing specialty coffee. This has changed so much in the last few years! For one the Barista Guild of America has helped bring people together. Our community is stronger than ever, mostly because of the baristas that have come together to learn from one another and hold events that keep us connected.

The full interview: Seattle Weekly