"The Curious Barista's Guide to Coffee" feedback

Want to talk espresso but not sure which forum? If so, this is the right one.
IntrepidQ3
Posts: 330
Joined: 10 years ago

#1: Post by IntrepidQ3 »

I stumbled on this book, The Curious Barista by Tristan Stephenson, while surfing the web.

Has anyone read this? Is it worth getting?

Here is the link: http://www.rylandpeters.com/the-curious ... -to-coffee
"As you know, an explorer's temperament requires two basic qualities: optimism in attempt, criticism in work."-Freud

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keno
Posts: 1409
Joined: 18 years ago

#2: Post by keno »

IntrepidQ3 wrote:I stumbled on this book, The Curious Barista by Tristan Stephenson, while surfing the web.

Has anyone read this? Is it worth getting
Reading it now and overall I'm pretty impressed. Does a very nice job laying out a lot of the basics and is nicely illustrated. And for $15 on Amazon the book is a great deal.

Here's how I would compare it to some other currently available books:

James Hoffman, The World Atlas of Coffee - the first half of this book is similar to the Curious Barista's Guide. Curious Barista expands upon a lot of these topics but does not go into all the details about coffee varietals.

Scott Rao, The Professional Barista's Handbook - goes into a lot more detail about extraction, but does not cover as wide a range of topics as Curious Barista.

Scott Rao, The Coffee Roaster's Companion - goes into more detail about the roasting process, but not much else.

If I had to recommend one book for a budding home barista it would be the Curious Barista as it covers pretty much everything. Then branch out from there based on your interests. If you are interested mostly in coffee pick up Hoffman's book. If home roasting, then Rao's roasting book. And if espresso go with Rao's barista handbook.

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IntrepidQ3 (original poster)
Posts: 330
Joined: 10 years ago

#3: Post by IntrepidQ3 (original poster) »

Thanks keno for you insight on these books. I had forgotten about this inquiry. When I get through my current readings I will have to get to this these.
"As you know, an explorer's temperament requires two basic qualities: optimism in attempt, criticism in work."-Freud