Mathallen is a mecca for the quality-conscious. Here you'll find rare delicacies, sweet pastries and exciting cheeses in perfect harmony; simply everything a gourmet could wish for. But did you know that Mathallen also houses a knowledge centre for speciality coffees and teas from around the world? Welcome to the Solberg & Hansen concept store!
- A concept store at Mathallen is actually the perfect solution for us as a coffee supplier. It gives us an opportunity to reach consumers without being a direct competitor to the cafés that stock our products. Here, the product, process and knowledge are at the centre, which is why we only sell black coffee.
Linn Victoria Andersen is the general manager of the concept store at Mathallen. She is passionate about speciality coffee and is always on the lookout for the perfect cup. She's happy to share her findings with customers who visit the store
- "Most of the people who visit us are curious and interested in coffee, so it's fitting that it takes four minutes to brew a perfect cup," says Linn with a smile.
And Linn puts those four minutes to good use. She talks about the origins of coffee, different brewing methods and the process from bean to finished cup. The perfect cup of coffee requires both love and care, and this is important for the concept store's employees to convey.
Coffee knowledge for the people
One of the concept store's most important roles is to spread knowledge about speciality coffee, which of course takes longer than the four minutes it takes to brew a cup. The concept store therefore organises a number of courses for individuals and companies interested in coffee who want to learn more about it.
- "We offer basic courses for beginners, but also more advanced courses for coffee nerds. We have everything from groups of friends who want to learn how to hand brew to companies that want to gain a deeper understanding of speciality coffee," says Linn.
"From bean to cup"
The concept store's most popular course is called "From bean to cup". The course aims to give participants a basic but thorough introduction to speciality coffee, so they can better understand the treasure inside each individual bean.
- By tasting their way through the coffee belt, participants will gain a better understanding of why different beans taste the way they do, how preparation affects flavour and what to expect from different types of coffee.
An eternal learning curve
In order to be the resource company that Solberg & Hansen wants to be, it is essential that our employees stay up to date at all times. The speciality coffee industry is very dynamic, and no one is fully trained.
- You have to constantly try and fail to get better. For example, a lot of new things are happening in processing methods at the moment. For example, Kenyan bean types are suddenly being grown in Costa Rica, which means that we suddenly have a whole new type of bean to deal with. We think that's fun!
Testing the senses
Developing the senses of taste and smell is one of the most important things for the employees at the concept store. Neither coffee nor tea is flavoured, so describing a flavour can be very complex. Linn talks enthusiastically about how they keep their senses sharp:
- We spend a lot of time putting into words what coffee and tea actual flavours, so that we can understand the products better. One way of doing this is through flavour cupping. For example, we cut up fruit and vegetables and put them in a jar of water that we leave in the fridge for two days. Then we cup the water without knowing what has been in it," says Linn.
Knowledge at all levels
For Solberg & Hansen, it is important that the entire company has a lot of knowledge about everything from products to processes. Each month therefore has a different knowledge focus. One month may focus on roasting coffee, while the next may focus on tea.
- "I particularly remember that we focused on trade from Kenya for a month. Among other things, the purchasing group gave presentations on how trade takes place in Kenya. I found it incredibly educational to be able to understand how the raw material I work with every day had ended up in my coffee grinder.
However, it's not just coffee that's important to Solberg & Hansen, despite the fact that it's the coffee that's mentioned most often.
- Another month, we might suddenly focus on tea. There's often a lot of focus on coffee, so it's easy to be surprised at how complex tea really is. I still have a lot to learn there, but I like that," concludes Linn.
