Second Cup's Resident "Coffee Expert™" Patrick Russell
Achieves Q Grader Certification
- Russell only the 7th in Canada to Hold This Level of Certification -
TORONTO, Dec. 9 /CNW/ - Second Cup® Canada continues to define innovation and coffee integrity in the Canadian coffee retail industry, with the proud announcement of Patrick Russell's latest achievement. This week Russell successfully completed his Q Grader Certification through the Coffee Quality Institute (CQI) becoming only the 7th person in Canada to attain this esteemed certification. As a Q Grader, Russell is now licensed to assess and grade coffee quality; Russell will continue to focus on sourcing, evaluating, and delivering the finest Arabica coffees to Second Cup's guests.
"I am very proud to be Second Cup's first Q Grader. Making sure that our coffee is the highest quality is my primary mandate and the Q Grader certification helps to ensure that we always have best practices in place," states Patrick Russell.
What is a Licensed Q Grader or Q Grader: A professional cupper (one who uses their senses of sight, smell and taste to determine green and roasted coffee quality through a standard evaluation process) who has successfully passed CQI's Q Grader Certification and earned a certificate as a Licensed Q Grader (source: http://www.coffeeinstitute.org/need-help.html).
"Patrick's certification as a Licensed Q grader is a true testament to our coffee expertise and commitment to Coffee Integrity as a brand. Seeing Patrick take his craft to the next level is an inspiration to our network of independent Second Cup cafe owners," states Stacey Mowbray, President & CEO at Second Cup Ltd.
Russell was promoted earlier this year to the unique role of in-house Coffee Expert™, a job defined to uphold the high product standard. In his role as Coffee Expert™, Russell works alongside the Second Cup roaster to taste coffee 112 times before it is released to guests. Russell continues to define his role as a coffee industry leader, recently winning the 2010 Canadian Cup Tasters Championship! Russell will represent Canada in the 2011 World Cup Tasters' Championship live at the Specialty Coffee Association of Europe event in Maastricht, The Netherlands, June 22nd - 24th.
Licensed Q Grader Background
Licensed Q Graders are professional cuppers accredited by the Coffee Quality Institute (the Specialty Coffee Association of America's charitable trust), they are licensed to grade coffees, and at times serve as arbiters in disputes between green coffee vendors and buyers when quality is in question. These Q Graders must pass a rigorous exam to earn their certification, comprising of 22 sections on coffee related subjects, such as green grading, roast identification, coffee cupping, sensory skills and sensory triangulation (source: http://www.scaa.org/?page=cupping).
About Second Cup®
Founded in 1975, Second Cup® is Canada's largest specialty coffee franchisor, operating more than 340 cafes across the country. As a proudly Canadian company, Second Cup celebrates its franchisees' local ownership, and prioritizes the support of local businesses through daily deliveries from neighbourhood partners. Committed to coffee integrity, all 5,000 associates of Second Cup are Trusted Coffee ExpertsTM who sell 1,000,000 fairly traded coffee and tea beverages every week. To find a location near you or for more information, please visit www.secondcup.com.
For further information:
regarding Second Cup please contact:
Kimberly Clark
Vice President of Marketing; The Second Cup Ltd.
T. 905-362-1831 E. [email protected]
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