The following is the original “about” page for Barista Hustle, January 2015. Although out of date, the sentiment remains the same!

Hey there! If you’re wondering what The Hustle is and how it works, you’ve come to the right place. The following is a manifesto of sorts for this new project. If it strikes a chord with you, or you think a friend or colleague might benefit from this project, please let them know about it. I truly hope it can change the way Baristas everywhere will learn about their craft. The Hustle – Almost every Barista and Coffee Professional I have ever met wants the same thing – To learn.

I am exactly the same. But unfortunately, so many businesses and individuals are unable to satisfy this hunger for growth and enrichment. Accessing a constantly evolving and advanced coffee education is obscenely expensive. Most resources are also out of date, out of touch and nowhere near deep enough. Does anyone really think they can learn how to be a proficient Barista during a 3 day course?

No one has all the answers to making great coffee. Not even close. Specialty Coffee is still very young and we have so much to learn. The cutting edge changes monthly and best-practise means a thousand different things to different people. To be brutally honest, we’re still really bad at serving consistently delicious and special coffees to our customers. This has to change faster.

I’ve been lucky enough over the last few years to work for and invest in a company that has research and development amongst its top priorities. This has put me in an incredibly unique position, where I can ask big questions and utilise our resources to find the answers. There are so few people in the industry that have the means to do this.

I would love for every Barista on the planet to make better coffee. Not just for selfish reasons like wanting a better cup of coffee when I visit a cafe. The better the average quality of coffee is around the world, the stronger our industry becomes. As they say, a rising tide lifts all boats.

So, I’ve decided to release everything for free.

The Hustle will be a free weekly email that details a concept, technique, product or otherwise that helps Baristas. I’ll be dabbling in articles, podcasts, videos, downloads and anything I can think of to get the message across. BaristaHustle.com will also host the content and offer a place to discuss, debate and learn more from peers. I’ll be spending as much time as I can spare helping Baristas get the most out of it all through the comments and also sidenotes – a new focused discussion feature I have high hopes for! Here’s one now —>

I also have plans to translate The Hustle. I can’t wait to make this kind of information easily accessible to Baristas truly anywhere. Soon I’ll be announcing a star-studded cast of Korean, Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian and Latin American locals who will help me make it all as relevant and accessible as possible.

There’s one minor catch though. I’m taking unpaid time off from my usual duties to run this project, and am personally covering the website/hosting expenses, not to mention the multilingual site and translation fees to come. This stuff really adds up, so I’m looking for ways to keep it afloat. I want everyone out there to know that I will never take money for opinion, and will always maintain full disclosure about where support is coming from. Without trust and integrity, The Hustle will be nothing.

If anyone out there has ideas for support, content, interview guests or anything at all, please let me know in the comments below!

I’m really looking forward to this project, and hope it can be a lasting force for growth and learning. If you haven’t already, please sign up for the first mail out in early January. If you have, thanks! Please let your friends know about it!

With sincere ambition,

M. Perger