Find your inner barista.

By Lorna Knowles
Herald Sun

Find your inner barista and save as consumers cut out takeaway coffee.

WHILE consumers are going without takeaway coffee to save money, they are spending big on espresso machines and coffee beans.

More than 45 per cent of people recently surveyed by the Australian National Retailers Association said they had stopped buying takeaway coffees to save money.

But other figures suggested householders were finding their inner barista, investing in espresso machines, grinders and beans to make cafe-style coffee at home.

Liz Rodway, of the ANRA, said retail sales of coffee machines had jumped by between 20 per cent and 25 per cent in the past six months.

"There's a new coffee culture evolving in Australia and we are seeing people who bought a cheap machine years ago looking to upgrade," Ms Rodway said.

"The quality of machines is good. You can get just as good a coffee from these new machines than at your local cafe."

She said the most popular brands included Sunbeam and Breville. Domestic espresso machines vary in price from $300 to $2500.

Grinders cost between $50 and $200 and a bag of coffee beans will set you back about $12.

Home baristas should also budget for a coffee making course - a booming industry around Australia.

"The home barista market is increasing all of the time," two-time Australian champion barista David Makin said.

"Melbourne's always had such a strong history in coffee and some amazing baristas, but now people want to do it themselves."

Mr Makin, who runs weekly barista courses in Melbourne, recommended the Sunbeam 6910 as the best entry-level coffee machine (rrp about $750).

"But the most important thing to buy is a good grinder and Sunbeam makes one for $189," he said.

Mother of two Sue Heinrich got an espresso machine for Christmas and has recently done a home barista course to improve her coffee-making skills.

She did the course at Jetblack Espresso, in the Sydney suburb of Cremorne, where shop owner Debbie Monteleone said they had experienced a rise in coffee machine sales and barista course enrolments.

Mrs Heinrich, a travel consultant who works from home, makes herself one or two coffees a day rather than visiting her local cafe.

"I rarely buy takeaway and I'm saving a lot," she said.

"A bag of beans is about $12, and it lasts us two weeks, with my husband and I having one or two coffees each per day."

The couple are saving $78 per week by making their own coffee. Four takeaway coffees per day, at an average price of $3 each, would cost $12 per day or $84 per week.

Making their coffee from home costs $6 per week for the beans.

That means that within just six weeks, they will have saved enough to recoup the cost of a $468 espresso machine.

Ms Rodway said the sale of coffee beans had grown by 15 per cent in the past year.

"There's also been a strong growth in cappuccino mixes - 25 per cent over the past three years," she said.

Instant coffee sales were also growing by about 10 per cent per year.

Andrew Freeman, who runs Coffee Snobs, an online coffee-lovers forum, said the quality of domestic espresso machines had improved dramatically.

He advised those on a tight budget to invest in a good coffee bean grinder, for about $200, and use cheaper devices, like plungers and stove top coffee makers.

For those with their hearts set on an espresso machine, Mr Freeman recommended the new Breville with built-in grinder or the Sunbeam.

He also recommended the Rancilio Silvia (about $780).

Annual International Barista Competition

On the 13th and 14th November, Vanuatu, a tropical island in the South Pacific, is holding its annual International Barista Competition. Barista Coffee is the professional excellence in the artistry of making a great coffee.

Coffee experts and amateur coffee makers from all over the world will confer on how to make the best expresso coffee. International Barista judge, Rob Forsyth from Sydney Australia, will oversee the event and judge the entries.

The competition will be held in the grounds of the newly refurbished Le Lagon Resort overlooking the Pacific Ocean, with many special accommodation deals being offered to visitors to Vanuatu. Vanuatu grows its own world famous organic coffee, Tanna Coffee, on the tropical island of Tanna.

“We held our first competition last year, which was such a success that the Barista Vanuatu is now an annual event on the Vanuatu calendar,” said hotel owner and Barista organizer, Joanne Wade of Poppys on the Lagoon. “The atmosphere around Port Vila during the competition time and the prizes alone, including air fares, are enough to draw numerous entrants. It is an unbeatable location for this international event.”

Coffee growing and appreciation of good coffee makers has grown dramatically worldwide, in the past few years. Organically grown coffee beans now feature on supermarket shelves and making café latte has become café art.

Major sponsors of the 2008 Barista Vanuatu include the ANZ bank, Air Vanuatu, Poppys on the Lagoon, Le Lagon Resort, Friendly Bungalows on Tanna, Tanna Coffee

Entries can be made on the Barista Vanuatu official web site www.baristavanuatu.com