– Can you please introduce yourself in a few words.
Jai Lott – Coffee Director for Bluestone Lane New York’s 9 locations.

– What’s your story in the coffee industry?
I have been in the industry for over 13 year as a manager, owner and teacher. My wife and I left Australia last year to start work with Bluestone Lane and their fast growing company in New York.

– What’s your specialty and what makes you different?
Teaching espresso fundamentals would be my strongest point. I don’t teach trends but a more broad perspective of what I have learnt from different people over the years and I believe is effective.

– What was your first coffee experience?
2 sugars in a Vanilla Latte at the first place I ever worked at. I hated coffee and refused to learn, but once I gave in Its been love ever since.

– What was your best coffee experience?
Hosting a Latte Art competition last year with Dritan Alsela was pretty great!

– Do you prepare coffee at home ? If yes, what method do you use?
I do. I have a few tools but my favorite is an old La Pavoni lever machine. 21 in, 18 out, 22 seconds.

– How do you like your coffee? Black, sugar and milk, iced, vietnamese style,…?
A short long black is my go-to (a ‘shlong’)

– How would you qualify yourself as coffee drinker (occasional, heavy, addict…)?
Funnily enough just one a day where possible. Sometimes it gets a little heavier.

– Have you always been into the coffee industry? If not, what was your previous job?
My first year out of school I did landscaping and hated it. I have been in hospitality ever since, but only specialty coffee for 7 years.

– Do you have another passion or a hobby besides coffee?
The ocean. Bodyboarding has always been my extra curricular past time since i was 13. I always lived by the ocean in a town called Noosa in Australia. Being in New York permanently makes it a little harder, but whenever possible I get in the water.

– What other place would you recommend, anywhere in the world (coffee or not)?
My home town of Noosa. Its paradise and possibly has the best coffee per capita of anywhere I know of.

– What is/are your favorite website(s) to get information about coffee?
Barista Hustle. Anything Matt Perger writes I look at pretty seriously.

– What would you say to people who don’t know much about coffee?
Its a rabbit hole worth going down

Published by

Thomas

Thomas Wyngaard est fondateur de OK Coffee et un des rares experts en Café de Spécialité en Belgique francophone. Il est consultant indépendant, enseignant (certifié par la Specialty Coffee Association de janvier 2018 à avril 2021), tour-ist et broadcaster. Après avoir été formé en France, en Pologne et en Estonie, il fait ses armes chez les meilleurs en Belgique, pour ensuite migrer pendant presque 2 ans à New York où il a officié comme conseiller et formateur. Au-delà de la formation sur les métiers du café, il collabore avec des torréfactions belges engagées sur la reconnaissance du café de spécialité, œuvrant ainsi à un monde meilleur “one bean at a time”.