Home coffee experiences in the sun
With COVID-19 keeping us cooped up, we asked ViCAFE customers to tell us more about their coffee experiences at home. We received an overwhelming response. Almost 400 people have commented on the topic and we’ve gathered a few interesting insights. This is what the home coffee experience looked like over the past few days.
First, the most important insight: You are essentially very satisfied with your home coffee experience. On average, you rate it 8.2 out of a maximum of 10 points. Seems good enough… But when we took a closer look at the numbers and comments, we discovered that there is still room for improvement. But first, a few facts:
42% of all participants brew their coffee with an espresso machine at home. This number really surprised us. If you also look at the wish list, almost all of them seem to have or would like to buy a portafilter machine. The second most commonly used coffee maker is the Bialetti moka pot. 32% enjoy their brew from this traditional Italian coffee maker. The remaining 25% mostly extract their coffee on a fully automatic machine or brew a filter coffee. Seems your home offices are properly geared for coffee making!
63% of you drink the same amount of coffee as on a normal day in the office. 15% drink less and 22% drink more coffee than usual. At the same time, the need to have your own coffee machine has of course increased significantly. About 1.5 weeks before you run out of coffee, you will slowly but surely start to get nervous. So, the question that naturally comes up is how to properly store your coffee. The freshness of the coffee is known to have a huge impact on the quality of the end product. From our chats with you, it’s become clear that some of you are unsure about the do’s and don’ts when it comes to storing your coffee. In our FAQ we give you an overview. Basically, the following guidelines apply: Keep it dry in an airtight, light-tight container and cool, but not in the fridge. The topic is close to our hearts and that’s why we’re playing with the idea of offering a suitable storage container in our online shop. We are particularly impressed with the Miir solution and the Fellow container. Let us know what you think .
Although you are mostly satisfied with your home coffee experience, there are of course a few areas where you feel it could be better. Unfortunately, we can’t provide you with a barista who conjures up the perfect milk foam, supervises the screaming children and blames the noisy neighbours. But armed with some Tips and time at hand, we are convinced that you can brew a great coffee in your home office. If our preparation methods don’t answer your questions, please feel free to send us an email We’ll get the right barista to answer your questions.
While we can’t operate the coffee machine for you, we still want to accompany your coffee experiences and turn your wishes into reality: Amy, baker and barista at ViCAFE, has developed ViCAFE mini cantucci over the past few days. Starting today, enjoy your coffee with the sweet, crispy taste of an Italian summer vacation. The mini cantucci is now available from our Onlineshop.
Despite good coffee, everyday life is not always easy. Unfortunately, this is currently an almost universal truth. If you look at the results of the survey, the lack of routine is the biggest challenge. At ViCAFE we have various different ways of dealing with this issue: While Ramon walks around “the block” once before starting work to simulate the way to work, and Marcus dresses for a day at the office, Pascal changes his work place at least twice a week. This is not as much fun as a trip to the origin of coffee, but it brings a little variety to your home setup. There’s of course nothing wrong with a coffee break in the sun. 62% of you enjoy your coffee with some fresh air; windows open, inviting the fresh air and sunshine inside.
For half of you, the lack of interaction with your colleagues has a negative impact on your productivity. In the office a lot of informal, albeit not unimportant, things are discussed next to the coffee machine. We therefore recommend making virtual coffee breaks part of your daily routine. Stop for a moment, exchange ideas and enjoy a good cup of coffee together in between all those conference calls.
Coffee is a great companion, even in these times. You’ve confirmed it: Coffee is equal parts energy and relaxation. A cup of coffee is a taste of normalcy in a world that seems to be out of joint. We are all longing for the moment when we can greet you personally in the ViCAFE Espresso Bars again: an informal chat, a joke, a beautiful flat white. Until then, we’ll accompany you at home with coffee, mini cantucci, advice and ideas. Keep brewing good coffee and see you soon!