Can you put great coffee, health and education in the same room? We think you can. For Coffee Day we teamed up with the mineral water brand Jantar and invited the catering class from School Complex No. 2 in Kołobrzeg to a workshop at the newly opened Amber Water Pump Room. Coffee and water gave us a way into a bigger conversation about flavour, health and responsibility.
From green bean to cup
It was the first session of its kind for students who normally meet coffee in a carton at the shop or in the school canteen. This time they had raw green beans in their hands. We talked about coffee as a fruit that ripens in very different corners of the world. We showed them the different species and explained that flavour and aroma depend on a long list of factors: climate, soil, processing and then the roast itself. That is why one bag can smell of fruit and another of chocolate, while supermarket coffee has usually lost that depth altogether.
Light roasts and filter coffee, nothing added
After the theory came the brewing. We made the young cooks a round of light roast coffee in a filter brewer. For many of them that was the surprise of the day: coffee with no milk and no sugar, and it still tastes good. Citrus, florals and cocoa all came through. We also put two different blends side by side so everyone could feel how much range the drink has. One comment summed it up: you really can enjoy coffee without milk, as long as it is roasted well.
Amber water, straight from Kołobrzeg
The second half was led by Janusz Tomaszewski, president of Jantar Wody Mineralne. He talked about the blue zones, the places in the world where people live longest, about how much diet matters and about good water as the foundation of health. The students tasted amber water drawn from the Kołobrzeg spring. It tastes unlike bottled water, and it comes with the feeling that it belongs to them, that it is theirs. Jantar runs both a bottling plant and a soft drinks brewery in Kołobrzeg. The company says Jantar is the best water for athletes, because its pH matches that of human body fluids and its mineral profile is like an isotonic drink, only without the sugar.
A pairing that works
The session showed how much sense there is in local businesses working together. It was not a dull assembly but a live thing: questions, laughter, a few genuine surprises. The students left with knowledge and new flavours, and we got to show that education is interesting when you talk about something you actually love.
There were only a few words at the end. We are glad we could widen a few horizons. That was the whole point.
