The beautiful and bustling city of Bangkok, Thailand, experienced a rare concentration of coffee Quality Evaluation (QE) educators last month with the Coffee Quality Institute’s most recent Community of Practice (COP) event. Attended by many of our global QE Instructors and Assistant Instructors, this multi-day gathering is the latest in an ongoing series of sessions run by CQI to ensure that our educators are not only regularly calibrated on the cupping table, but also have the most up to date information and an opportunity to share their invaluable perspectives.
While the rigorous road to becoming a CQI Quality Evaluation instructor means that all of these coffee professionals have demonstrated high levels of cupping ability, it also means that they’ve been through a series of assessments on their abilities as an educator. Our COP events provide this highly experienced community of coffee educators to share their experiences and techniques with each other, building on the body of knowledge that informs the ongoing evolution of the Q Grader program.
Led by CQI’s Quality Evaluation Specialist, Trish Rothgeb, and supported by colleagues Emma Sage and Ben Bicknell, the group of 26 QE Instructors and Assistant Instructors put their certified Q Grader skills to the test, cupping through a range of both Arabica and Robusta coffees at our In-Country Partner, Specialty Coffee Institute of Thailand (SCITH). Attendees were also briefed on latest curriculum updates and ongoing projects with CQI, including an inspiring presentation from Dr. Rachda Chiasakul, CEO of Bolliger & Company (Thailand) Ltd – a key partner in Q Project Thailand, supporting improved coffee quality and incomes for Thai coffee producers.
A big thank you to all of the CQI QE Instructors for your ongoing commitment to teaching the skills that support the gold standard for coffee quality evaluation. We look forward to seeing you at our next in-person event! Meet our educators here.
