Common Man Coffee Roasters, TTDI

Pablo HWB, Barista Trainer & Account Manager at CMCR

What do you do and how did you get into the industry?
I am a barista trainer and account manager for Common Man Coffee Roasters, KL. I got into the industry as a consumer, it was purely curiosity that drove me to pursue specialty coffee as a profession. I took my first step into coffee at a cafe I frequented at the time.

Share with us an interesting story from behind the scenes.
Every few months we unload raw coffee beans from a shipping container into the roastery. This can be between 16 to 20 tonnes of beans and involves the Common team getting down and dirty, climbing piles of gunny sacks, lugging huge bags onto pallets with rap music booming in the background.

What’s the best/worst part of your job?
The best part is easily the sharing and contribution of specialised knowledge and skills to the industry, exposing consumers and empowering them with better understanding of what coffee has the potential to be. After all, we’re in a constantly growing cafe culture for a young specialty industry here in Malaysia. Creating positive influence to that growth is vital.
There really isn’t a worst part to the job when it comes to coffee. You’re always feeling good from the caffeine!

What’s your favourite drink in Common Man Coffee Roasters?
My favourite drink is undoubtedly a manual brew, also known as filter coffee.

What’s one of the funniest things you’ve seen behind the scenes?
During a coffee origin visit to Indonesia we were on a ferry from Samosir Island heading back to the main Sumatra Island. Sitting on the upper deck, suddenly a rather eccentric man approaches a team member and decides to entertain him with chirpy flute melodies and unusual dancing. This man would applaud himself after every short performance, this lasted an hour and a half. This was quite an intense experience for our team mate, who usually shies away from awkward social encounters (everyone else just watched and took pictures of his discomfort)!

The perfect day off would be…
Craft beer and ping pong, getting a boogie on with some good tunes.

A day in the life of a barista trainer and account manager is…
Consuming an alarming amount of coffee. Conducting classes for baristas/coffee enthusiasts and going out to meet industry professionals.

What do you do for fun?
Cook up new dishes, and just getting down on carefree dancing.

What’s something you’d like guests to know about Common Man Coffee Roasters KL?
It’s in our philosophy to be transparent, objective and honest. In spite of having an amazing team full of talent and knowledge, we still seek different opinions and sharing ideas is the best part of it.

What’s your favourite food and wine pairing?
I’m not too big on wine, but during an occasion I’d enjoy a riesling which tends to work well with a variety of flavourful foods.

What’s your view on the food scene in Kuala Lumpur?
The food scene is growing tremendously, but what’s more exciting is the diversity of concepts that gives modern establishments their distinguishable character.

What’s in store for you in the upcoming months? 
New coffee sharing events for the public, whether it’s tastings or experiments, creating new content to give good to the industry!

Check out some delicious dishes and coffee at Common Man Coffee Roasters here.

One Comment

  1. I’ve never tried to roast coffee beans. It would be interesting I’m big coffee fan.

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