T’hooft - the leader in coffee

Vicki Harrington | Bendigo Weekly | 10-Feb-2012

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GROUNDWORK: Ryan Lynch is serious about coffee. Photo: vicki harrington
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Coffee is the fuel of life for Ryan Lynch, master roaster and business owner of T’hooft coffee roasters.
He opened the unique cafe in 2006, and two years later fell in love with and became obsessed with coffee.
His taste for a good coffee roast was developed by trial and error and that meant drinking and roasting an awful lot of coffee.
“You have to love coffee, there’s no such thing as bad coffee, some just taste better than others and everyone has their own personal taste,” Ryan said.
“Many sets of hands have to love it on its journey from tree to the cup. It’s not unlike wine making.”
Ryan maintains roasting the coffee beans is like cooking, with the nearest comparison being macaroons.
“It needs perfect timing, perfect temperature and perfect resting time,” he said.
And he has ample cooking experience; after leaving school at 15 he went straight into a chef apprenticeship and at 18 landed his first head chef’s job at Darby O’Gills, now the Metro and Pugg Mahone’s Irish Bar.
Ryan sources the best quality green beans from all over the world, choosing only hand-picked Fair Trade beans from third world countries.
“Hand pickers might visit the same tree three times in one day to ensure the beans are picked at their best, unlike machine picking which removes all beans at the same time regardless of ripeness.
Getting the right beans is a bit like a surfer sitting in the surf for hours waiting for the perfect wave,” he said.
T’hooft offers contract coffee roasting and supplies Office 3564 (formerly Post Office Cafe) Echuca and Bridgewater Bakery with beans.
Ryan said contracting is a two-way street, he has learnt from both these establishments as they have different tastes in coffee.
The Bridgewater Bakery re-opened on Boxing Day after renovations following last year’s devastating flood and Ryan has been hands-on with them ever since.
After spending considerable time training their baristas he continues to visit them on a weekly basis.
“It has become a partnership of passion, “ he said.
T’hooft has four full-time baristas and Ryan confesses he occasionally “spills the beans” with his customers passing on tips for brewing at home.
T’hooft offers retail sales in all blends served in house along with online retail sales for out-of-towners.
Ryan plans to extend the kitchen and downstairs dining area at T’hooft and his latest venture is a mobile coffee van, in the same retro style as the caravan inside the cafe. Look out for it at forthcoming Bendigo Community Farmer’s Markets and other events.
T’hooft is open for breakfast, lunch and coffee seven days, 8am to 4pm weekdays and 8am to 3pm Saturday and Sunday.

- Vicki Harringon

Rumour has it...

Paula from Central Victorian Providores will be doing a tasting of delicious Pacdon Park pork sausages at Bendigo Wholefoods on Friday, February 17 between 10am and 1pm. Meet the owner, James, from Pacdon Park, Moama, producers of gourmet smallgoods. 

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