Italian Barista School To Teach How to Pair Coffee With Food to Tourists

Former Tarrytown resident Marvin Alpert and Manuel Terzi, Director of the Terzi School in Vignola (Modena), Italy, have teamed up to provide a new foodie destination for Italy-bound tourists who take coffee drinking seriously.

The Terzi School in Vignola (Modena), Italy has just introduced seminars on coffee-related subjects including the pairing of cheeses, desserts and other food to coffee — and all seminars involve the consumption of gourmet local Emilia Romagna cuisine.

Alpert joins the school as Director of Sales and Marketing and is helping it gain awareness by traveling Americans.

Both half-day and full-day coffee education/meal sessions are being offered to foodies and tourists. Previously the school had limited its educational programs to the training of baristas. English speaking instructors are available.

“One of the new full-day classes intended for the general public.” Alpert said, “is called ‘Everything You Wanted to Know about Coffee — a Fun Day.’ ” Three meals accompany this class.

“Attendees enrolled in this class learn about the history of coffee, bean selection, grinding, blending, pouring and tasting,” he said. Also covered in this lesson is pairing specialty coffee drinks with food.

“Classes for pairing wine to food have existed for a considerable time,” he said.

“But this is the first program to cover pairing with coffee, espresso, cappuccino, macchiato and other coffee drinks,” Alpert said. “It should appeal to both coffee aficionados and coffee drinkers who are just looking for interesting things to do on a trip to Italy.”

“Attendees will learn about the interaction between coffee beans and water, temperature, steam pressure, and other factors that contribute to making a great coffee drink,” Alpert said. “The participants learn by doing and are guided by a professionally trained master barista. They work at their own individual coffee machine stations.”

Half-day morning classes include breakfast and lunch. Dinner is included with afternoon classes. Half-day class subjects include Coffee and Cheese Pairing, How to Make a Perfect Espresso or Cappuccino, and Latte-Art Milk Steaming. Advance classes for baristas are also offered. All meals are accompanied by unlimited wine.

The Terzi School is directed by Manuel Terzi, owner of famous coffee shops in Italy and Spain and a respected trainer of baristas.

Americans traveling to Italy can book a meal, wine and coffee class in advance at the school’s website.

For information about courses, dates, and cost, go to www.coffeeschoolitaly.com or send an email to info@coffeeschoolitaly.com.

Photo: Manuel Terzi, Director of the Terzi School in Vignola (Modena), Italy