Apprentice Roaster / Quality Analyst

Job Overview:

The primary tasks for this position are to learn the processes involved to roast coffee and manage the sample lab at the Emeryville Roastery. The person in this role must express a strong interest in coffee, be self-motivated, demonstrate a willingness to work hard, and commit to the team. Additionally, an ideal candidate will practice good communication skills, be organized, detail-oriented, trustworthy, and be committed to doing whatever it takes to exceed our customer's expectations of coffee quality. This position is crucial to the success of our company and has a great impact on our ability to operate on the guidelines set forth by our vision statement.

Job Duties––Apprentice Roaster:

• Receiving green coffee shipments and storing in logical, appropriate bays of warehouse.
• Pulling green coffee and loading roasters.
• Roasting coffee to order each day.
• Log data for the roasts produced and document organic purges.
• Work within the structure of Netsuite.
• Understand the quality control regiment as set forth by the Coffee Department.
• Perform as an effective and skilled coffee taster.
• Manage roasting byproducts (chaff, burlap, GrainPro) to maximize reuse or recycling.
• Operate Optical Sorter and contribute to daily sorting of roasted coffee.
• Ability to learn and operate a forklift safely to load, unload pallets from trucks and for racking coffee.
• Assist in organizing and cleaning of roasting and green coffee workspaces. Including maintaining all equipment and tools used in the day to day operation of the roasting department.
• Assist in general daily warehouse maintenance/cleaning: sweeping, mopping, washing, blowing out debris with air compressor, etc.
• Actings as a position representative of the company during industry functions.

Job Duties––Quality Analyst:

• Perform green coffee quality assessment
  • Moisture
  • UV+physical
  • Roasting observations
• Properly label, store, and maintain reference samples
• Organize green and roasted samples in office
• Lead in sample roasting
• Set daily/weekly roasting schedule
• Maintain sample roasting equipment
• Schedule, setup/takedown cuppings (minimum 2 cuppings weekly)
• Maintain cleanliness of lab and equipment
• Maintain Cropster database (logging cupping scores and notes)
• Communicate with suppliers of spec samples (unsolicited)
• Slot arrived coffees for specific products and verify with Coffee Manager for any financial impact
• Perform ongoing quality analysis on year rounds to help maintain taste profiles
• Track weekly poundage through Netsuite reports and PowerBI sales analytics. Collaborate with the western coffee manager on forecasting green coffee needs.

Requirements:

• 2+ years of work experience preferred.
• Ability to work, often standing and with repetitive motions, for 8 hour days throughout the year.
• Ability to lift up to 50 lbs many times throughout the day.

The physical activity of this position:

Heavy work. Exerting in excess of 100 pounds of force occasionally, and/or in excess of 50 pounds of force frequently, and/or in excess of 20 pounds of force constantly to move objects.

Visual acuity requirements (including color, depth perception, and field vision) of this position:

• The employee is required to have close visual acuity to perform an activity such as: preparing and analyzing data and figures; transcribing; viewing a computer terminal; extensive reading; visual inspection involving small defects, small parts, and/or operation of machines (including inspection); using measurement devices; and/or assembly or fabrication parts at distances close to the eyes.
• The employee is required to have visual acuity to perform an activity such as: operates machines, such as lathes, drill presses, power saws, and mills where the seeing job is at or within arm's reach; performs mechanical or skilled trades tasks of a non-repetitive nature, such as carpenter, technicians, service people, plumbers, painters, mechanics, etc.,
• The employee is required to have visual acuity to operate motor vehicles and/or heavy equipment.
• The employee is required to have visual acuity to determine the accuracy, neatness, and thoroughness of the work assigned (i.e., custodial, food services, general laborer, etc.) or to make general observations of facilities or structures (i.e., security guard, inspection, etc.).

The conditions the employee will be subject to in this position:

• The employee is subject to environmental conditions. Protection from weather conditions but not necessarily from temperature changes. Exposure to significant amounts of dust.
• The employee is subject to extreme cold. Temperatures typically below 32 degrees for periods of more than one hour. Consideration should be given to the effect of other environmental conditions, such as wind and humidity.,
• The employee is subject to extreme heat. Temperatures above 100 degrees for periods of more than one hour. Consideration should be given to the effect of other environmental conditions, such as wind and humidity.,
• The employee is subject to noise. There is sufficient noise to cause the employee to shout in order to be heard above ambient noise level.,
• The employee is subject to hazards. Includes a variety of physical conditions, such as proximity to moving mechanical parts, moving vehicles, electrical current, working on scaffolding and high places, exposure to high heat or exposure to chemicals.
• Employee is subject to handling of materials such as burlap and green coffee.

90-Day Goals:

• Be familiar with each coffee that CCC sells.
• Be familiar with blends, and with flavor profile terminology.
• Understand green coffee weight loss and be able to calculate the required amount.
• Be familiar with the company structure, policies, personnel, etc.
• Effectively learn the coffee traffic system, including ICO numbers.
• Understands the ColorTrak machine, what it does, and how to use it.
• Understand how to sample roast effectively
• Understand Cropster and how to maintain sample data
• Cup and score coffee in calibration with the Counter Culture Coffee team

Benefits: Currently, the offered benefits include: group health (medical, dental and vision), available the first of the month after 30 days of employment; Flexible Spending Accounts for Healthcare and for Dependent Care; short- and long-term disability; life insurance; 401(k) program; paid time off; six company holidays.

Counter Culture Coffee is an Equal Opportunity Employer in both policy and practice.

Counter Culture Coffee assesses candidates for employment based on their knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the job for which they are applying and without regard to any non-job related category as protected by federal, state or local law.

Finalist candidates for employment will be required to demonstrate USA employment eligibility - per federal and state law, Counter Culture Coffee participates in the federal E-Verify program.