Coffees of Autumn

“Nothing to fret about, Terry. You’ll learn the ropes quickly. Me and Ange’ll teach it all to you.”

“Thanks Jewel.” Terry said as her, Jewel, and Ange walked up the deserted street to the Café Bean coffeeshop. “This is my first job and I don’t wanna botch it.”

Ange unlocked the store then dashed inside to silence the alarm. “Ain’t nothing to it.” The brunette said when she waved the other two in. “You got about a month’s worth of leeway to get the basics down. Although, if you’re as smart as you look, you’ll have it in less time.” She winked a dark brown eye at Terry (Teresa), who smiled at her soon-to-be new coworkers.

“I’ll do my best.” The redhead grinned, and followed the baristas behind the counter after Ange (short for Angelina) locked the door until it was time to open.

“We’ll start the day’s setup, and Tom should be here right about…,” A brass bell sounded throughout the store as the door was opened then locked again. Jewel (a.k.a. Julia) smiled as their boss/owner entered the backroom, carrying a black satchel. “Morning, Tom.”

“Morning, ladies.” The man was only a bit taller than his current gathering of employees, with reddish-brown hair and bright blue eyes, and was dressed in a long-sleeve shirt and faded denims. “See our newest recruit is in the best of hands this morning.” He held out a hand. “These two showing you the place, Terry?”

She shook his hand firmly. “Yes, sir. They were about to show me the morning setup.”

He released her hand. “Quite a grip you have there. I’ll leave you ladies to it then. Should have the cash drawers ready for you in about ten to fifteen.”

“Aye, boss,” Angelina said then the three women went about the opening routine, two working, one watching. “Hey, Jewel! You wanna show Terry how to set up the espresso machines while I brew the day’s coffee pick?”

“Aye,” The black-haired twenty-three-year-old waved Terry over to one of three sleek black-and-silver monstrosities taking up about a third of the counter space. “This is the ‘Brute’ here. Looks intimidating but all you gotta do is tame it and it’ll give you the best espresso shot you’ve ever had this side of the pond.” Terry watched in fascination as Jewel expertly ground two shot’s worth of dark, shiny coffee beans, tamped the grounds into the machine’s portafilter, fitted it into the brewing mechanism, and hit the button for two shots. “See? All there is to it.”

“You make it look easy. How long have you guys been here?”

Julia shrugged. “’Bout six years, give or take a month. Watch the streams. See the color and the flow?” Terry nodded. “That’s the shade and consistency you want every time, otherwise you’ve got a bad shot. Never wanna serve a bad shot to a customer, no matter how much of an arse they act.” The barista gave the small cup to her trainee to sample while she dumped the spent grounds, quickly wiped down the portafilter then went about setting up the barring station. “Good, ain’t it?” The trainee nodded. “Learn that and the rest is easy.”

The smell of fresh coffee filled the café as Ange finished with the brewing station then went around the front of the counter to check the case displaying the pastry choices. Quickly scanning the cast resin replicas of the treats, she pulled out five, set them on the espresso-coloured counter then meticulously placed five new ones: a maple pecan muffin, a pumpkin chai cookie bar, a cinnamon apple coffee cake, a plum rum cheese Danish, and a pistachio almond honey mini loaf.

“I tell ya, Tom,” Ange said as their boss came up with the cash tills. “Margot sure knows how to make my mouth water with these treats of hers.” She closed the case and went to the ice machine. “I swear she’s trying to get us fat every year when autumn comes around.”

Tom grinned as he double-checked his math. “Why do you think I gain weight this time of year? She feeds me way too many sweets and I don’t have it in me to say no.”

“Margot’s Tom’s wife and the brilliance behind our pastries.” Jewel explained to Terry. “Every autumn, she comes up with five new ones and the customers love ‘em.”

“What about drinks to go with them?”

“That’s part of our job today. Adam’s gonna make us some samples when he gets here and we’re gonna choose what drink goes with which pastry. Don’t worry. It’ll be easy.”

“Oh,” Terry let out a breath. “That’s good to know. I hope I can live up to the task while still trying to learn everything.”

Jewel waved a hand. “We got yer back. Always remember that. When you’re on the morning crew with me and Ange, we won’t let ya flounder.” She checked her watch. “Bloody hell! Better hurry up before the early regulars come in. Might wanna step back, love. I can be a whirlwind.”

Terry moved to the other side of the counter and watched in fascination as Julia and Angelina danced their way around behind it, filling ice, checking syrups, milks, condiments, toppings and garnishes, coffee bean offerings; all within fifteen minutes. ‘Damn.’ The nineteen-year-old thought. ‘They’re great at this. I have a lot to live up to here. Although, they have been doing this for the last six years.’ She made up her mind then to absorb everything they taught her and to always ask questions, no matter how stupid they sounded.

“Everything set, ladies?” Tom asked, tying on his apron.

“Aye, sir!” All three resounded.

“Ange, you’re on register ‘til Jamie gets here. Jewel, you’ve got the bar with Terry then Adam and Ben will take over. Daniel and Cliff should be here around seven, so the floor’ll be covered ‘till the afternoon.” The baristas took their places as their boss turned on the lights and unlocked the door to let in the public.

“You ready, Terry?” Jewel asked, tying her apron and tightening her ponytail.

“Definitely.”

The first hour went by in no time but Terry was already learning a lot. Jewel was a great teacher and had a level of patience rivaling the Queen of England’s with her new protégé. Aside from fumbling with the espresso machine’s portafilter a few times, Terry picked up the routine quickly, and she had little trouble talking to the customers while she was working. ‘Being a late flower child seems to have worked in my favor.’ She thought as she slid a doppio espresso with spiced whipped cream to Jewel to hand out. ‘I never thought I’d be this chill on the job.’ Of course, she had yet to experience the lunch rush but she felt like she could handle it.

“Morning ladies, and uncle.” A clear male voice made Terry look up from what Jewel was showing her, and she saw a young man with short blonde hair and blue eyes. “Bit chilly this morning, isn’t it?”

“Aye, Jamie.” Jewel responded. The brass bell rang and two more young men entered the café. One was tall with wavy black hair and brown eyes, and the other was a bit shorter with gray eyes and a knit cap on his head.

“Top o’ the morning to y’all!” The shorter guy declared in an Irish accent.

Ange rolled her eyes. “For the love of the queen, Benny! How the hell are you so cheery when you haven’t had yer shots yet?”

“I’m his flatmate, and I still can’t figure that one out, Ange.” The taller man said as the pair walked towards the back to clock in.

“Wish Benny would quit acting like he’s Irish all the time. Makes me think Connor’s in here every time he does that.”

“Come on, Jewel. You know your boyfriend never gets up this early, unless he’s been up all night, writing.” Jamie said, heading to a register to assign a drawer.

“True. Bloody hell, do I talk about him that much?”

The boss’s nephew stared at her like she was crazy. “Is that rhetorical?”

“Okay. Point taken.” Adam and Ben came onto the floor then. “Bar’s all yours, boys.”

“Cheers, Jewel.” Adam noticed Terry at that point. “Morning. Don’t think we’ve been introduced. Name’s Adam and this is Ben, or Benny, as we call him.”

Terry shook their hands. “Terry. I just started learning the bar with Jewel.”

“New recruit, eh?” Ben raised a red eyebrow. “Well, welcome to the team.”

“Alright, boys. We’re off to sample the new drinks. Don’t make a mess of my station or else.” Julia motioned for Terry to follow her as Angelina and Tom moved to a table in the café that was a little more private.

“Let’s have a seat. Oh, I almost forgot. Margot’ll be here shortly with samples of our new pastry offerings, so we’ll have a better idea what to pair with them.”

“Right here, babe!” Boss and baristas turned to see a woman with long blonde hair and green eyes carrying a covered tray. She was wearing a dark green sweater and black slacks, with a smile on her face. “Made it in time, I see.” She gave Tom a kiss and took a seat.

“Morning Ange, Jewel.” She turned to Terry. “And you must be Terry. I’m Margot.”

“Glad to meet you.”

“Likewise, dear. You enjoying yourself so far?”

“Absolutely, and can’t wait to try these treats I’ve been told about.”

“Let’s get started then, shall we?”

Over the next three hours, owners and baristas tasted, sipped, and talked about the new autumn-themed offerings and which drink would go the best with a which pastry. Tom had Adam make samples of fifteen drinks, and told his test group to pick five they liked the best as he wanted to launch them for the afternoon crowd. His plan was to keep the lineup until a week after Guy Fawkes Day then make way for the Christmas goodies.

Julia, Terry, and Angelina picked four of the same beverages but were having trouble selecting a fifth to go with the plum rum cheese Danish. The veteran baristas were going back and forth over it until Terry spoke up, “Think I might’ve found our answer. What about this?” She held up her mobile.

“Black Raven Cocktail? Might work. What’s in it?” Margot asked.

“Jägermeister, spiced rum, Coco-Cola, black food colouring, silver cake shimmer, and maraschino cherries.”

“Aside from the food colouring and cake shimmer, Adam can make some up quick. Back in a moment.” Tom dashed behind the counter to order the samples and came back a few minutes later with five small cups. “Holy Hera, that’s amazing! Don’t know how well the Coco-Cola works but we’ll tweak it if we have to.”

“Right on. Now we’ve got our five. Should I draw up the menu board?” Ange asked.

“Menu and sandwich boards then have Terry set up the sandwich board outside. Me and Margot will take an inventory and stock up.”

“What about me and Terry for now, boss?”

“Take up the third bar and train on drinks, especially the new ones. Help Adam and Ben if they need it, but with Daniel here, they should be fine.”

“Aye. Come on, Terry.” Jewel stood up and Terry followed her behind the counter. They worked until Ange brought the menu board over, written in bright chalk colours of red, orange, yellow, green, and brown with white accents. The chosen drinks were displayed in the following list: All Around Nuts Latte, Black Tea Pumpkin Latte, Apple Cider Cocktail (non-alcoholic version only in mornings), Black Raven Cocktail (non-alcoholic version only in mornings), and Mint Chip Hot Chocolate. “Bloody brilliant work, as always.”

“Cheers. I’ll put this in back so Murphy can hang it when he gets in.” Angelina turned to the newest employee. “You can put out the sandwich board at half past one. That’s when we bring out the booze, which reminds me: you said you had some ideas on not-so-boozy versions of the Black Raven and Apple Cider cocktails?”

Terry nodded. “Use black licorice flavoring and imitation rum extract for the Black Raven, and bourbon extract and Versin for the Apple Cider Cocktail. I don’t know if you guys keep any of those on hand but those sounded like the best suggestions from my searches.”

“I’ll let Tom know, and see what else he wants us to do before the next shift gets here.”

Angelina took the menu boards to the back room, and Julia turned to Terry. “Well, we’re about finished. I can show you what I do to set up the next crew.”

“Sure thing. I need to learn everything you can show me.”

“Follow me.” For the next forty-five minutes, Jewel and Terry brought up various spirits, liquors, and beers, checked the stocks of syrups, coffee beans, garnishes, condiments, and anything else the black-haired barista could think of. Stopping to do one last check, she said, “Think you can put the board out now. If anyone tries to ask you about them, direct them inside and we’ll take care of it. Unless you feel like you can answer, of course.”

“No worries. Be right back.” Terry picked up the sandwich board and carefully maneuvered her way out the door then looked around for a spot to put it where it wouldn’t get knocked over or be obscured. “Man, this sucker’s heavy. Should’ve never picked it up by myself.”

“Need some help, love?” A voice said behind her.

She turned around and was met with a surprise. “Roger! I wasn’t expecting you!” She hugged her boyfriend. “Come by to make sure I’m enjoying my first day?”

“But of course. What you doing? Those new drinks or something?”

“Yep. Just launched today. You wanna come in and try one? I’ll be done soon and we can sit together for a while.”

“Absolutely. Wanna see where you work, after all.” The couple entered the coffeeshop and Roger stepped up to the register while Terry went back behind it. “I’d like to try the Mint Chip Hot Chocolate. What do you recommend to eat with it?”

“Try the Pistachio Almond Honey Mini Loaf.” Jamie suggested. “Anything else?”

“That’s it.” The bass player paid then sat at a table to wait.

“Who’s that, Terry?” Angelina asked. “Feel like I’ve seen him before.”

“You go to the Echo Club at all?”

“On the weekends when I can. Why?”

“He’s the bassist for the Silver Coffin Sound.” All her coworkers stopped and stared at her. “What’d I say?”

“You’re dating the bassist for the Silver Coffin Sound? As in the descendants of Pink Floyd Silver Coffin Sound?” Ben asked.

“Yeah. What’s the big deal?”

Jamie looked at the three female baristas. “First, Jewel starts going with a famous author, Ange is with his twin brother, who also works here, and now you’re with a musician who happens to be related to a rock legend. My job just gets better and better.”

“How about making that drink for him then?” Terry asked, a bit annoyed.

“Right. Apologies.” Adam quickly made the Mint Chip Hot Chocolate and set it on the hand-off plane with the pastry. Order up for Roger!” he called.

“Cheers, mate. See you in a few, Terry.” He winked and went back to his seat.

“Unbelievable.” Daniel and Cliff said.

“You ladies want me to make you anything before you head out?” Adam asked.

All three nodded. “We’ll clock out first then put our orders in.” Jewel said, and the girls went to take off their aprons, collect their coats, and punch out. “You have fun today, Terry?” she asked as they went to the register.

“I did, thanks. You’re a great teacher.”

“Cheers, love.” They all placed their orders for the new autumn drinks. “Think you’ll work out just fine.”

“I hope so.” Terry replied, picking up her Black Tea Pumpkin Latte. “I already like it here.”