The smell of the roastery wafts into the noses of passers-by again in Vallila.
We always taste the coffee freshly brewed, but let it cool down a bit so that it doesn’t burn your mouth, says Tiina Salenius. Wind Lindgren
In December 2021, a large fire occurred at Meira’s roastery in Vallila, Helsinki. The damage caused by the fire has been repaired throughout the current year, and drainage work is still ongoing in part of the building.
The roastery was able to start up again in July, which is already evident from the smell of coffee, quite familiar to Helsinki residents, wafting down the street.
Meira’s roastery and spice factory have operated in Vallila since 1935, and more than 98 percent of Meira’s products are still manufactured and packaged there.
Over a hundred cups a day
A laboratory technician works on the top floor of the bakery Tiina Salenius, whose task, together with five other tasters, is to perform quality control and ensure that only an excellent product ends up in the coffee packages. Salonius tastes more than 100, sometimes even 300 cups of coffee a day. Coffee blood is still not caused by the profession, because tasting does not mean drinking.
Beans arrive at Meira’s roastery from, among others, Honduras, Brazil, Rwanda and Guatemala. Wind Lindgren
The task of quality supervisors is to taste batches of coffee at all possible stages of production. So the same lot ends up in the laboratory staff’s strict reason already in the offer phase before buying and even in the very final phase before the coffee packages move on.
– Even one bad bean can ruin the taste of the entire coffee package. The most common off-taste is the so-called earth taste, which comes from when coffee beans have been dried in the ground. Sometimes they absorb the earthy taste, says Salenius.
If an error is detected in a lot that has just been offered for purchase, the decision is easy. Incorrect batches are not bought, as that would only mean additional work and problems.
If, on the other hand, off-flavors emerge from a batch that has already been purchased, the faulty beans are mixed with large batches of unblemished coffee so that the off-flavors disappear. There is therefore only a small amount of actual waste in the roastery.
The line is operating at full capacity again and the coffee packages are filling up quickly. Wind Lindgren
Not for straits
The mouth is Salenius’ most important tool, because tasting is a sensory activity. Salmiakki or other strong flavors are best eaten before the work day, so that the sense of taste is at its sharpest when the cups to be tasted are lifted to the round table.
Mondays are the most difficult working days for Salenius, because on weekends he doesn’t drink coffee at all. It always takes a while to get back on track.
Contrary to what you might imagine, tasting coffee does not require a solid history with coffee.
– I hadn’t drunk coffee at all myself, which was a good starting point for this work. It was easy to teach me to taste how our coffee should taste. If you already have strong taste opinions in advance, the tasting can be more difficult.
And the lab workers have plenty to taste, as the roasting operation is again running at full capacity, except for the bean packing operation, which is still waiting for building materials.
The brands Kulta Katriina, Segafredo and Saludo are roasted at the Meira factory.