Di Bartoli Advanced Home Barista Workshop

[Thundergod]

Re: Di Bartoli Advanced Home Barista Workshop

Or as I like to say:

Play nicely

[COFFEECHASER]

Re: Di Bartoli Advanced Home Barista Workshop

I was hoping it would be re-opened so I could hear more about the day. So where are all the attendees comments? Or was there only a few CSs that managed to attend this time around?

[Bon]

Re: Di Bartoli Advanced Home Barista Workshop

I didnt go to the workshop, but I have been fortunate enough to have had some training by Hazel and shes one of the best teachers Ive encountered - I base that on years of academic teachers on all levels and teachers in martial arts.

Hazel is really good at putting across concepts which I think is what a good teacher does, opposed to rote learning... and while we all want to know everything in the one go, I believe showing someone everything is the best way to show them nothing - Hazel doesnt overload with too much info.

I dont think anyone will be dissapointed and $80 for 3 hours with one of the best in Oz seems like really good value to me.. other courses cost up to twice as much and dont have the hands on side to it which is the most important part - you can sit by the pool all day talking and practising your stroke, but if you dont get in the pool and get wet what good is it?

[Javaphile]

Re: Di Bartoli Advanced Home Barista Workshop

Coffee Snobs is at its’ roots all about the sharing of information relating to the wonderful world of coffee we all enjoy so much. Our forums are full of posts of both good and bad things that people have experienced on their journey through the coffee forest. We are deeply committed to allowing our members to speak their minds and tell of their experiences in their own words. We also find the idea of censorship extremely repugnant and are wont to delete or even modify someone’s post unless it is clearly called for.

Coffee Snobs is committed to bringing our members the best equipment and services available via our sponsors. CS is quite picky about whom we will allow to be a sponsor and will not accept just anyone and if there’s a problem with one of them we want to know about it. Just because a company is a sponsor of CS does not mean that they are exempt from having a bad review written about them by a member. If such an experience does occur we will do everything we can to help the involved parties come to an arrangement that leaves them both satisfied and able to carry on with a smile on their faces.

Because of these principles Robodoc’s post detailing his personal experience with Di Bartoli’s class was left untouched along with the many posts that followed it. However, when it became clear that the thread was degenerating into an acrimonious exchange with nothing being accomplished except rising tempers and hurt feelings we stepped in and locked the thread to prevent it from continuing. The entire CS Admin team then reviewed the thread and determined that portions of it needed to be removed. Unfortunately doing so would significantly change what people had said and would present a lopsided view of the situation. Thus it was decided that the entire exchange would be removed and the participants encouraged to resolve the situation among themselves outside of the public forum.

In brief Robodoc felt that he had been inappropriately placed in the class (to advanced for him) on the recommendation of the sponsor and that the class did not fulfill the advertised goals nor meet his expectations. Di Bartoli feels that as in all such classes the time spent on any one area and exactly what is covered is flexible and is molded to the particular group of people attending and that individual attention is given to each attendee to the greatest extent possible that the group setting allows and that this was precisely what was done during this class.

Due to the highly charged emotions of all parties involved it was thought unlikely that any resolution would be arrived at between them if left to carry on by themselves. Accordingly I offered my services to act as a mediator between them to help them arrive at an equitable solution that everyone involved could live with.

I am happy to report that after days exchanging PM’s with the involved parties such an agreement has been reached.

Because of the highly charged nature of the original exchange and the raw nerves it exposed rather than the involved parties making any posts themselves regarding it I have agreed to make one on their behalf.

Di Bartoli has agreed to give a full refund for the cost of the class to Robodoc and Robodoc has acknowledged that it was inappropriate to make this a public matter before first having given Di Bartoli a chance to deal with it via a private exchange. All parties have agreed to consider this matter at an end and to put it behind them.

All parties involved wish to make their sincerest apologies known to the members of CS for subjecting them to such an unsettling exchange and that they in no manner intended to impugn the honesty, abilities, or professionalism of the other parties.

All parties have been urged to keep the lines of communications open between them and with their emotions having settled to exchange their thoughts over what led to this situation arising in the first place and how such an event can be prevented from occurring again in the future.

With the public posting of this document the Administration of CS considers this matter to be closed and requests that our members honor that by not posting public requests for details from the involved parties on exactly what transpired.


Best Regards to all,

Javaphile