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Cayey.- The delicious aroma of coffee paired with good humor and optimism are the perfect introduction to Cayey-born Barista, Miguel Díaz Castillo, who has been brewing his talent for serving others with passion for 12 years with his kiosk Passion Coffee Service.

The professional barista brings his coffee kiosk to all kinds of events and ensures that he is not just serving a cup, he focuses on delivering a memorable experience.

“I show up with my coffee kiosk, ready to tell three jokes and serve up four cups of coffee. My style of service is if I see you’re feeling low, I’ll lift your spirits. I don’t just serve a cup of coffee, I provide a service and an experience. Even before you’ve tasted the coffee, you’re already in a good mood because you’ve been well taken care of. I thank God because I’m doing very well. I’ve been doing this for many years, and people know me. They know the service I provide,” said Díaz Castillo.

Passion Coffee Service can be seen at any event where coffee is a must, including large and small businesses, weddings, birthdays, municipal events, and conventions.

“At the convention, guests come and go, but we’re the ones everyone wants,” he said, chuckling.

Díaz Castillo has been a barista since 2010, although it was not something he had planned. However, experiences from a previous job piqued his interest.

“My job at the time involved setting up and taking down kiosks. I would leave the machine and grinder ready for other baristas to use. I didn’t know what the preparation entailed, but when I wanted to work more hours, that’s when my interest grew. Luckily, I met Jesús Gómez, a barista who had just won a national championship, and he started teaching me. He was the one who made me fall in love with it. That’s how I started as a barista in November 2010, learning along the way, and they started letting me work events,” recalled the 41-year-old man.

Then, Díaz Castillo decided to immerse himself in the entire coffee cultivation and processing process to deliver a high-quality final product.

“When I learned the basics of preparation, I wanted to learn the whole process. I wanted to know the process from the moment the coffee was in a farm, from the moment it was planted, not just what we do behind the bar. Knowing how coffee is processed, from planting it, to processing it, where it’s dried, where it’s roasted, how it’s roasted helps me. Knowing all those details makes it easier for me to serve a better cup,” he said.

The barista said that his priority is the quality of his product, but he also pays attention to the designs he adds to the coffee. He considers them “basically a form of decoration, like plating is to chefs,” he explained.

“The coffee we use is carefully selected from Café Del Alba in Ciales. I prefer this coffee because of my familiarity with it. We spend a lot of time on the farms at night camping so we can start picking coffee before the sun rises. It’s quite an experience. We have our own packaging. I’m very familiar with the processes on that farm, which gives me better control over what we are serving,” he said.

For Díaz Castillo, the most important thing is that “when you drink it, you take that experience with you and enjoy what you’re tasting.”

“I used to live in the metro area a few years ago, and my apartment was the barista clubhouse for national competitions. Whenever baristas needed practice, I told them they could have a space and equipment for it and offered them tips. Literally, what I did was pass on that love they taught me, that thing that I fell in love with, to others,” affirmed the expert, who can be contacted on social media as Passion Coffee Service or by calling 787-295-5824.