Defne displays on her work in barista market improvement and judging, and on shaping espresso tradition in Türkiye and past.

BY VASILEIA FANARIOTI
SENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT

Photographs courtesy of Defne Ceyda Okay

Defne Ceyda Okay’s journey by way of espresso has by no means adopted a single path. Beginning behind the bar in Türkiye, her profession shortly expanded into roasting, coaching, and ultimately onto the worldwide stage of espresso competitions. Through the years, she has moved between roles and geographies, gaining expertise throughout completely different layers of the trade. 
 
At the moment, her work sits on the intersection of training, market improvement, and sensory understanding. Via her function in barista market improvement with Oatly and her involvement with the Specialty Espresso Affiliation (SCA), she contributes not solely to how espresso is ready, however to how it’s communicated and understood.  

We spoke with Defne about affect, requirements, creativity, and what it means to form espresso tradition as we speak. 

Barista Journal: You’ve moved throughout roles—barista, roaster, coach, decide, and model developer. How do you outline what you do as we speak? 

Defne: I work on shaping how espresso is known and skilled. My background throughout barista, roasting, judging, and coaching gave me completely different entry factors, however as we speak, my focus is on constructing programs that join high quality, folks, and market development. 
 
An enormous a part of that’s my work in barista market improvement with Oatly, the place I assist how espresso professionals have interaction with merchandise in a manner that feels each sensible and intentional. Alongside that, entering into the SCA Shadow Coordinator function in Türkiye has added one other layer, contributing to how future judges are skilled and calibrated. 
 
I don’t see myself as one function anymore. I see my work as constructing bridges between requirements, training, and real-world espresso experiences. 

At what level did espresso cease being only a craft for you and turn out to be a platform for affect? 

The shift occurred after I realized that style just isn’t impartial. The best way we describe espresso shapes how folks expertise it. Competitions and judging made that very clear to me.  

You aren’t simply evaluating espresso—you might be reinforcing a language and a set of expectations. That comes with affect, whether or not you plan it or not.That’s when espresso stopped being simply one thing I do, and have become one thing I’m liable for shaping.

You’re employed between international manufacturers and native espresso communities—how do you navigate that stability with out shedding authenticity? 

I don’t suppose authenticity comes from staying native or going international. It comes from relevance. 
 
International manufacturers deliver construction and scale, however they solely work in the event that they adapt to the tradition they enter. Native communities deliver depth and identification, however additionally they profit from publicity to broader views. 
 
My function usually sits in translation. Particularly in my work with Oatly, it’s about ensuring international intentions land in a manner that feels pure inside the native espresso scene, not imposed onto it. 

As a contest decide, you assist outline requirements. Do you ever really feel conflicted about shaping what “good” espresso ought to be? 

Sure, and I feel that rigidity is important. Requirements give us a typical language, however they need to by no means turn out to be a hard and fast definition of style. Espresso is consistently evolving, and if our requirements don’t evolve with it, they turn out to be limiting. 
 
As a decide, my accountability is to remain constant inside the system whereas remaining open to what sits outdoors of it. Good espresso just isn’t static, and it shouldn’t be handled that manner. 

What separates a technically excellent espresso expertise from one which’s genuinely memorable as we speak? 

Precision creates readability, however it doesn’t assure influence. A technically excellent espresso can nonetheless really feel forgettable. What makes it memorable is the intention. The way it’s offered, the way it’s communicated, the way it makes somebody really feel in that second. Individuals don’t bear in mind extraction yields. They bear in mind how one thing made them really feel. 

Espresso tradition is turning into more and more visible and trend-driven. Do you see that as a constructive evolution or a distraction? 

It’s a robust software, however it will depend on the way it’s used. Visible tradition has made espresso extra accessible and introduced new audiences in, which is efficacious. However when visuals turn out to be the principle focus, we threat lowering espresso to aesthetics. The chance is to make use of visible storytelling as an entry level, not the ultimate message. 

We are going to launch half two of this interview tomorrow.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Vasileia Fanarioti (she/her) is a senior on-line correspondent for Barista Journal and a contract copywriter and editor with a main give attention to the espresso area of interest. She has additionally been a volunteer copywriter for the I’M NOT A BARISTA NPO, offering content material to assist educate folks about baristas and their work.

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