Portland, OR. The American Barista & Coffee School (ABC's), founded by Bellissimo Coffee InfoGroup, the specialty coffee industry's leader in consulting and the production of award-winning coffee education and training DVDs, has stepped up its corporate training program by developing and facilitating customized specialty coffee training programs for large corporations.

In March, ABC’s facilitated a custom barista training and mini coffee school for Ghirardelli Chocolate. Sixteen regional representatives and the entire sales team of the San Francisco-based company attended the training in Las Vegas, which was organized to help them understand how their product is served and consumed in the specialty coffee market. The training also included instruction on how to prepare blended drinks, mochas and hot chocolate, and latte art.

ABC’s facilitated a corporate consulting and training session for Mr. Coffee in April. Mr. Coffee is owned by Jarden Consumer Solutions, a company that also owns Sunbeam, Oster, Rival and nine other brands. Five members of Mr. Coffee's top management team attended the Portland school for a two-day intensive training that included coffee cupping, brewing methods, espresso training and consumer trends.

Mike Fretwell, Mr. Coffee's Manager of Group Marketing, was impressed with the quality of instruction his team received at ABC’s:

"ABC's created a fantastic customized educational program that allowed us to develop a deeper understanding of consumer consumption patterns and the science behind the art of espresso. The ABC's team has an extensive background in espresso and delivered targeted and specific training that blended the practical art of espresso with the consumer consumption trends. The ABC’s staff, combined with the professional training center and their contacts within the coffee industry, enables the school to provide a detailed, quality training program at an efficient cost."

ABC's operates in a 2,100 square foot state-of-the art facility in Portland, and in addition to corporate training, offers comprehensive coffee business start-up and management programs, barista and latte art training, and a wide spectrum of classes for consumers.

For more information about ABC's and its corporate training programs, visit coffeeschool.org or call 800.655.3955.