Coffee beans cool after roasting at Greyfriars Coffee and Tea in downtown Chattanooga.• Name: Kevin Ricks
• Position: Coffee roaster (and manager)
• Location: Greyfriar's Coffee & Tea
• First Job: Bagging groceries at Bi-Lo
• Best part of the job: "The best part is the roasting, learning how to roast the beans, learning how they react. Each roast is unique, so I let (the beans) tell me how they want to be roasted. I like learning the origins, where the bean comes from and how they're produced, the people involved in that and the history. The thing that stands out to me the most is the reception from the people who buy the coffee. The feedback I get is positive and negative. I can grow from both."
• On coffee: "One of the most interesting things is learning more of the origins. For some countries, this is their main export. Sometimes we can take it for granted. It's a major commodity. What's fascinating to me is that each bean from a different region is roasted differently. The temperature changes for each variety of bean. There is no standard roast."
• Worst part of the job: "The worst all in all would have to be carrying coffee beans in. Those are 150-pound bags of coffee when they come in."
• What he's learned: "Learning to be knowledgeable about a specific trade and how much people want to know. (I've learned) the appreciation that is gained from knowledge and from producing a product of quality. It has taught me to listen more."
• How to make a career of it: "I was presented with the opportunity while working at another job. I had worked in the coffee retail business before. I went through about 21/2 months of training with the roaster to get me oriented with the machine and how it works, how to take care of the machine and the beans, how to properly store the roasted and raw beans, and how to manage the wholesale part of what I do."