The former coffee company marketing director had never been behind a coffee machine until he came to Australia eight years ago on a quest to learn English.

It was only after landing in the thick of Melbourne’s booming cafe scene that he discovered his true calling as a barista.

“I came to Australia to learn English,” Jorge says. “I was not expecting to come and know how to make coffee. Now I know what people want.”

For the past few months, he’s been pouring his passion into the shiny red La Marzocco machine that occupies pride of place at Geelong cafe Botanical on Ryrie.

Otherwise known as the “baby of the house”, the coffee machine has been an integral part of breathing new life into the dilapidated former milk bar opposite Geelong High School and Eastern Gardens.

Owners Tanya Bennett and Padraic McGuire fell in love with the building more than two years ago and saw an opportunity to open a cafe in a corner of East Geelong that was crying out for one.

Behind the original facade, with its familiar stained-glass windows and iconic Cornetto sign, they set out to create a vibrant and uncluttered space where joggers and mothers’ groups can mingle over coffee and food.

Many East Geelong residents who used to buy mixed lollies at the old milk bar have since returned with their young families for coffee.

“Getting the coffee right was really important and also the food and the marriage of the coffee and food,” says Tanya. “It’s all about that relationship.”

Thankfully, quality is not a problem thanks to manager Jorge’s passion and locally roasted beans from the Fabretto Brothers.

Ben Fabretto supplies Botanical on Ryrie with the Primo Nato (first born) house blend and a Colombian single origin. The house blend comprises three beans. The base is from the Cerrado region of Brazil, with Colombian and Indian beans rounding out the flavour.

Padraic, who has been trained as a barista under Jorge’s watchful eye, says the Brazilian beans provide the body, the Colombian beans the smoothness, while the stronger Indian component helps cut through the milk.

Jorge, true to his roots and his marketing background, says you can’t go past the Colombian beans.

“Obviously the best coffee is Colombian, not because I am Colombian but because it is a smooth coffee,” he says. “It is not the biggest producer but it is the best flavour.”

He prefers not to rotate the single origin, sticking with the Colombian over other popular beans, such as those from Ethiopia.

“I would say that 90 per cent of people who try the single origin come back for it.”

He says Fabretto Brothers share his passion for coffee, roasting weekly and always delivering top quality.

“I used to work in Melbourne, in a lot of cafes, but I have never had so many compliments about the coffee as I have had here,” he says.

In fact, he thinks his homeland, which has traditionally served filter coffee, could learn a thing or two from the quality of coffee in Geelong. “Colombia has got the best beans but they are just learning how to do coffee properly,” he says.