Yes, there have been quite a few signs in recent years that Derry is on the way up, but the appearance of the world’s biggest seller of speciality coffee - it is to cafe culture what Apple is to high-tech - is a major shot in the bloodstream.

And of course two stores have opened within a short time, the other at Foyleside.

Here to meet the Journal and the Sentinel at Crescent Link for a cross-community coffee-tasting opportunity are a friendly Belfast PR person - “don’t mention me” - and a smiling and highly-knowledgeable Jonny Ross. Jonny is manager of the Crescent Link store but is so much more; nothing less than Regional Coffee Master, spreading the message of the Starbucks coffee experience in Ireland, Scotland and the North East of England.

One leading US commentator has suggested that Starbucks, with more than 15,000 outlets around the world, is not so much a brand now as some kind of religion. The corporate slogan runs, “Starbucks Coffee Company provides an uplifting experience that enriches people’s lives one moment, one human being, one extraordinary cup of coffee at a time.” In this case, Jonny becomes a sort of genial high priest of coffee, probably even an archbishop or cardinal, given the ground he has to cover.

Fittingly, he comes from a background in charity work and brings some of that proselytizing zeal to bear in his new role. Jonny, who lives on the north coast, has been with Starbucks for more than three years. He has been Regional Coffee Master for about two of those. And he knows his stuff.

“My favourite combination would be a Sumatra coffee with an applie and cinnamon waffle,” he confesses during a dissertation on the various merits of coffee from Africa (“citrus, fruity, berry tones”), Latin America and other parts.

The coffee tasting itself does have a touch of the ceremonial about it as we huddle around a table, listening to Jonny intone on the qualities of the freshly-brewed Rwanda Blue Bourbon, the subject of this afternoon’s lesson.

The tasting itself employs the type of vocabulary more commonly associated with a visit to a French terroir. First there’s a sniff - yes, smells like coffee - then there’s the slurp, the taste, the aftertaste. Johnny admits that the finer points of coffee are probably even more subtle than those of wine, but he’s certainly getting there, with plenty to say about the nose, acidity, bitterness, sweetness and all the rest.

Jonny has been through a six module programme (more likely ‘program’) on all aspects of coffee, including its history, how and where coffee is made, the qualities of coffees from around the world, the art of the barista, how milk interacts with coffee and much more.

It’s comforting to know you’re in good hands. And the coffee and mouth-watering lemon biscuits are a treat.

The ethics debate

Starbucks have added that certain something to the cafe experience in Derry (though the cappucino in Java is still hard to beat).