The 2014 United States Latte Art Championship went down last weekend during the SCAA Event, and Sprudge was there to cover the action as Official Media Partners. This was the first-ever US Latte Art Championship event, hosted by our friends and partners at Dalla Corte, whose DC Pro espresso machine anchors this competition.
Here’s the first round standings from USLAC, which also serves as an intro the entire field of competitors.
The inaugural United States Latte Art Championship had fifteen competitors in total and announced six finalists on Friday. Three represent the West Coast, one represents Hawaii, and two represent the Midwest. Sprudge.com was throughout finals to photograph the top six as they poured three sets of designs for a jury of international latte art experts.
“We’re making history,” said Row Aczon of Honolulu Coffee Roasters after his finals routine. Dean Kallivrousis of Onyx Coffee Lab said, “I’m so glad that the US will finally have an ambassador that’ll be represented at the world stage.”
Here’s a rundown of the top 6 competitors and their marvelous pours.
Simeon Bricker – First Place, 338pts
The Roasterie – @TheRoasterie – Kansas City, Missouri
Eugene Lee – Second Place, 326pts
Cafe Dulce – @CafeDulceLA – Glendale, California
Kyle Dols – Third Place, 289.5pts
Morsel – Seattle, Washington
Dean Kallivrousis – Fourth Place, 276pts
Onyx Coffee Lab – @OnyxCoffeeLab – Kansas City, Kansas / Fayetteville, Arkansas
Row Aczon – Fifth Place, 231.5pts
Honolulu Coffee Company – Honolulu, Hawaii
Donald Morrison – Sixth Place, 262pts/DQ
De Cafe Baristas – @DeCafeBaristas – Pasadena, California
Simeon Bricker of The Roasterie now moves on to represent the United States of America at the 2014 World Latte Art Championship in Melbourne, happening in just two short weeks as part of the Melbourne International Coffee Expo. Sprudge.com will be there covering the action live from MICE in partnership with Dalla Corte and World Coffee Events.
On Sunday, April 6th it was our distinct pleasure to cover the 2014 United Kingdom Barista Championship finals live from London, in official media partnership with the SCAE UK chapter, and with our coverage supported by Cafe Imports, BUNN, and Nuova Simonelli. It is not an accident that the UK produces World Barista Championship finalists and winners on a consistent basis, and were there firsthand to witness that global success starts at home, in the UK, at events like this one.
At the end of Finals Sunday a new champion was crowned: Maxwell Colonna-Dashwood, co-owner of Colonna and Smalls, a quality focused speciality coffee roaster and cafe in Bath, England. This was Mr. Colonna-Dashwood’s second UK Barista Championship victory, following a national championship run back in 2012 that took him all the way to Finals Sunday at the World Barista Championship, where he placed 6th in the world.
Mr. Colonna-Dashwood competed at UKBC using two different coffees: Colombia Finca El Mirador, from the Huila department of Southwest Colombia, sourced by Cafe Imports from producer Elkin Guzman; and a washed Ethiopian coffee from the Guji region, roasted by Has Bean and marked as Kebel Kircha.
There are a great many styles of barista competition routines, from competitors who focus on farm conditions and their relationships with coffee growers, to wild and flavor-focused conceptual signature drinks, to routines that bring the cafe experience and service to the fore. Mr. Colonna-Dashwood’s UKBC winning routine took a bigger gambit, by taking on the role of educator and scientist for 15 minutes and delivering a significant amount of information on an oft-overlooked ingredient in coffee: water.
Mr. Dashwood is preparing an upcoming book on water science and coffee in collaboration with Christopher H Hendon, a computational chemist at the University of Bath. His routine was built on that base of knowledge. “Water doesn’t just effect a barista,” Colonna-Daswhood told his judges (and the crowd). “It affects everyone who’s ever had a coffee.” Donning a white lab coat and safety glasses for extra effect, Colonna-Dashwood spent an intentionally large amount of his 15 minutes away from the espresso machine, delivering a lecture (in brief) on water science basics like the role of calcium & magnesium, the principles of binding energy, buffers, acids and alkalines, and much more. It was the rare educational moment at a barista competition that manages to be both informative and crowd pleasing. This was not a simulation of a college lecture; it was a simulation of a very good, fun, funny college lecture, and I assure you, there’s a difference.
Wise is the man or woman who, in preparation for a barista competition, makes careful choices about how their coffee pairs with milk. A meaningful portion of one’s overall score is based on milk drinks, and sometimes the most interesting, wild, fantastically playful espresso selections taste like a sour milk dud in milk fats. No accident, then, to see Maxwell shift from El Mirador to a classic naturally processed Ethiopia Guji espresso for cappuccinos, resulting in drinks he compared to “Neapolitan ice cream.” Then it was back to El Mirador again for his signature drinks, presented with two distinct grape variety infusions and two kinds of treated waters. Throughout his routine he ground pre-dosed espresso shots on a Mahlkonig EK43 grinder, each shot sifted for fines.
I think it’s likely this routine will be remembered for the costume change, the props, and some of Mr. Colonna-Dashwood’s especially pointed moments of script — calling the Midnight Beauty black grapes in his signature drink “a rather saucy variety”, assuring the judges that “my interest in the science of water stems from my deep love of coffee” — but this perhaps misses the bigger meaning altogether. Competition fans should never forget that this whole enterprise is inherently meant to be difficult. The volume of drinks prepared, the demands on creativity to outdo your competition in the signature drink phase, the very high bar for scripting and presentation set by top competitors of years past. It’s not meant to be easy.
But stepping away from the drink station altogether, delivering an appropriately attired lecture on one very particular part of the coffee making process, and pulling precious seconds, minutes even, of time from the nuts and bolts of this demanding format? That starts becoming gamesmanship at some point, and hints at the performance art these barista competitions inexorably march towards as they get better and better, more and more competitive. It makes routines like this one so very watchable, engaging to a lay audience and simply, for lack of a better word, fun. This was big stuff from Maxwell Colonna-Dashwood, and he’ll have all eyes on him now at the World Barista Championship this June in Rimini, Italy.
Additional reporting by Nico Halliday, a Sprudge contributor based in London.
Original photography by Zachary Carlsen for Sprudge.com.
Welcome to our recap coverage from Semi-Final Saturday at the 2014 United Kingdom Barista Championship. It is our pleasure and privilege to serve as official media partners here at the UKBC in association with the Speciality Coffee Association of Europe–UK Chapter. We’re reporting to you live from London.
Our coverage here in London is made possible by direct support from our friends and partners at Cafe Imports and BUNN. The entirety of our 2014 competition coverage–regionals, nationals, and the 2014 World Barista Championship in Rimini, Italy–is anchored by the direct support of Nuova Simonelli, whose Aurelia T3 serves as the official espresso machine of the USBC and WBC.
All of this coverage is culled from the @SprudgeLive Twitter feed. Please follow @SprudgeLive for our leading competition coverage live from London.
All photos by Zachary Carlsen for Sprudge.com.
Imogen Ludman, Six Eight Kafé, Birmingham @imlud @sixeightkafe
Ms. Ludman competes here at #UKBC2014 using a Bolivian Caturra coffee, naturally processed by the farmer personally @imlud @sixeightkafe–“Welcome to Imogen’s sweet shop”, @imlud tells her judges, and her stage set features bright colors and pastel candies; sugars abound.
Espresso notes for @imlud–“red apple… bitterness of dried apple skin, controlled stone fruit”, pairing shots with a cherry drop candy and highlighting its confectionary sweetness.
Homemade cascara lollipops for @imlud‘s signature drinks–echoing that sweet shop motif. Judges are dipping those lollies in brewed cascara for a kind of “cascara two ways.”
And what’s a sweet shop without a bit of cotton candy? @imlud‘s making it live on stage in a bright pink cotton candy maker, portioned for each judge. She finishes her routine wishing her judges a good day; “I know you have a long day ahead of you.”
Dale Harris, Has Bean, Midlands @acousticcoffee
Mr. Harris competes at #UKBC2014 using @hasbean‘s El Salvador Finca Argentina, a washed bourbon from producer Alejandro Martinez–“honey-like body, blood orange, caramel”.
He’s very intentional with his judges: “score this, but don’t taste anything ’til I ask you to.” This is very much an origin/producer themed routine–@acousticcoffee with a lot of reverence for his producer at Finca Argentina.
“Coffee farming is a mixture of tradition and logistics” Mr. Harris says, in an early top quote of the day. Find “Jasmine soft aroma, butterscotch” in his cappuccinos.
Mr. Harris has got a massive pipette on stage for his sig drink, filled with espresso and a syrup made from cane sugar, then adds “emulsion of venezuelan cacao.”
“Quality begins at the farm, not here”–@acousticcoffee then calls time prior to the 15 minute mark.
Steve Pearson, Devon Coffee, Devon @coffeedevon
Mr. Pearson competes using a coffee from Dukunde Kawa coffee from Rwanda, with notes of “grapefruit acidity… medium bitterness… dark chocolate”.
Lovely sparse table setting from Mr. Pearson, with all-white flatware, napkins and cups–it makes his fruit and coffee on stage really pop.
Mr. Pearson makes cappuccinos using organic milk “from just 5 miles away from my coffee shop” in Devon. “Cocoa on the front, sweet milk chocolate” notes in his capps.
Cocktail inspired signature drink here from Mr. Pearson–flamed orange peel, cocktail coupe glasses.
Don Altizo, Baxter Storey, London @donaltizo @Baxter_Storey
Mr. Altizo is the first competitor from London here at #UKBC2014–he’s the head barista and barista trainer at @baxter_storey; a large catering company based here in London.
Mr. Altizo competes at #UKBC2014 with a washed red bourbon caturra from “the volcanic soil” of Guatemala, with acidity like “a German Riesling wine” and notes of dark chocolate, green grapes.
Mr. Altizo has neat slate table settings for his judges featuring information, with circles for cups. He’s up-dosing espresso by 1g for his cappuccinos with ” flavors of white chocolate and toffee”.
Laura Holmes, Small Batch Coffee Company, Brighton @1laurakh @SmallBatchCC
“I’ve chosen to give you no information regarding the coffee itself, so that you can experience the coffee like a customer would. I’m going to recreate a cafe environment for you–it’s certainly bustling enough in here!”
Ms. Holmes starts by pulling a shot over ice cream, leaving it to melt and fuse throughout the routine. The ice cream itself was made in Brighton and is flavored with her #UKBC2014 coffee.
Ms. Holmes starts judges off with cappuccinos–“in the cafe, a drink like this would be a likely first opportunity”. While preparing these drinks she offers her judges a newspaper to read, complete with crossword puzzle. Cappuccino notes: “raspberry danish pastry, up-front sweetness, creaminess (almost custard-like) and milk chocolate.”
Ms. Holmes’ signature drink is “deliberately simple, approachable”–coffee ice cream & espresso in a martini glass. The raspberry and grapefruit notes are referenced by a lining around the glass rim of citrus and fruit.
At the last moment @1laurakh introduces her coffee: Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Grade 1 natural process, heirloom varieties #ukbc2014 @smallbatchcc
Jason Gonzalez, Colonna and Small’s, Bath @OmNomNomCoffee @colonna_smalls
Next it’s Jason Gonzalez, the first of two competitors at #ukbc2014 representing Colonna and Small’s in Bath. Mr. Gonzalez competes using pre-ground espresso shots, dosed into individual mason jars.
It’s Rwandan coffee from the Mahembe washing station here in Mr. Gonzalez’s routine–washed bourbon, from producer Justin Musabyiama. “I didn’t choose this coffee as a novelty–I chose it because it’s valuable to me as a barista.”
Mr. Gonzalez’s espresso: “a smacky acidity, stonefruit, medium sweetness, dry lemon peel, apricot, mulling spices”.
Shades of US Big Western champ @charlesbabinski in Mr. Gonzalez’s approach to pre-grinding his espresso? Signature drink takes an infusion of vanilla, raisin, rhubarb, citrus and saffron. “The vanilla emphasizes those spicy aromatics.”
Mr. Gonzalez’s signature drink vessel is then swept around the edges with Mahembe coffee oil and condensed milk to mimic the coffee experience; milky sweet first sip followed by an espresso.
Maxwell Colonna Dashwood, Colonna & Small’s, Bath @Colonna_Smalls
Mr. Dashwood competes using a washed caturra & colombia variety coffee from Colombia–it arrived here in the UK only 2.5 weeks ago.
To much whooping in the crowd, and in one of the most distinctive moments from the day, Mr. Daswhood has donned a lab coat, glasses and lecture pointer to discuss water science here at the show. Calcium & magnesium, binding energy, buffers, acids into alkalines… it’s a lecture moment with Prof. Dashwood. “Water doesn’t just affect a barista–it affects everyone who’s ever had a coffee”.
“Strawberry, cocoa, and vanilla” in @colonna_smalls‘ cappuccinos here at #UKBC2014–Mr. Dashwood is an obvious professional here on stage – workflow, conservation of movement, station maintenance.
“White grape and black grape, caramel and cocoa” in Mr. Dashwood’s espressos–flavor notes he moves on to mimic in his sig drinks featuring two hot infusions using different grape varieties–Helena white grapes and midnight beauty black grapes–“a rather saucy variety”.
Joe Meagher, Flat Caps Coffee, Newcastle @FlatCapJoe
Mr. Meagher competes at #UKBC2014 using a coffee roasted by @hasbean and from Finca Loayza in Boliva. You can learn more about Mr. Meagher’s coffee by clicking here. Medium body, high sweetness–“it’s one of the roundest espresso I’ve ever tasted.”
Mr. Meagher then shifts into cappuccino service–changes to a @MAHLKOENIG EK43 grinder and a natural processed coffee. These cappuccinos take Jersey milk from a local organic dairy farm in Newcastle and have “notes of vanilla and custard… like a chocolate roulade with a blueberry jam filling.”
Mr. Meagher’s signature drink is yet another processing switch, to the pulp natural Bolivia Loayza. He’s got a heat condenser onstage to help regulate heat, combining maltodextrin solution to thicken, a cascara reduction, honey soda, Madagascar chocolate, and natural cold brew coffee to this solution .
Estelle Bright, Caravan Coffee, London @Estelle_Coffee @caravanexmouth
Ms. Bright competes with an Ethiopian coffee comprised of two distinct processing methods: natural and washed. This routine is an exploration of balance–coffees that aren’t inherently balanced, but achieve it when combined.
Ms. Bright’s espressos are 70% natural, 30% washed Ethiopian with notes of “ripe peach, juicy mandarin, grapefruit”. She presents the judges with a feather for tactile comparison to her espresso: “smooth, delicate & lingering.”
Cappuccino time! Hers come with notes of “malt biscuit and creamy white chocolate… a dessert-like coffee.”
Ms. Bright competes using un-homogenized milk from Northiam Dairy in Kent–a favorite for top London cafes.
Tactile and visual anchoring throughout this routine–flavor notes buttressed by how Ms. Bright uses her physical space. This signature drink has an interactive component, with graphs, paintbrushes, wood blocks, and feathers. Judges are asked to paint their own glasses with peach jam.
The signature drink also includes Mandarin orange in an atomizer, grapefruit in an eye dropper, plus the painted peach jam–it’s a complex final product.
Estelle comments: “sometimes we bombard consumers with small details & push them away instead of bringing them in.”
Ewan Osprey-Allan, Brew Lab, Edinburgh @glasgowbarista @brewlabcoffee
“A nice bright tangerine, grape acidity and cocoa powder bitterness” in Mr. Osprey-Allan’s espressos here at #ukbc2014, presenting notes of “nice, dark toffee… maybe the kind that’s sat on in the sun and gone a wee bit squishy.”
His coffee is roasted by Has Bean, and is from Bolivia, marked as Finca Canton Uyunense. Learn more here.
He’s a cool customer, this Mr. Osprey-Allan–congenial with the judges but all business behind the machine. On the research process for @glasgowbarista‘s #ukbc2014 routine, a bit of honesty, and one of our favorite quotes from the weekend: “I had a chat with Mr. Google”.
Mr. Osprey-Allan’s sig drink: 0.1g citric acid, 3 teaspoons of liquid malt extract “designed to highlight acidity”.
Dan Fellows, Origin Coffee Ltd, Cornwall @DanFellows1 @origincoffee
Mr Fellows of @origincoffee competes here at #UKBC2014 with a Finca Los Altas Pacamara from Guatemala, part of the Fincas Mierisch family of farms.
“Peach and orange acidity, sweetness of cherry, mild bitterness of almond, flavor of red apple” in Dan’s espressos, followed by “strawberry malt milkshake” in his cappuccinos.
Heidi Beeton, Prufrock Coffee, London @hidingbeetle @PrufrockCoffee
Next up we’ve got Heidi Beeton, representing the much-loved Prufrock Coffee here in London. “I’ve always been a barista at heart; ever since I was a little girl making moka pots for my mum.”
Ms. Beeton competes with lactose free-milk (she herself is lactose intolerant). She’s added the enzyme lactase to break her milk into lactose and glucose. Minimalist music and script here from @hidingbeetle of @prufrockcoffee–sparse verbally, intensely focused.
Ms. Beeton’s coffee is Ethiopian; Suke Quto, from the Guji Zone, grown at 1800 MASL and roasted by Koppi in Sweden. “With time, my coffee knowledge has grown with me.”
Ms. Beeton’s espressos: “greengage, dried apricot, after-finish of tea and a light body”–she’s remaking one of the shots now, with precious seconds ticking off.
Unfortunately the need to remake a shot put Ms. Beeton into the penalty balance, and then over the 16 minute limit. She is to be the only DQ of the day here at UKBC Semi-Finals, but much to her credit Ms. Beeton maintained composure and provided highly professional service through to the end of her routine.
Diana Johnston, Avenue G Cafe, Glasgow @Baristasaurus @avenue_g
The first of two competitors here at UKBC from Avenue G in Glasgow, Ms. Johnston competes using a gesha variety coffee–“grapefruit acidity, cocoa nib bitterness, grape, pineapple” as espresso. “This coffee is almost like the Pinot Noir of coffee–it’s very difficult to grow”.
“Bright, fruity, elegant, tropical” are notes in @baristasaurus‘ espressos; flavor notes that when taken to cappuccinos flip into something “creamy and silky”.
Signature drink for Ms Johnston: pineapple juice, soy lecithin, cooled espresso shots, lychee, glasses rimmed with grapefruit.
Aromatic foam tops Ms. @baristasaurus‘s espresso, with specific slurping instructions–foam, more foam. All foam errythang.
John Gordon, Square Mile Coffee Roasters, London @JohnGordon09 @squaremile
And next it’s last year’s UK champion, John Gordon, representing @squaremile in London. We’ve gone beyond a packed house here for Mr. Gordon’s routine, and into bedlam mode.
Mr. Gordon’s routine here at #ukbc2014 is modeled after “choose your own adventure” books–something Mr. Gordon grew up loving as a kid. He offers three different varieties of Ethiopian coffee to each judge, and has them plot their flavor path throughout his routine.
These coffees are isolated varieties of heirloom coffee from Ethiopia, denoted by number. It’s part of a brand new heirloom coffee isolation project located near Jimma. It is the first time we’ve ever heard of any of this, and we are of course wildly intrigued. More on this later.
Mr. Gordon has pre-ground all his espresso coffees here at #ukbc2014 using a modified snub-nose @mahlkoenig EK43 grinder. It sort of looks like the sawed-off shotgun of coffee grinders.
Some barista competitors are a bit like athletes–there’s the X Factor element of grace and physical control. It’s safe to say that John Gordon is one such performer.
“Low-grade sweetness, a bit like tea–this is a very floral coffee”–John Gordon on his choose your own Ethiopian adventure coffee service.
Mr. Gordon’s sig drink: orange & lemon essential oils, cinnamon & coriander, lavender, quick-chilled & carbonated. It’s a riff on a classic cola recipe, and meant to echo the flavor complexity of his Ethiopian coffee.
Mr. Gordon calls time well shy of 15–big reaction in the crowd.
Emiliya Yordanova, Avenue G Café, Glasgow @eMilkinis @avenue_g
Emiliya Yordanova is the second competitor of the day representing @avenue_g in Glasgow. She’s competing with a “light to medium bodied espresso” from Guatemala.
Ms. Yordanova’s signature drink highlights her coffee’s “lemongrass aroma and juiciness”–lemongrass with white grape juice.
Emilya Yordanova calls time in advance of the 15 minute mark–time to clean and thank the judges.
Mark Williams, Relish Food & Drink @wi11iamsmark @relishcornwall
Up now here at #ukbc2014 – it’s Mark Williams, representing Relish Food & Drink in Cornwall.
Mark’s cappuccinos retain the peach and apricot flavours of the espresso, plus its jasmine tea aftertaste. Mark Williams is using coffee throughout from the Hunda Oli Ethiopian espresso.
Juice of roasted lemon takes the edge off the reduced panela syrup used in Mr. Williams’ signature drink.
Darryl Docherty, Artisan Roast, Edinburgh @artisanroast
Mr. Docherty competes at #ukbc2014 using @artisanroast‘s Kenya Kiawamaruru–learn more, take some home.
Flavors of “pink grapefruit and juicy blackcurrant”–Mr. Docherty’s Kenya comes from Nyeri and is comprised of SL-28 and -34 varieties.
“Light lemon meringue, butterscotch sweetness and toffee, light jasmine and a malt linger” in Daryl Docherty’s cappuccinos. The dairy herd producing Mr. Docherty’s milk are fed a diet of grain byproducts from the Glengoyne distillery in the Highlands.
Salt and panela in Mr. Docherty’s signature drink–salt “suppressing the bitterness”, allowing the chocolate notes to come through.
Caspar Steel, J. Atkinson & Co., Lancaster @CremaTheCrop @coffeehopper
“From seed to cup, there’s a vast number of things that determine the final taste”–Caspar Steel.
Mr. Steel begins by presenting judges with a dry coffee sample–“give it a sniff, enjoy the fragrance.” Mr. Steel’s competing with the coffee from much-loved Finca Esperanza in Cauca, Colombia–Las Margaritas Gesha.
Finca La Esperanza was the first farm in Colombia to successfully cultivate Gesha coffee. This coffee from Las Margaritas was grown in volcanic soil 2000 MASL, and processed via 14 hours controlled fermentation.
Mr. Steel’s espressos come with notes of “apricot and lime”, and a “fine and silky mouthfeel.” Served in chilled cups.
Apricot and palm sugar reduction in @CremaTheCrop‘s signature drink, with Earl Grey tea spray to enhance bergamot notes. All drinks down by 14:22, giving Mr. Steel time enough to tidy his station briefly, thank the judges, and call *time*.
Alex Passmore, Origin Coffee Ltd, Cornwall @DaOriginAlex @origincoffee
Mr. Passmore–@DaOriginAlex, donchaknow – competes using an Ethiopian co-op coffee from Western Ethiopia, grown at 2000 MASL.
“Dark spice and jasmine initially” in @daoriginalex‘s Ethiopian espressos , presented to a frankly terrifying live version of Screamin’ Jay Hawkins “I Put A Spell On You”.
High ratio filter chemex, jasmine, and peach juice in Mr. Passmore’s signature drink. He calls time at what I’m frankly guessing was under 15 minutes–there’s no live timer. Let’s call it 14:45.
Chris Walton, Union Hand-Roasted / @EspressoChris @unionroasted
Our last competitor of the day today is Chris Walton, representing Union Hand-Roasted out of London.
Mr. Walton is a barista trainer for Union, and is competing today with 2 washed coffees in a 50/50 blend.
“Tangerine, a lot of citrus and caramel” in Mr. Walton’s espressos. He begins this routine by talking his judges through each course, and what to expect.
For his signature drink, he’s lowering the dose of his espresso, then combining it with a lemon/lime syrup in a Soda Stream and lemon juice to lower sweetness. The overall effect adds juiciness to his espresso, bringing out a pronounced malic acid that presents as apples and watermelon.
Sprudge London correspondent Nico Halliday (@NicoWhat) contributed to this reporting.
Welcome to our Day Three recap coverage from the 2014 Big Western Regional Barista Competition. This event happened over the weekend of February 21st-23rd, and was a preliminary regional competition to determine entrants for the 2014 United States Barista Championship in Seattle.
Our coverage is made possible by direct support from Wilbur Curtis and Portola Coffee Lab. The entirety of our 2014 competition coverage–regionals, nationals, and the 2014 World Barista Championship in Rimini, Italy–is anchored by the direct support of Nuova Simonelli, whose Aurelia T3 serves as the official espresso machine of the USBC and WBC.
It is our pleasure and privilege to serve as Official Media Partners throughout the 2014 United States Barista Championship season, in association with the Specialty Coffee Association of America. This is a responsibility we take quite seriously, which is why we’ve committed to attending and exhaustively covering each day of each regional and national event in the United States Barista Championship cycle.
All of this coverage is culled from the @SprudgeLive Twitter feed, the worldwide leader in live competition coverage.
Day Three – Sunday, February 23, 2014 – 8 Competitors
40. Casey Soloria, Intelligentsia Coffee, Pasadena @Intelligentsia @csoloria
Mr. Soloria competes with 2 distinct coffees—both from Latin America, both roasted by @intelligentsia. He’s kind of channeling Rufio up here on stage or something—hairstyle, bangarang attitude, fearless…what’s not to like?
Latin American coffees as a gateway drug to exploring the wider flavors perspectives in specialty coffee? “Maybe they can be a kind of stepping stone”, Mr. Soloria asks the crowd. “We can really benefit from using Southern Hemisphere coffees to get people into our industry.”
Wondering how @intelligentsia produces excellent competitors? Rigorous & fiercely competitive in-house qualifiers. All strictly “no media” affairs. We’ve asked politely to be allowed to poke our heads in…no dice. It’s a longstanding Intelligentsia tradition going back to the middle of last decade.
Mr. Soloria’s two coffees hail from Rwanda & Bolivia—here’s the Rwanda Zirikana, and the second is the Bolivia Anjilanaka. He looks at the Bolivian coffee as a gateway with round, sweet flavors, and the Rwanda as something more challenging, and fascinating. Together the end result has both comfort and hook.
Casey Soloria calls time at 15:07.
41. Ethan Poole, Portland Roasting Co., Portland @pdxroast @2Poole4School
“Judges, Hi! Thanks for skipping church and coming here.”—Ethan Poole.
This is a personality-packed performance, from the opening quote up above carrying through to Mr. Poole’s continuous demeanor and pacing with the judges. Non-homogenized milk in his cappuccinos, whose notes are “creaminess, with a little bit of nougat mixed in.”
We’re big @pdxroast fans at Sprudge. Fine Portland Roasting Coffees are served throughout PDX, where our editorial staff is based. One excellent place @pdxroast is served is at @BurgervilleUSA—a PNW fresh & local chain of burger joints. Highly delicious.
Mr. Poole competes with a coffee from Las Lajas, Costa Rica. Pineapple juice, coconut cream, and honey in hia sig drink—”a play on the pina colada…this should taste like a cultural appropriation of Polynesia in a glass.”
After thanking the judges for their time, here’s closing quote for Ethan Poole’s routine: “What’s the difference between beer nuts & deer nuts? Beer nuts are $1.25; deer nuts are under a buck.”
42. Christine Johnson, Handsome Coffee Roasters, Los Angeles @HandsomeRoaster @compactchris
Ms. Johnson starts the judges off with a taste of kola nut—”a difficult ingredient, familiar.” She is competing with @handsomeroaster‘s Colombia San Sebastian—take some home.
In what I believe to be a competition first, @compactchris has featured Riff Raff in her #bigwestern set. Very good plus. Oh, and great capp notes: “brown sugar, vanilla, and soft cinnamon”—like a verbal hug of comforting cappuccino language choices.
Christine Johnson calls time at 15:03.
43. Brady MacDonald, Olympia Coffee Roasting Co., Olympia @OlympiaCoffee @braideee
Mr. MacDonald, on his stage setting: “Each of these items are from my very own dining room table.” He competes with @olympiacoffee‘s Kenya Gatomboya, from the Nyeri district, which is comprised of the coffee variety SL-28, and is a Direct Trade coffee for @olympiacoffee. Learn more here.
Espresso notes from @braideee: “sugary dates” in the first sip, “exotic acidity…tamarind, ruby red grapefruit” on the second sip.
Now appearing on stage courtesy of @braideee, inarguably the greatest pop song in human history: “This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody)” by Talking Heads.
Whipped yogurt, coconut sugar, @olympiacoffee Kenya Gatomboya for @braideee‘s sig drink—”a yogurt parfait.” Mr. MacDonald calls time at 15:40.
44. Sheli Maciel, Allegro Coffee Co., Oakland @AllegroCoffee
Ms. Maciel uses an Ethiopian coffee from the Guji Zone, sourced via Trabocca’s Operation Cherry Red. Ms. Maciel’s company, @allegrocoffee, have been in specialty coffee for 35yrs, but what they did at @WholeFoods Brooklyn is cutting edge.
Pomegranate sweetness and a cocoa finish on Ms. Maciel’s #BigWestern capps.
Ms. Maciel’s sig-drink: Basil & Lemon whipping cream injected into her espresso shot. Calls time at a comfy 13:39
45. Charles Babinski, G & B, Los Angeles @GandBcoffee @charlesbabinski
“I’m going to do something I would never do in a coffee shop—tell you everything I know about this coffee.” That’s how Charles Babinski starts this year’s routine.
All of @charlesbabinski‘s “jasmine, plum, cacao” espressos have been ground ahead of time. “It’s definitely more consistent.”
Mr. Babinski competes with two distinct coffees from Cauca, Colombia—both washed, but different varieties. Not really going deep on roaster details, although we’ll learn later that his coffees are from 49th Parallel and Onyx Coffee Lab, respectively. “One floral, complex—the other mild, with a deep sweetness.”
Mr. Babinski’s espressos served in Ben Medansky ceramic cups. We’re fans. Learn more: http://benmedansky.com
This is what you’d call an “involved” espresso service. Mr. Babinski first offers his espressos visually, then “takes a bit off the top” and transfers vessels before allowing the judges to evaluate his espressos for taste.
Sig drink: grapefruit rind simple syrup, apricot kernel milk, cacao nib syrup. He blends them together on stage! The whurr and roar of a blender, once a competition mainstay, sings sweetly again in the hands of @charlesbabinski. Competition veterans watching live alongside us in the crowd are guesstimating to me that that it’s been YEARS since a high-level competitor blended on stage.
Charles Babinski calls time at 14:42. Blender aside, this was a minimalist performance from @charlesbabinski —no roaster info, no coffee varieties mentioned by name.
“I’m a barista. I work in a shop pretty much every day of the week. And I take pride in that.” – Charles Babinski, with likely the quote of the weekend.
46. Nick Purvis, The French Press, Santa Barbara @leFRENCHPRESS @nikpurvis
Mr. Purvia competes with a Cafe Imports selected coffee from producer Javier Ordonez in Huila, Colombia. Mr. Purvis’ Colombian is part of @cafeimports‘ “Million Pesos” 90 point program – learn more.
Castle is the new roasting arm of @lefrenchpress in Santa Barbara—we’ve featured them recently on Sprudge, so check that out here.
Mr. Purvis was a 2013 USBC finalist, along with Charles Babinski, Sam Lewontin, Pete Licata, Trevor Corlett, and Charlie Habegger.
Sig drink: fermented grapefruit bitters, tangerine panella simple syrup, japanese cocktail pitcher—espresso, rocks, stirred, creating a drink that’s “coffee-forward, complex, and refreshing,” served in in tasteful miniature coupe glasses.
Nick Purvis calls time at 14:34
47. Jillian Woods, Farley’s Coffee SF, San Francisco @farleyscoffee
Nicaraguan and Kenyan coffees in Jillian Woods’ competition espressos. with a big shout out to @delapazcoffee for their training and support for this #bigwestern routine.
“This machine does wonders for this blend. This machine is really killer, actually.”—Jillian Woods, on the Nuova Simonelli Aurelia T3 espresso machine. 20g shots for cappuccinos—”a shorter, more dense shot to accent the milk.”
This was a fun, humble, #real routine from Jillian Woods—but unfortunately we’ve past the 16 mark for this routine here at #bigwestern, which means Woods has disqualified.
48. Row Aczon, Honolulu Coffee, Honolulu @honolulucoffee
There were a total of two competitors this weekend who made the trip from Hawaii—we are proud to report that both competed in Hawaiian floral print shirts.
Mr. Aczon is the Director of Coffee Quality at @honolulucoffee—he’s competing here at #bigwestern and representing his coffee “ohana”, his family, which to him includes the producer and his team at Honolulu Coffee.
“In 2012, Honolulu Coffee purchased our very own coffee farm—in the Captain Cook district of Kona.” Owning their own farm has allowed Honolulu Coffee to enact processing experiments, including some African-style drying beds for a natural processing, still very rare on Hawaii.
Listening to Mr. Aczon talk about Hawaii is transportive, as in it makes us really want to visit, for the coffee and the food and the weather and the vibe, man. Hawaii is such a wonderful place. Learn more about @honolulucoffee‘s farm in Kona, and take some of this fine coffee home.
Mr. Aczon’s sig drink: chilled espresso, filtered water, grapefruit simple syrup (taken from grapefruits grown on Honolulu Coffee’s own farm). Very simple and clean. He instructs the judges to sip it first, then slurp the sig drink “like a cupping.”
“From me and my Ohana, my Ohana and I, we’d like to say mahalo and aloha”—Row Aczon calls time at 15:09 after a charming and highly professional performance.
Relive the complete 2014 Big Western weekend here on Sprudge.
Welcome to our Day Two recap coverage from the 2014 Big Western Regional Barista Competition. This event is happening over the weekend of February 21st-23rd, and is a preliminary regional competition to determine entrants for the 2014 United States Barista Championship in Seattle. It is our pleasure and privilege to serve as official media partners throughout the 2014 United States Barista Championship season, in association with the Specialty Coffee Association of America.
Our coverage is made possible by direct support from Wilbur Curtis and Portola Coffee Lab. The entirety of our 2014 competition coverage–regionals, nationals, and the 2014 World Barista Championship in Rimini, Italy–is anchored by the direct support of Nuova Simonelli, whose Aurelia T3 serves as the official espresso machine of the USBC and WBC.
All of this coverage is culled from the @SprudgeLive Twitter feed. Please follow @SprudgeLive for our leading competition coverage live from Los Angeles.
All photos by Zachary Carlsen for Sprudge.com.
Day Two – Saturday, February 22, 2014 – 19 Competitors
21. Sam Brandvein, Caffe Ladro, Seattle @LadroRoasting @sambrandvein
Ms. Brandvein competes using a blend of two single origin coffees from @LadroRoasting–Kenya and Guatemala. Elle Goulding’s near-immortal “Anything Can Happen” anchoring @sambrandvein‘s service here–great soundtrack.
Sig drink: orange bitters, vanilla & muscovado simple syrup, cooled espresso, coffee ice cubes. Ms. Brandvein made her orange bitters live on stage in front of the judges–a quick process using orange peel. She narrowly escapes DQ, calls time at 15:58.
22. Mark Nunziata, Barista, Portland @baristapdx
“The cappuccino represents an opportunity to be present in the moment and enjoy a beautiful coffee.”
Mr. Nunziata competes with the Guatemala Flor De Concepcion, a Huehuetenango coffee by @coavacoffee–bourbon, caturra, and catuai varieties. Flor de Concepcion is fully washed, grown between 1600-1800m and produced by a small co-op.
Mr. Nunziata’s sig drink: dark chocolate softened in a water bath, blood orange juice, crushed graham-cracker-rimmed glasses. She uses maple syrup as a sweetener–from a sugar shack down the street from his childhood home in Vermont. Into the bonus, but just barely–Mark Nunziata calls time at 15:07.
23. Corey Autobee, Independent, Seattle @coreyautobee
“Are we as coffee professionals becoming a group of really really nice rockstars? … No one ever returned to a coffee because their barista seemed more intelligent than them.”– @coreyautobee‘s opening script is frankly amazing. “Our guests are simply validated by being humans and being our friends.”
Mr. Autobee intentionally presents judges w/espressos sans farm or variety information–just flavor notes. “I believe we should also put hospitality and serving someone well above any education components.” Mr. Autobee competes using Traboca Importer’s washed process Yirgacheffe Biloya, roasted by @kumacoffee in Seattle.
At no point did @coreyautobee instruct judges to clear beverage courses–sig drink includes a re-taste of his espressos & capps. Drinks down at 14:07–time to refill water glasses, clean station…this was an enormously impressive routine. Time at 14:47.
24. Christopher Casassa, Ritual Coffee Roasters, San Francisco @ritualcoffee @LoveofC
Mr. Casassa competes w/@ritualcoffee‘s seasonal “Sweet Tooth” espresso–right now comprised of Kenya Gicherori coffee. “Don’t mind if I say this has crema for days.”–Christopher Casassa on his Kenya Gicherori espresso.
For sig drink Mr. Casassa is filtering shots throughout his service to remove crema–then playing with mallic & phosphoric acids. His sig drink mixture is carbonated–this is a complex and multi-faceted sig drink service, lots of layers. Mr. Casassa calls time at 15:10
25. Marla Roach, Crema Coffee + Bakery, Portland @CremaPDX
The second competitor of the weekend hailing out of @CremaPDX, it’s Marla Roach, from Portland, Oregon. @CremaPDX is a cafe and bakery, located on SE Ankeny in a picturesque part of SE Portland. Learn more here.
Ms. Roach competes using @coavacoffee‘s El Salvador San Sofia–check it out here. Velvety texture and notes of candied hazelnut, raw sugar, and caramel” in Marla Roach’s cappuccinos. Marla decides to re-pull a round of shots, still calls time at 15:00 on the dot.
26. Kevin Bohlin, Saint Frank Coffee, San Francisco @StFrankCoffee @kgbohlin
Kevin “Tex” Bohlin competes with a coffee from El Cidral, Honduras–“Las Nieves”–Pacas & Catimor varieties. Mr. Bohlin is closely associated with specialty coffee in Honduras–he’s traveled there extensively. We’ve written several features on the unique service, gear, & events happening at @stfrankcoffee.
Tex is a pro–conservation of movement, but also a conservative script. Not heaps of dialogue. Hitting his spots. He says there’s an almost Alpine-like terroir and temperature at Las Nieves and his sig drink is meant to mimic that with Douglas-fir-tip ice cream, personally foraged by @kgbohlin–then rhubarb jam & sweet broth, espresso. he calls time at 15:22.
27. Corey Critchfield, Case Study Coffee Roasters, Portland @CaseStudyCoffee
Mr. Critchfield’s capps–“sweet caramel, molasses and nutmeg shining through as notes of apple pie.” For his signature drink, he uses a traditional Bolivian cider–“Mocochinchi”–plus limes & espresso.
“Judges, it was an honor” – Corey Critchfield of @CaseStudyCoffee calls time at 14:48.
28. Truman Severson, Portola Coffee Lab, Costa Mesa @PortolaCoffee @trmnsvrsn
Mr. Severson placed 4th overall at last year’s very competitive Southwest Regionals. His routine begins w/an explanation of the Japanese phrase “wabi-sabi”–its history and evolved meaning. Worth noting: there’s a gigantic wooden plank that @trmnsvrsn has overlaid atop his sensory judges’ station.
Mr. Severson competes using a natural gesha coffee from the Volcan region of Panama–dried in rotating ovens. The coffee is by Hartmann Estate, Panama–learn more about this incredibly biodiverse place here.
“Beauty by its very nature is impermanent”–Truman Severson rounding his routine back to wabi-sabi for his sig drink. Molecular gastronomy show-stopping from @trmnsvrsn–sig drink espressos are served with a “mist”. Mr. Severson’s mist was made w/an ultrasonic baby humidifier! A mist with essence of pineapple, strawberry, lemon. Mr. Severson calls time at 14:09 to a roaring crowd.
29. Bethany Hargrove, The Fresh Pot, Portland @thefreshpotcafe @Bethany_ynahteB
Ms. Hargrove competes using @stumptowncoffee‘s Ethiopia Nano Challa–take some home for yourself.
“This coffee was grown very traditionally, so today I’m extracting it very traditionally.” Espresso notes: “peach candy, creamy mouthfeel, key lime, hops, sweet nectarine, assam, dark chocolate.” Ooh Sunshine Dairy! @Bethany_ynahteB serving milk from Sunshine her at #bigwestern–a PDX mainstay with super-serious QC practices.
30. Elle Taylor, Little Owl Coffee, Denver @LittleOwlCoffee @elletay3
“Simple presentation and ideology is best, because it allows the coffee to shine, no holds barred.”
“A warm peanut butter all the way through…green pepper, and maple sweetness” in Elle Taylor’s capps. Sig drink: papaya, butter, cardamom & cayenne puree, with a shot pulled over top–cayenne provides “a little pop.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8YCSJpF4g4
Elle Taylor’s soundtrack includes @noahandthewhale‘s “Five Years Time”–this speaks to my misspent indie-pop youth. Ms. Taylor ends her routine by sharing a cheers with the judges. Glasses clink. Time called at 15:40.
31. Sarah Posma, Alaska Coffee Roasting Co., Fairbanks @sarahposma
Up next the #bigwestern competitor who traveled the greatest distance to be here–@sarahposma of Alaska Coffee Roasting Company. No really – @sarahposma traveled 3,283 miles to compete at #BIGWESTERN— bigger than the distance from LA to NYC.
Ms. Posma competes with a coffee from western Rwanda, in the Lake Kivu region.
Ms. Posma’s sig drink: birch syrup, club soda, and espresso–“an espresso cordial.” Birch syrup is like a combination of “agave and molasses…it has a lot of balsam, due to the high mineral content.” She calls time at 15:14.
32. Riley Paterson, Visions Espresso, Seattle @visionsespresso @rileypaterson1
“Speciality coffee is more like a web than a chain–there’s so many ways to get involved in this industry.”
Mr. Patterson competes using @kumacoffee‘s Red Bear espresso at #bigwestern–learn more about it here. To the judges, as he goes to pull his shots: “Please, Red Bear with me.”
All Phil Spector so far in Mr. Patterson’s soundtrack…this old stuff sounds so great on big speakers. Orange blossom honey, coconut water and sparkling mineral water in @rileypatterson1‘s signature drink–“accessible, exciting.”
“I can feel morally & intellectually at home in this industry. It’s got some moral backbone.” Mr. Patterson calls time at 14:43–a professional and expressive routine at #BIGWESTERN–really a treat.
33. Laila Ghambari, Cherry Street Coffee House, Seattle @CherryStreet @lay_luh
Ms. Ghambari’s service includes washed, pulp natural, and natural coffees from producer Emilo Lopez Diaz in El Salvador. The coffee comes from Finca El Manzano, and was roasted by Phil Beattie of @Dillanos. “These coffees are about as fresh crop as you can get…they were on a tree a month ago.”
Adjusting her espresso blends throughout @lay_luh‘s service–different ratios for espresso, capps, and sig drink. Pro tip: any materials you provide to your sensory judges, make one more for the head judge. Also serve him/her water.
First sig drink component for @lay_luh–fresh coffee cherry jam from El Manzano, steeped coffee cherries, combined as a syrup. Second part–a smoke component, inspired by @dillanos roaster Phil Beattie’s input. By smoke, we mean like a smoke machine on stage.Tthere’s a smokey test tube with espresso & coffee cherry jam. The wood inside @lay_luh‘s smoke device on stage was cherry wood. it smells amazing and also looked…well, bong-like.
Laila Ghambari calls time at 14:53.
34. Leslie Ruckman, Bellano Coffee, San Jose @BellanoCoffee @el_rucko
Bellano Coffee are having a gigantic weekend so far at #BIGWESTERN–fielding 2 finalists already for Southwest #BrewersCup
Leslie’s table setting has beautiful little details–yellow rimmed glasses matching the fresh flowers. Notes for her espresso “stone fruit, specifically plum, & burnt sugars.” Her cappuccinos: vanilla, caramel, and toasted marshmallow.
Loving the beachy rock of Leslie’s soundtrack–goes great with the beautiful LA day. This routine from Leslie is so relaxed and inviting, from script to soundtrack to table setting. Ms. Ruckman calls time at 15:17.
35. Rachel Grozanick, Handsome Coffee Roasters, Los Angeles @HandsomeRoaster @rrgrozanick
Ms. Grozanick uses a Kenya Kakuyuni roasted by @HandsomeRoaster. Check it out here.
Ms. Groazanick puts her cappuccino shots in front of judges, asks to swirl for aromatics, then pours tableside. Interesting taste/tactile note for her espressos: “the clean, round mouthfeel of dry apple cider.” Unfortunately she calls time at 16:17, disqualifying her.
36. Sumner Ohye, The Curb, Kailua @sumos @thecurbtruck
“My cafe is a college coffee shop…today’s presentation will follow a college format”–Econ, History, course packs…
Mr. Ohye competes using coffee from the north shore of Oahu, from the Wailua Estate–learn more. Labor costs for producers in Hawaii work on a different spectrum. US minimum wage requirements, etc, as explained by Mr. Ohye. He also brought his own milk from Hawaii Island Dairy–one of Hawaii’s few commercial dairies.
Mr. Ohye is re-pulling one of his cappuccino shots as he steps into talking about his signature drink. Mr. Ohye calls time at 15:49.
37. Chad Bledsoe, Torque Coffee Roasters, Vancouver, WA @TorqueCoffee
One part espresso, one part dry ice, and one part hot water for the sig drink in Mr. Bledsoe’s #bigwestern routine. He starts the dry ice smoking off to stage left, while moving along to pull shots for his espresso course.
Mr. Bledsoe’s sig drink: chilled espresso, tonic water, lemon–injected into vessels w/some kind of syringe. Spherification, medical syringes, dry ice. Cracking ice spheres with a wooden hammer. Chad Bledsoe, folks. He hustles through mic problems and a timer malfunction to call time at 15:57.
38. Andrew Villa, Chromatic Coffee Co., San Jose @ChromaticCoffee @villaphoto
“Sweetness has always stood out to me, and made me fall in love with coffee.”
Mr. Villa competes here at #BIGWESTERN with @ChromaticCoffee‘s La Maria–from Tarrazu, Costa Rica–learn more.
Jasmine and oolong tea, clementine juice, and espresso in Mr. Villa’s signature drink. He calls time at 14:59.
39. Eden-Marie Abramowicz, Intelligentsia Coffee, Los Angeles @MissEdenMarie @intelligentsia
Ms. Abramowicz is the 2013 Southwest region barista champion, defending her title this weekend. She competes with @intelligentsia‘s Boliva Takesi–grown at 2450 MASL, possibly the highest coffee farm on earth. Takesi plants only get “3-4 hours of sunlight a day” – resulting coffee is denser, w/more compacted flavor. Takesi is exclusively roasted in North America by @intelligentsia–learn more about this coffee here.
Ms Abramowicz heats an infusion of “apple, toasted almonds, maple syrup, and black tea” for her sig drink. To this she adds espresso, and green grape/allspice/black tea foam. The sig drink is served up in beautiful, delicate long-stemmed cordial glasses.
Sig drinks down at 12:30–Ms. Abramowicz serving espressos last. Eden-Marie Abramowicz calls time at 14:41 (every bit as good as last year…)
You can read all about the 2014 Big Western weekend here on Sprudge.
Welcome to Day One recap coverage from the 2014 Big Western Regional Barista Competition. This event is happening over the weekend of February 21st-23rd, and is a preliminary regional competition to determine entrants for the 2014 United States Barista Championship in Seattle. It is our pleasure and privilege to serve as official media sponsors throughout the 2014 United States Barista Championship season, in association with the Specialty Coffee Association of America.
Our coverage is made possible by direct support from Wilbur Curtis and Portola Coffee Lab. The entirety of our 2014 competition coverage–regionals, nationals, and the 2014 World Barista Championship in Rimini, Italy–is anchored by the direct support of Nuova Simonelli, whose Aurelia T3 serves as the official espresso machine of the USBC and WBC.
All of this coverage is culled from the @SprudgeLive Twitter feed. Please follow @SprudgeLive for our leading competition coverage live from Los Angeles. All photos by Zachary Carlsen for Sprudge.com.
Day One – Friday, February 21, 2014 – 20 Competitors
1. 10:45 Justin Williams, Front, San Francisco @FrontSF
This is the third consecutive Southwest Region appearance for Justin Williams of @frontsf. He competes with an heirloom variety Ethiopian coffee from Yirgacheffe.
“I feel that the value of coffee can be elevated with an environment of finesse and detail…” Mr. Williams is serving a housemade mineral water, flat water, and sparkling water throughout this #bigwestern service.
Espressos for Justin Williams: “semi-sweet chocolate, blackberry, apricot”–notes will appear again in his sig drink. His sig drink includes blackberry puree, dried apricot, palm syrup, and chocolate. Pulling his sig drink shots, he is tapping his toes to “Love You Like A Love Song”. Time is called at 14:47.
2. 11:04 Charles Biando, Blue Bottle Coffee Co., Oakland @bluebottleroast
Charles Biando is the only competitor at #BIGWESTERN from @bluebottleroast–he works at their newly opened Morse Building cafe in Oakland (read all about it here on Sprudge). Mr. Biando’s routine has 2 components–fast service with “sparse” dialogue & seated service “like a restaurant.” He competes with an Ethiopa Homacho Waeno.
For his sig drink of grapefruit zest, brown sugar, water, jasmine, citrus-peel-rimmed glasses, and espresso, Mr. Biando cues his own music on stage via cassette player–to the judges: “it’s just for you!” For the bonus now in Charles Biando’s routine…he’s charging CO2 for a second sig drink component meant to mimic capps. Unfortunately Mr. Biando goes past 16 minutes and becomes the weekend’s first DQ.
3. 11:23 Maxwell Mooney, Spotted Cow Coffee Roasters, Seattle @MaxwellAMooney
A Seattle guy through and through, @MaxwellAMooney asks the judges “how do you like this weather? it’s so sunny! like summer!”
Mr. Mooney competes with coffee from Boquete, Panama–“this is speciality coffee”–from producer Graciano Cruz. He goes for big, beautiful flavor descriptors “Madagascar vanilla”, “Cavendish tobacco finish.”
This is such a producer-focused performance. @MaxwellAMooney talking at length about his producer, Graciano Cruz. On using a Panamanian natural process coffee: it’s experimental in this part of the world “but the rewards outweigh the risks”, and “the water saved from one bag of naturally washed coffee could fill 100 @nuovasimonelli #T3 espresso machines.
This routine has a little bit of everything…@MaxwellAMooney using the “nutation” tamping technique for his sig drinks. He winds up calling time at 15:21.
4. 11:42 David Tran, Demitasse Coffee Roasters, Los Angeles @CafeDemitasse
Mr. Tran competes using a Guatemala Huehuetenango coffee–from a producer with a “knack for experimentation”. For his espresso flavor notes, he describes “a floral aroma, kumquat acidity, pinot noir, with a date finish,” while he says his cappuccinos will “taste a lot like thanksgiving…candied yams, campfire, toasted marshmallows…”
David Tran ends with a riff on the espresso con panna–kumquat pith over date whipped cream and espresso. Smooth and serene on stage, Tran gives a really artistic and intentional routine. He calls time at 14:37.
5. 12:01 Liam Neighbors, Crema Coffee + Bakery, Portland @CremaPDX
Mr. Neighbors of @cremaPDX competes here at #BIGWESTERN with @coavacoffee‘s Honduras Benjamin Miranda–learn more about the coffee here. This coffee brings a cocoa bitterness, lingering caramel, paired with the “comfort” of milk in Liam Neighbor’s cappuccinos.
Mr. Neighbors sig drink includes cherry syrup, cocoa nib and cherry powder lined cups, along with espresso.
6. 12:20 Peter Flores, Bar Nine Collective, Los Angeles @BarNineCoffee
Mr. Flores of @BarNineCoffee competes at #BIGWESTERN with a Brazilian peaberry coffee–the first Brazilian coffee of the day here. You can read more about Bar Nine in our Build Outs Of Summer feature here.
Pomelo, sugar, chocolate, and pomelo extract in Mr. Flores’ signature drink, “Gangsta’s Paradise” for the soundtrack. He calls time at 14:10.
7. 12:39 Cole McBride, Visions Espresso / Velton’s, Seattle @colecoffee @visionsespresso
Mr. McBride was the 2013 second place finisher for the NW region. It was, as they say, a photo finish. Cole is locked in from jump at the #BIGWESTERN : talking and working–pulling shots, pouring water, working through his script.
Mr. McBride’s roaster @veltonscoffee–in-depth experimentation together on roast profile: “by slowing it down and adding development time, the coffee become more soluble.” The roast profile is designed to maximize extraction–“it’s a little more developed than I would traditionally like”–intentional. Mr. McBride’s typica coffee from southern Ecuador was sourced for him by our MC @roasterjoe of @CafeImports, shouted out by name on stage.
Sig drink: chilled espresso in sake containers from Japan–“blown to a specific thickness” for optimal chill. @Vervecoffee cascara concentrate, Washington State honey water, @RishiTea sencha green tea, all double-charged with nitrogen “to change the tactile sensation.”
Cole McBride calls time at 13:27 (?!?) here at #BIGWESTERN–that’s what happens when a very driven person does nothing but bust ass on a barista comp routine for months.
8. 12:58 Nicolas Lawson, Mr. Espresso, San Francisco @OakWoodRoasted
Mr. Lawson of @OakWoodRoasted looks like he’s having a ball up there! Big smile the whole time. Notes of “caramel, pralines, and warm honey” in his cappuccinos–made with @oakwoodroasted Guatemalan coffee.
Mr. Lawson’s sig drink: cider reduction with apple & zinfandel juice, cloves, star anise, Vietnamese cinnamon.
9. 1:17 Christos Andrews, Neptune Coffee/Kuma Coffee, Seattle @christosandrews
“There’s two ways to be an artisan: traditionalists…and radicals”–@christosandrews with a very interesting opening script at #bigwestern. “This coffee was produced by traditionalists and roasted by radicalists”– @christosandrews on his @kumacoffee El Sal Las Brumas, roasted on a @LoringRoasters air roaster. “Radicalist” indeed.
Mr. Andrews presents the judges with a bit of ground coffee, then adds water to bloom as an intro to his sig drink of cinnamon, vanilla, basil, and an almond infusion cream. He calls time at 14:31.
10. 1:36 Jamil Radney, Dripp Coffee, Chino Hills @dripp @calligraphy909
Jamil says that his work as a barista and his work as a DJ/MC in the Inland Empire is much the same: it’s all about 1st impressions. He produced his own competition soundtrack, and the jams are as smooth as the presentation. He gives an impressively chill & assured routine using Dripp’s “approachable but complex” Colombia La Hermosa.
Serving capps, he says “as a DJ I’m not playing for myself, I’m playing for the patrons, and as a barista it’s much the same.” He gives equal parts soundtrack & taste info throughout the performance: a @diplo remix of @grizzlybear‘s Will Call accompanies his “stone fruit” espresso. His sig drink: reduced peach, apricot preserves, half &half, & sweetened condensed milk, chai concentrate spray. Beats for his sig drink: J Dilla.
11. 1:55 Brandon Weaver, Slate Coffee Roasters, Seattle @coffeeandbookz @slatecoffee
There’s a @MAHLKOENIG EK43 up here on stage for Mr. Weaver. He competes with two coffees by @SlateCoffee–first, a Kenya Gaturiri from Nyeri, with “refined pomegranate acidity” and “floral aromatics.” Learn more about @SlateCoffee‘s Kenya Gaturiri AB here.
Ahh hey–“Walkin’ After Midnight” in @coffeeandbookz‘ routine…Patsy Cline FTW. The 2nd coffee in @coffeeandbookz routine is @slatecoffee‘s Brazil Sao Pedro Estate peaberry. Beautiful flatware, stemware, water pitchers etc from @coffeeandbookz–aesthetically very pleasing stage set. He calls time at 15:05.
12. 2:14 Cris Mendoza, Saint Frank Coffee, San Francisco @StFrankCoffee @CrisJMendoza
Mr. Mendoza competes here at #BIGWESTERN using @StFrankCoffee‘s Honduras Las Nieves, from producers Milton and Alexi Moreno.
Dry ice! syringes! This sig drink from @crisjmendoza is nanners you guys–bubblin’ & brewin’ away. On the dry ice component of his sig drink: “it’s pretty awesome.” Sig drink mixture–coriander simple syrup, cherry juice–is filtered through a metal sieve.
Big claps for @crisjmendoza as he grooves into the last stage of his routine–a heavy #BayArea coffee cheering section here.
13. 2:33 Michael Cannon, Velton’s/Neptune Coffee, Seattle @neptunecoffee @SuperHarioBros
Cannon uses a two-bean variation on the Velton’s Coffee Bonsai Blend: a pulped natural Brazil & a late harvest natural Mexico Nayarita. Wine glasses get placed over the espresso course to capture the aromas as the espresso cools, judges asked to inhale after
Cannon blends his two beans in the portafilter for each course with a @Mahlkoenig K30 Twin. For the capps, he highlights the Brazil Condado.
Cannon filters the crema from espresso for his sig drink so he can add carbonation to it. The sig drink has simple ingredients: espresso, strawberry, selzer, sugar–it’s all in the technique & balance. Unfortunately Mike Cannon goes over 16mins, and is disqualified
14. 2:52 Frank La, Copa Vida, Los Angeles @Copa_Vida @Flalessinhim
Big hometown crowd at #BIGWESTERN for Frank La, representing @Copa_Vida (read all about them on Sprudge here) in Los Angeles. The glass and ceramic water bottles for @flalessinhim chose for his #bigwestern service are so so pretty.
Frank ‘s routine is all about time–he competes using a Kenya Gaturiri that had two 24hr fermentations followed by a 24hr soak. Next Frank walks us through time on production side: to highlight acidity, a 12:50min roast time, and a 27sec extraction. For his sig drink: Gaturiri ice cubes, sugar, multiple fermentations of kombucha, jasmine tea, hibiscus flowers, ginger juice.
15. 3:11 Stacy Wood-Burgess, Café Javasti, Seattle @CafeJavasti
Stacy uses a blend of a lighter roast & a darker roast of the Colombia Huila Monserrate from @BatdorfCoffee to highlight both acidity & depth. Stacy’s signature drink focuses on umami savoriness, combining chocolate, miso, and honey-almond foam into a riff on a macchiato.
16. 3:30 Andrew Ogden, Portola Coffee Lab, Costa Mesa @PortolaCoffee
Andrew starts with a confession: “I hate sig drinks. I think they’re often a poor representation of the coffee.” He competes using a rarely seen Venesia variety coffee from Hacienda Sonora in Costa Rica, roasted by @PortolaCoffee for #BIGWESTERN
He uses a special 6% milkfat milk from the revered California creamery @StrausOrganic for his #bigwestern capps. The sig drink is the height of simplicity: judges given a full extraction split in 2 glasses, given 1 bottle of hot & 1 bottle of cold H20. He then asked judges to combine the waters and espresso, and look for relaxed melon acidity in the hot, and a tighter bergamot in the cold.
17. 3:49 Sam Schroeder, Olympia Coffee Roasting Co., Olympia @s_schro @olympiacoffee
“An intensified, refined acidity” in Mr. Schroeder’s espressos–coffee grown at 2200 meters! That’s high. Tastes like “black tea and lemon.”
A lot of intentionality in this routine–different groups on the Nuova Simonelli T3 espresso machine designated for cappuccino service, sig drink service. Mr. Schroeder talks at length about his coffee’s “caramelization roast…a slow stacking of energy that was applied to this coffee.”
Signature drink inspired by “black tea and lemonade…one of my favorite drinks in the summertime”–his sig drink takes black tea, coconut sugar, and egg white, shaken with ice. Finishes sig drink w/ lemon peel–“look for the natural lemon notes the espresso provides.”
18. 4:08 Nicholas Rodriguez, Rose Park Roasters, Long Beach @roseparkroaster
“Making consistently delicious coffee is challenging.”–Nicholas Rodriguez.
Mr. Rodriguez competes w/a coffee from the Cauca department of Colombia, roasted by @roseparkroaster & sourced by @cafeimports.
Beautiful barman set-up here for Nicholas Rodriguez–vintage ice buckets, Japanese pitchers, wooden table trays…each course of Mr. Rodriguez’s service is attended by a hand-drawn menu card for each judge. It’s the little things.
19. 4:27 Bronwen Serna, Vashon Coffee Co., Seattle @VashonCoffeeCo @BDSerna
A treat, truly, to watch Bronwen Serna compete again–she is the 2004 United States Barista Champion, donchaknow, and while that was certainly a long time ago, it feels like everyone in the room knows who Bronwen Serna is.
Ethiopian Natural Guji and Sulawesi Toarco peaberry in Bronwen’s espressos–a play on the old school “moka java” blend. Her Ethiopian is a fully natural coffee from the Sidamo region, with a juicy, rich body, and very clean. Her Indonesian Sulawesi balances those notes with a “tangy, rich body, and dark chocolate aftertaste.”
Bronwen Serna plays with blend ratio and portafilter layering throughout her routine. 30% Guji, 70% Toarco for her espressos, with the Ethiopian coffee added last to the top of the portafilter. Same ratio for her capps, but this time the Ethiopian goes in first. Says this has a subtle but meaningful effect on flavor.
“Strawberry milkshake and milk chocolate” notes in Bronwen’s capps, moving into a sig drink with “spice syrup” – brown sugar, fennel seed, fennugreek, caradmom–and a 50/50 blend of her coffees.
Huge cheer as Bronwen Serna calls time. Much love in the room for Bronweezy.
20. 4:46 June Thornton, G & B, Los Angeles @GandBcoffee
Another @MAHLKOENIG EK43 grinder on stage here at #BIGWESTERN–June Thornton cool and composed through her espresso course, serving Heart Roasters Ethiopia Chelektu. As an aside, we get to drink this coffee on the regular back at Sprudge PDX HQ, and it’s #deloshes.
Cappuccinos with simple notes: “floral lavender, plums.” Signature drink features “rosemary and goji berry creme anglaise, sparkling water, and simple syrup…” all shaken together with the addition of “sparkles”.
Very cool mood for this routine, our last of the day. The lights in the room were a little dimmer, and some of the space’s blue background lighting kicked in behind Ms. Thornton. A moody and intense stage setting, but also serene and very beautiful at the same time, and perfectly complimentary to June Thornton’s music selections. This routine was a great highlight to end the day.
You can read all about the 2014 Big Western weekend here on Sprudge.
Welcome to our recap coverage of the 2014 Big Eastern Regional Barista Competition. It is our pleasure and privilege to serve as official media sponsors throughout the 2014 United States Barista Championship season, in association with the Specialty Coffee Association of America.
This coverage is made possible by direct support from Dallis Bros. Coffee and Counter Culture Coffee. The entirety of our 2014 competition coverage – regional, nationals, and the 2014 World Barista Championship – is anchored by the direct support of Nuova Simonelli, whose Aurelia T3 serves as the official espresso machine of the USBC and WBC.
Enjoy this short film produced in partnership with Sprudge by Prima Coffee.
All photos by Charlie Burt for Sprudge.com. All notes culled via our @SprudgeLive Twitter coverage – follow @SprudgeLive for the very best in competition coverage, all season long, leading up to the 2014 World Barista Championship in Rimini, Italy.
38. Nate Cochran, Buddy Brew Coffee, Tampa, FL @buddybrewcoffee
Mr. Cochran competes using a Kenyan coffee from the Kirinyaga region, a coffee that has “dried red fruit and exotic spices” as espresso.
His cappuccinos are made out of water buffalo milk. Here is what a water buffalo looks like. Now someone from Buddy Brew is handing us a cup full of the stuff. It’s surprisingly thin, with just a little bit of the barnyard hint that you’d expect – it mostly tastes like vanilla. And for the record, we 100% encourage more people to have their crews bring us stuff to try during routines.
Unfortunately, Mr. Cochran exceeded his 16 minute time limit, and was subsequently disqualified. He is the 7th DQ of the weekend (!) here at Big Eastern.
39. Bobbi Jo Vandal, Pavement Coffeehouse, Boston, MA @pavementcoffee @BobbiJoVandal
Ms. Vandal competes here using Counter Culture’s Guatemala La Golondrina, which tastes of “milk chocolate, buttered pastry, sweet tart cherry glaze, and roasted almond” as a cappuccino.
Ice, fresh mint, cherry juice, espresso & cascara in @bobbijovandal‘s sig drink – “a very refreshing drink.”
She calls time at 15 flat, making this yet another impressive and professional routine from a first-time competitor here at Big Eastern.
40. Corey Reilly, Everyman Espresso, Rochelle Park, NJ @everymanny @Cor_Rei
Mr. Reilly competes using Counter Culture Mpemba, a Burundian coffee that helped Sam Lewontin (also of Everyman) win the North East region last year. Learn more about this coffee here.
As a cappuccino, this coffee meets @Stonyfield organic milk and tastes like “orange zest, cinnamon, and caramel.”
Getting a kind of Kevin “Tex” Bohlin vibe from @cor_rei – lotsa coffee knowledge with a handsome twinkle, nawmean? Mr. Bohlin was a very successful barista competitor in previous years for Ritual Coffee in San Francisco; he now owns Saint Frank coffee, in that city’s Russian Hill neighborhood.
Mr. Reilly’s signature drink is Tiki-themed (the Everyman crew did run a Tiki coffee bar, after all), and it includes oligosaccharide syrup, which in addition to being defined as “extracted oils from lime rind, muddled with sugar” is also the most difficult word I had to spell all weekend.
41. Mark Hundley, Seven Stars Bakery, Providence, RI @7starsbakery @marcushundley
“I feel very comfortable admitting that there’s a lot of things I don’t know about coffee.” – Mark Hundley.
Mr. Hundley competes here at #BIGEASTERN using New Harvest Coffee’s Kenya AA Githembe -a washed coffee from Thiririka Cooperative.
Mr. Hundley’s sig drink includes blackberry reduction, chilled shots, soda water “shaken up cocktail style.”
42. Tamara Vigil, Irving Farm Coffee Roasters, New York, NY @IrvingFarm
Ms. Vigil competes at #BIGEASTERN using @IrvingFarm‘s Natural Processed Amaro Gayo – lots of natural coffees on stage this weekend. This one has “lemon acidity, buttery texture, strawberry burst, and a chocolatey finish” as espresso.
Strawberry spheres with lemon verbena and a vessel switch for her espressos in Tamara Vigil’s sig drink. She’s a cool customer – so pleasantly in control, it feels like she’s genuinely hosting the judges.
43. Kelsie Stewart, Volta Coffee, Tea & Chocolate, Gainesville, FL @true_volta
Ms. Stewart of @true_volta competes using @TobysBrooklyn Ethiopia Korate – learn more here. She tells the judges, “What initially drew me to this espresso is that the crema was so lucious and smooth.” Later she’s on about Korate’s “apricot sweetness & blackberry acidity.”
“I believe it’s the maturation of a barista that really comes together in a cappuccino” – hey don’t sleep on Kelsie Stewart you guys, this is a really good routine.
Ms. Stewart’s sig drink includes Tupelo honey harvested by her father in 1977, along with hot water and Florida orange juice, which are together transformed into a foam on stage, and used to top her espressos.
Unfortunately, Ms. Stewart exceeded her 16 minute time limit, and was subsequently disqualified. She becomes the 8h (!!) and final DQ of the weekend here at Big Eastern.
44. Tim Jones, Jubala Coffee, Raleigh, NC @JubalaCoffee @TimmJones
“We are in the business of experiences.” – Tim Jones.
“Just a hint of cherry, some cocoa, and a subtle nougat” in @timmjones‘ cappuccinos, moving into pomegranate molasses, tamarind paste, room temp espresso and quinine water in his signature drinks. In a nice bit of suggested synergy, Mr. Jones puts together his signature drinks to the tune of The Beatles’ “Come Together”.
Mr. Jones calls time at 14:55, and is yet another highly impressive first-time competitor here at Big Eastern.
45. Phillip Search, La Colombe Coffee, Philadelphia @phineas984 @lacolombecoffee
Mr. Search was originally scheduled to compete on Saturday afternoon, during Day Two, and he did in fact do a full performance yesterday. However, there was an undeclared judging conflict during Mr. Search’s routine, and he was offered the opportunity to compete again on Sunday because of this. Mr. Search chose to voluntarily perform again, and thus became our final competitor of Big Eastern.
There is an old school confidence in Philip Search’s competitions style – he’s been here before, having won the Northeast region in 2011.
Mr. Search asks the judges to transfer their espressos to a separate vessel after first evaluating visually – this vessel transfer has been a major trend all weekend at Big Eastern.
Mr. Search’s blend is comprised of Ethiopia Yukro and Guatemala Finca Los Caballitos – Mr. Search runs the “single origin” program at La Colombe, and his espresso blend is taken from that program. It’s got “tannic flavors, with some grape skins.”
Sig drink includes a C02 charge – also kind of a gambit, because CO2 charges overflow all the time, or don’t work, or need to be replaced, etc etc. Today his use of CO2 goes just fine, but it’s always a nerve-wracking moment. Damn us all, we humans, for loving bubbly beverages so much.
Welcome to our recap coverage of the 2014 Big Eastern Regional Barista Competition. It is our pleasure and privilege to serve as official media sponsors throughout the 2014 United States Barista Championship season, in association with the Speciality Coffee Association of America.
This coverage is made possible by direct support from Dallis Bros. Coffee and Counter Culture Coffee. The entirety of our 2014 competition coverage – regional, nationals, and the 2014 World Barista Championship – is anchored by the direct support of Nuova Simonelli, whose Aurelia T3 serves as the official espresso machine of the USBC and WBC.
Enjoy this short film produced in partnership with Sprudge by Prima Coffee.
All photos by Charlie Burt for Sprudge.com. All notes culled via our @SprudgeLive Twitter coverage – follow @SprudgeLive for the very best in competition coverage, all season long, leading up to the 2014 World Barista Championship in Rimini, Italy.
19. Everett Cox, Gather, Brooklyn NY @GatherNY
The first competitor of the day is also a first-time competitor, something we’ve seen a lot of this week her at #BIGEASTERN.
This routine starts with a quote: “I think being accessible is one of the most important aspects of speciality coffee.” He’s competing using Intelligentsia Coffee’s Colombia La Tolima, which presents “caramel sweetness, orange acidity, & minerality in the mouthfeel.”
Mr. Cox plays it safe with his signature beverage, presented his judges a drink made with milk, espresso, orange oil and perfectly cubed ice.
20. Josh Bonanno, Buddy Brew Coffee, Tampa, FL @BuddyBrewCoffee @josh_bonanno
Mr. Bonanno competes at #BIGEASTERN using a naturally processed Ethiopian Yirgacheffe coffee. Most “yirgs” (as they’re often called) are washed; naturally processing is still somewhat rare in this part of Ethiopia. But do you know where natural processing is the opposite of rare? At Big Eastern, where more competitors are using natural processed coffees than ever before at a competition. Are you unsure what “natural processing” means? Click here.
Texture is a running theme in this routine, including in Mr. Bonanno’s capp course – judges are instructed to visually evaluate, then allow the capps to sit briefly, changing the texture of the milk foam.
Sig drink: a charged cherry Kochere cola! Let’s break that down. He’s combining espresso from the Kochere region of Ethiopia, orange zest, burnt sugar, and Co2 to make a kind of coffee soda, then adding cherries that have also been charged with Co2 for a little extra pop.
21. Michael Corrigan, Voltage Coffee and Art, Cambridge, MA @VoltageArt
“I’m a goof. I’m a Goofy McGooferson. So be prepared.” – a bit of candid honesty from Micahel Corrigan.
This routine had the hands-down best soundtrack and conceit of the weekend: a riff on classic diner culture, complete with repurposed LP sleeves for place setting, classic oldies like “Yakkity Yak” and “Spanish Harlem”, and even Mr. Corrigan himself, clad in a soda jerk apron and drive-thru paper cap. Delightful.
The diner theme extends into his sig drink, of course, which is kind of a simple riff on a classic float – espresso, ice cream, and soda water.
22. Camila Ramos, Panther Coffee, Miami FL @panthercoffee @milamos
Camila Ramos is your 2014 South East Regional Barista Competition champion! Read all about her winning routine in this exclusive, in-depth feature.
23. Hadassah Wilson, Square One Coffee, Lancaster, PA @squareonecoffee @hadassahedith
“Let’s do our part as coffee lovers to honor quality.”- Hadassah Wilson, with an appeal to why great coffee sometimes costs a little more.
Microphone problems early on make it hard to hear which coffee she’s using, but we know Ms. Wilson to be a fixture at these competitions over the years, as a volunteer and judge. This is her first performance, and it’s set to some heavy hustle hip hop.
Ms. Wilson’s espresso has notes of “ripe nectarine and lingering cocoa”, which she pulls out even further in her signature beverage, comprised of shots pulled over cane sugar with citrus zest, a clove infusion, and tonic water, all served over perfectly spherified ice balls.
24. Brian Gelletly, Reanimator Coffee, Philadelphia, PA @ReAnimatorPhila @bpgel
Mr. Gelletly competes using @reanimatorphila‘s roast of a very special Guatemalan microlot, comprised of Gesha variety coffee grown in the Acatenango region.
Nice capp notes: “honeysuckle and bread.” As an espresso, the coffee has “bittersweet walnut in the finish.”
Really interesting signature drink here, a riff on amaros and bitter Euorpean liquors, using ingredients like raw honey, tartaric acid steeped with grapefruit, and non-alcoholic black walnut bitters.
25. J. Park Brannen, Counter Culture Coffee, New York, NY @counter_culture @jparkbrannen
J. Park Brannen is your 2014 South East Regional Barista Competition champion! Read all about his routine in this exclusive, in-depth feature.
26. Justin Enis, Equal Exchange, Providence, RI @EqExCoop
Mr. Enis competes using a Catuai microlot from the Las Flores region of Honduras, marked as Queen Bee Espresso #5: Lennon. As an espresso, this coffee tasted ” harmonious: hypersweet characteristic up front, meyer lemon, tart cherry, milk choclate & buttery finish.”
Capp notes: “milk chocolate on the front, sweet black cherry, warm & buttery finish.” Signature drink: espresso, homemade grenadine, and sparkling water.
27. Nathan Nerswick, 5 & 10, Athens, GA @fiveandten @nateners
Mr. Nerswick is the second competitor at #BIGEASTERN Barista Competition in Durham to hail from chef Hugh Acheson’s 5&10 restaurant in Athens, Georgia.
Mr. Nerswick competes at #bigeastern using @counter_culture‘s Papua New Guinea Baroida – learn more here – yielding pie-like spiced fruit and sweet molasses finish in his cappuccinos.
For his signature drink, Nathan Nerswick keeps playing with dessert elements, using ingredients like brown sugar, ground cloves, and cascara tea to create a drink with notes of “gingerbread and Amaretto.”
28. Luis Colon, Fuego Coffee Roasters, Rochester, NY
Mr. Colon competes using a natural Ethiopian Kochere, brought into the US by @cafeimports, who are returning this year to host their annual origin trip prize for all regional barista competition winners.
People in Rochester are cocktail enthusiasts. We saw it on day one from an earlier competitor, and Mr. Colon’s routine is similarly cocktail-focused, from the bartener’s kit to the stirring pitchers to the gleaming chrome ice bucket up on stage.
Quoth Luis Colon: “”In Rochester, New York, we love cocktails.”
Mr. Colon was disqualified due to exceeding his 16 minute time limit.
29. Michael Butterworth, Quills Coffee, Louisville, KY @QuillsCoffee @mjbutterworth
Mr. Butterworth competes using Quills Coffee’s San Cristobal Guatemala here at #BIGEASTERN, a coffee comprised of caturra, typica, and bourbon varieties. Learn more about this coffee here via Quills.
The word going around Big Eatern is that Michael Butterworth traveled to Houston prior to this event, in order to train with the team at Blacksmith Coffee.
Kind of really into this soundtrack, comprised of a 50/50 blend of Simon & Garfunkel varieties.
This was a super interesting routine, if a bit unexpected from the first-timer out of Louisville. His signature drink looked at “espresso through the lens of Turkish coffee,” from Turkish cups to an ingredient set meant to mimic Turkish Delight. Mr. Butterworths’ ingredient set included Kentucky wildflower honey, kentucky limestone water, a “Turkish teaspoon” of walnut, and rose water. His was without a doubt one of the weekend’s most carefully considered and interesting signature drinks.
30. Joshua Littlefield, Intelligentsia Coffee, New York, NY @Intelligentsia @IntelliNYC @littlejfield
Mr. Littlefield was the only direct Intelligentsia employee to compete this weekend at the #BIGEASTERN Barista Competition – he did so with the roaster’s Colombia Tolima espresso., a caturra / castillo variety.
This is Mr. Littlefield’s second appearance at competition. He appears technically composed and on his game on stage, if slightly reserved about the whole thing.
Sig drink: citrus & orange zest, caramel, buttermilk in a tea pot, shots pulled directly on top.
31. Trevor Corlett, Madcap Coffee Co., Washington, DC @MadcapCoffee @tjorlet
Alternate glassware abounds in this routine! Mr. Corlett serves his capps in a brandy glass, for an experience that creates “aromatics of toffee” and “flavors of vanilla & milk chocolate.” Later he’ll serve his espressos in a brandy snifter as well.
Tangerine and carrot juice, muscovado simple syrup, and espresso in Mr. Corlett’s signature drink.
Mr. Corlett competes using @madcapcoffee‘s Las Aguas Altas from Huehuetenango, Guatemala – pache, caturra and bourbon varieties. Learn more and take some home here.
32. Matthew Bryce, Peregrine Espresso, Washington, DC @peregrinedc @Matt_Bryce
“It’s not hard to love coffee.” – Mattthew Bryce.
Mr. Bryce competes at Big Eastern using a Kenyan coffee – kind of a rarity this weekend – with dominant notes of blackberries and jasmine. For his cappuccinos, the coffee tastes of “lots of chocolates, lots of blackberries” and for his signature drink, he utilizes ingredients like blackberries, jasmine tea, and orange blossom honey.
In full deadpan: “This coffee was roasted by Counter Culture – I think it’s delicious. Good job, Counter Culture.”
33. Patricia Bruce, Pavement Coffeehouse, Boston, MA @pavementcoffee @pahbru
“Cappuccinos are formulated to be biologically delicious.” – Patricia Bruce.
Ms. Bruce competes here at #BIGEASTERN using @counter_culture‘s Ethiopia Haru – learn more, take some home – which tastes like “milk chocolate, orange cream, honeyed graham cracker” as espresso.
A complex signature drink here from Ms. Bruce: cacao and shade grown coffee honey, clementine oranges, quinine bark powder, allspice, and lime.
34. Andrew von Arx, Commonplace Coffee Co., Pittsburgh, PA @thecommonplace @baronvonossum
There’s no question whatsoever – @baronvonossum is the best Twitter handle at #BIGEASTERN – it’s not even a contest.
“almost like a hot chocolate kind of feel” in @baronvonossum‘s cappuccinos here at #bigeastern – Mr. von Arx looking dapper on stage. “We’re all friends here, so please enjoy these cappuccinos.”
Mr. von Arx’s sig drink includes homemade almond milk whipped cream, placed on Chinese soup spoons and served over espresso w/ orange rind.
35. Philip Search, La Colombe, Philadelphia, PA @LaColombeCoffee @phineas984
This routine was declared a do-over due to a previously undeclared professional conflict involving one oF Mr. Search’s judges. Look for a recap on Phillip Search’s routine in our Day Three round up.
36. Maurice Moulton, Catalina Café, Tallahassee, FL @CatalinaCafe @mwm_411
Cool espresso notes from @mwm_411 – ” “like biting into a tart granny apple, honey like sensation, bittersweet chocolate.” His capp notes are great too: “homemade caramel and milk chocolate.”
I think that if your name is Maurice, then “Space Cowboy” becomes like a default all-purpose theme song, right?
37. Katie Rant, Sola Coffee Café, Raleigh, NC @SolaCoffee
“I love the baristas behind the craft who are taking coffee to new heights.” – Katie Rant.
Katie Rant competes using a Counter Culture Ethiopia Yirgacheffe coffee. Her espressos have notes of “sweet honey, midtones of lemongrass, a citrus burst and a silky body.” Her cappuccinos taste like “honeysuckle cream…with a sweet, silky, velvety body.”
Sig drink: espressso combined with hibiscus tea, peach cane syrup, and pure maple. “We’re all gonna share this out of the same carafe, kind of like a tea party.”
We’re reporting to you live from Durham, North Carolina, at the 2014 Big Eastern Regional Barista Competition. This event draws baristas from across the eastern half of the United States, from Boston to Florida, Pittsburgh to Louisville, for a three-day display of professional coffee service skills, innovative signature drink creations, and best of all, the expression of personal performance. It is our pleasure and privilege to serve as official media sponsors throughout the 2014 United States Barista Championship season, in association with the Speciality Coffee Association of America.
Our coverage is made possible by direct support from Dallis Bros. Coffee and Counter Culture Coffee. The entirety of our 2014 competition coverage – regional, nationals, and the 2014 World Barista Championship in Rimini, Italy – is anchored by the direct support of Nuova Simonelli, whose Aurelia T3 serves as the official espresso machine of the USBC and WBC.
Enjoy this short film produced in partnership with Sprudge by Prima Coffee.
All photos by Charlie Burt for Sprudge.com. All notes culled via our @SprudgeLive Twitter coverage – follow @SprudgeLive for the very best in competition coverage, live from Durham.
1. Dawn Shanks, Independent, DC @DawnShanks
Ms. Shanks begins the weekend with a question: “what are you doing to improve your sensory skills in coffee?”
Ms. Shanks competes w/ @counter_culture‘s Ethiopia Biloya Natural – “a high acidity upfront, backed up by sweetness” – learn more, and take some home to enjoy.
“some people think capps mask the flavor of espresso…but all they do is bring out another flavor” – hers are like “cooked fruit, cocktail style…like red cherries and sweet cream.”
Signature drink includes a peach mixture, and a syrup delicately painted on her judges’ glassware.
2. Nick Oddo, Commonplace Coffee, Pittsburgh @thecommonplace
Mr. Oddo competes using a washed Kenyan coffee – we’re having some early microphone problems here at #bigeastern… womp womp…so it’s hard to hear which exact Kenyan coffee he’s competing with, but we do know he’s one of two competitors this weekend from The Common Place in Pittsburgh, whose coffee scene is reportedly bumping right now.
That Kenyan coffee? It’s washed, and has “a lively acidity with light citrus notes.”
A cocktail influenced sig drink here from Mr. Oddo, Boston shaker and all. Microphone problems throughout this routine…but Nick Oddo is classy all the way through: “thank you for being here with me, tasting my drinks, and giving me feedback.”
3. Steph Caronna, La Farm Bakery, Cary NC @LaFarmCary @CoffeeSteph8876
This is Ms. Caronna’s third SE regional barista competition appearance – she’s from Cary, NC, which is right near Durham, and she’s brought her cheering section with her.
Steph Caronna competes with Counter Culture’s Papua New Guinea Baroida coffee – a competition favorite for the last several seasons. Learn more here.
As espresso, her Baroida has “a soft body, tart like sweet cherry, savory herb and rosemary finish” – as capps, it’s “more of a dessert-like cherry.”
Cool signature drink here – two kinds of ice cubes, made out of cherry & vanilla and rosemary tea, served with a piece of bing cherry foccacia bread from La Farm Bakery.
4. Andrew Cash, Jubala Village Coffee, Raleigh @JubalaCoffee
Starts his routine with a set of rhetorical questions: “How is it that two people can walk into the same store at the same time, but leave with 2 different experiences? And how can I engage with a coffee professional without chasing away a first timer?”
Meticulous with how he’s instructing the judges through his espresso course – visual evaluation first, the “6 to 7 big stirs” before taste evaluation.
Mr. Cash competes using Counter Culture’s Valle del Santuario in his cappuccinos – learn more here – yielding capps with “milk chocolate and cashew butter” flavors. For his signature drink he makes a creme anglaise with dried blueberries, which sounds great right about now.
5. Dave Planer, Kaffe 1668, NYC @kaffe1668
Mr. Planer spends first 2:45 explaining his history with coffee, a compelling story that includes tremendous personal loss for his family during the events of Hurricane Sandy, and a morning-after redemption of sorts over his miraculously spared brewing kit. Moving and fascinating stuff.
Quote of the event thus far – one of our favorite coffee quotes ever in a barista competition: “Coffee is a love story. It’s poetry. It’s not just a math problem.” – Dave Planer.
Mr. Planer competes using a Burundian coffee here at Big Eastern, with flavor notes similar to “an Islay Scotch” – by which means a heavily peated Scotch, which not all Islay Scotches are, but I digress…as a cappuccino, this coffee is “a sweet tooth’s dream…layers and layers of milk chocolate and caramel.”
Mr. Planer was disqualified for going over the 16 minute time limit.
6. Couper Cox, 5&10, Athens GA @coupercox
Mr. Cox competes using a natural Ethiopian espresso roasted by Counter Culture – it’s “meyer lemon, honey, dark chocolate and cranberries – a body that is delicate and tea-like…juicy” as an espresso, and a “lemon poppyseed muffin” as a cappuccino
We did a nice feature on Mr. Cox’s shop in Athens – it’s the coffee program at 5&10, a newly renovated restaurant by well-known chef Hugh Acheson. Read that feature here.
Mr. Cox’s signature drink includes a pecan orgeat syrup – that’s Southern and seasonal take on a classic ingredient. Nice.
Mr. Cox was disqualified for going over the 16 minute time limit.
7. Jennifer Hall, Sola Coffee Cafe, Raeligh @solacoffee @jennforgivn
A tightly scripted first 2 minutes from @jennforgivn – aroma! lipids! milk! Yirg! Creamy and delicious! Flavor. She’s competing using – who else? – Counter Culture Coffee, her local roaster.
“judges, I am an avid science nerd” – a whole floatillla of beakers and flasks up on stage for @jennforgivn‘s sig drink…which includes fruits, jasmine green tea, alkaline water (pH of 9.5, duh), which includes orange rind that has been gassed and infused with peach oil. Wowzers.
This was an impressive and polished routine from Jennifer Hall, a first-time competitor and one of our favorites of the day here at Big Eastern.
8. Michael Sammartino, Baked And Wired, DC @bakedandwiredDC
“I want to meet my customers expectations, but also want share what I really like in coffee” – Michael Sammartino.
Some early intensity here…Mr. Sammartino attempted to call a technical time-out, but it wasn’t granted by his head judge. Observing from his audience, we saw that his first espressos weren’t to his liking, and he lacked back-up cups to re-pull them. This is not grounds for a technical time-out.
Moving on to cappuccinos, his have “whiskey-like aromatics…and an overall flavor of butter toffee.”
Mr. Sammartino’s sig drink: espresso in a cocktail shaker, egg whites, milk, orange marmalade & cumin syrup.
9. Jonathen Liu, Gimme! Coffee, Brooklyn @gimmecoffee @jonathenlewd
“The thing I love most about coffee – like absolutely the most – is that I get to see people trying to do things better everyday.” – Jonathen Liu.
Mr. Liu competes at #BIGEASTERN using @gimmecoffee‘s Honduras Linda Vista – learn more, take some home! We got to learn quite a bit about the producer in this routine, including drying and processing information for this pacas variety coffee.
“A nice medium body, crisp finish, with flavorful cocoa” in Mr. Liu’s espressos, melting into “brown butter and toasted pecan” in cappuccinos.
Deceptively simple signature drinks: he’s simply serving his espresso in a different vessel, charred cherry wood cups that change the espresso’s aroma and flavor. Identical shots to his espresso course.
10. Tery Honeyghan, Peregrine Espresso, DC @peregrineDC
“I’m here today because I want to talk about energy in coffee. What does energy taste like?” – there’s a theme to this routine, and it’s energy.
Ms. Honeyghan competes using Counter Culture’s Valle del Santuario – learn more and take some home.
Energy. Electron transfer cycles. “Your body turns that energy into energy”, but “how will we emit that energy?” As a cappuccino her coffee tastes of “wheat loaf with swirls of caramel cream.”
Ms. Honeyghan was disqualified for going over the 16 minute time limit.
11. Seth Cook, Northside Social, Arlington VA @northsidesocial
Mr. Cook competes using @aidabattle‘s Aida’s Grand Reserve, roasted by Counter Culture Coffee – learn more here. It tastes like “brown butter, prunes, cherry acidity and molasses” as espresso.
This was a lovely routine from Mr. Cook – in control and carefully paced throughout, soundtracked to the great minimalist Steve Reich.
Memorable sig drink flavor notes: “delicate strawberies on the nose, dark fruit acidity and cane sugar.”
12. Dylan McFatrich, The Morning Times, Raleigh @TheMorningTimes @DylanMcFatrich
Mr. McFatrich competes w/ @counter_culture‘s Papua New Guinea Baroida – learn more, darn it, you should by clicking right here.
sig drink: sweet potato juice, pom juice, molasses rim, garnished w/molasses & ginger sugar – juicing sweet potatoes here live on stage with a nice big juicer. What a lovely auburn orange color.
Mr. McFatrich was disqualified for going over the 16 minute time limit.
13. Wade Reed, Joe Bean Coffee Roasters, Rochester NY @JoeBeanRoasters
Serious audio problems throughout this routine. First no mic, then no music. No music! Mr. Reed could have called (and been rightly awarded) a technical due to audio malfunction, but he chose to soldier on, delivering a strong routine in the face of adversity well outside of his professional control.
Mr. Reed’s espresso is a Nicaragua & Ethiopia blend, with notes including “walnut, an herbal freshness, and chocolate.”
A lot of love for Rochester in Mr. Reed’s routine, especially in the signature drink portion – a cocktail-influenced sig drink that includes a shout out to The Revelry, a cocktail bar in Rochester.
“The coffee and booze trade has never been healthier in Rochester than it is right now.” – Wade Reed.
14. Jesus Gomez, J. Rene Coffee Roasters, West Hartford, CT @jrenecoffee
“I want to create beverages in the same manner as Picasso spent a lifetime painting” – a running theme throughout Mr. Gomez’ routine, an intellectual space between art and coffee.
Jesus Gomez is the first competitor at Big Eastern to compete with a Brazilian coffee – he uses a oka pot to highlight acidity and chocolateyness in his signature drink.
Seeing a moka pot on stage is exceedingly rare in barista competitions; just as artists will use different mediums for expression, he’s focusing on different brewing methods to display his coffee.
15. Alison Maitland, Swing’s Coffee Roasters, Alexandria VA @SwingsCoffee
Ms. Maitland competes using a Costa Rican coffee from Linda Vista, a washed coffee from the Tarrazu region.
Great soundtrack here! Dolly Parton & Fleetwood Mac hits from Ms. Maitland.
Ms. Maitland’s sig drink – a mocha! “I make millions of these things a day, they’re very comfortable & familiar” – hers has chai spices and coconut milk. Coconut milk! Steamed coconut milk! Sure why not.
Ms. Maitland was disqualified for going over the 16 minute time limit. She’s the 5th DQ of the day at Big Eastern.
16. Jonathan Moehlig, Land Of A Thousand Hills, Roswell GA @1000hillscoffee
The folks at @1000hillscoffee actually own washing stations in Rwanda, which is what we’ll be hearing about today at Big Eastern – he’s introducing his producers by name, the men who manage their production in Rwanda.
His espressos have sweet, orange-type flavor – characteristic of the Bourbon, Jackson & Mbezi coffee varieties found throughout the varied growing regions in Rwanda.
Quoth our MC today, veteran Counter Culture competitor Lem Butler, “You were like Speedy Gonzalez up there!” – Mr. Moehlig calls time at a lightning-quick 13:20.
17. Jenna Gotthelf, Northampton Coffee, Northampton MA@NohoCoffee @this_is_jennaG
“This is my first time doing this and i’m really excited to be here! drove 15 hours from Northampton…” – there’s something really cool and different about this routine form Jenna Gotthelf, not your average barista competition routine. She’s wearing a shirt that says “See No Weevil”, for starters.
Ms. Gotthelf competes using @BarringtonCoffe‘s Gold Espresso blend – learn more about this blend here.
Sig drink is a “deconstructed abstraction of the @barringtoncoffe espresso” – butter, maple syrup, & rose water. She compares the aromatics on this drink to “a McDonald’s cheeseburger pickle… or let’s say something more refined, like a savory tart.”
“It has been a pleasure preparing coffee for you today, I cannot wait to do this 1 million more times!” This was a really engaging routine here at today at Big Eastern, a highlight we heard discussed a lot around the event throughout our subsequent Nonstop Recap Evening.
18. Erika Vonie, Ultimo Coffee, Philadelphia @ultimocoffee @OkAn_EerieEvil
Addressing her judges, she says: “You four are very lucky – you get to taste one of, if not the most transparent coffees on the market today.” That’s Counter Culture Coffee’s Taroira Cherry Project from Papua New Guinea.
Her routine’s opening dialogue is a blur of details on the sourcing chain – every last person, from the producer to the mill to the exporter to the importer, is mentioned by name, finishing with Counter Culture’s green-buying guru, Tim Hill.
It’s all about umami in this routine – did you know “umami” is derived from Japanese for “delicious taste”? Her capps taste like “delicious brown butter shortbread…lingering toasted graham cracker note.”
Sig drink is called the “Lovage On Top” – it takes Lovage soda, fennugreek, celery seeds, espresso, spearment & cucumber water, carbonation, and Taroira Cherry Project espresso. She instructs the judges to garnish each drink with a single coffee bean, thus including them in the coffee’s chain of touch points.
This is the second event of the 2014 competition season here in the United States, with one more regional event scheduled for next month in Los Angeles, California. The United States competition coffee season wraps up in April, at the 2014 United States Barista Championship in Seattle, Washington.
Follow @SprudgeLive for the very best in barista competition coverage, live from these extraordinary events.
Welcome to the final installment of Sprudge.com’s daily coverage at the 2014 Big Central Regional Barista Competition in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Just four competitors were in play on Day Three, and yet Sunday was home to some of Big Central’s most impressive runs. Three of the four baristas you see below are now eligible for the 2014 United States Barista Championship – see the full list of qualifiers here.
Sprudge.com’s coverage of Big Central was made possible by direct support from the event’s hosts, Cafe Imports, Wilbur Curtis Co., and from the event’s official espresso machine sponsor, Nuova Simonelli. We are proud to serve throughout the 2014 season as media partners of the Specialty Coffee Association of America, whose courtesy and professionalism were on open display throughout this wildly successful and memorable weekend of competition.
All photos are by Charlie Burt (@tiger_friend) for Sprudge.com. Also please enjoy our Big Central coverage from Day 1 and Day 2. Thank you for reading Sprudge.
39. Josh Taves, Dogwood Coffee, MPLS @DogwoodCoffee
An appropriately rhetorical start to one of the weekend’s most intellectual routines: “What is it to know a coffee? To really know everything a coffee can be?” – Josh Taves, Dogwood Coffee Company.
Mr. Taves competes using @dogwoodcoffee‘s Panama Don Pepe. This coffee from Dogwood was grown in Boquete, in volcanic western Panama, and cultivated by producer Jesus Antonio Vasquez. It’s a 100% typica lot.
Mr. Taves’ capps: 37 grams espresso weight, with notes of “toasted hazelnut, toffee sweetness, big buttery body, and a cocoa finish.”
There’s an interactive element to his espresso service, as Mr. Taves asks the judges to vote together for the kind of espresso they’d like to enjoy, selecting from 2 options. They opt for an espresso experience that yields “a lime intense acidity, dry white wine, juicy raisin sweetness, cocoa finish.”
There’s a lot to tell about this routine – a malfunctioning timer, a microwave, clever drippers, different particle sizes in the same portafilter for his sig drink, using compressed air to “wipe” down his station, and Mr. Taves addressing each judge by name. A brainy, fascinating, competitive 15 minutes.
40. David Fasman, Kaldi’s Coffee, St. Louis @Kaldis_Coffee @DavidFasman
“Why is coffee so expensive? It’s an agricultural product that takes the dedication of an international community.” – David Fasman, Kaldi’s Coffee.
Mr. Fasman competes using @kaldis_coffee Panama Lerida Estate, comprised entirely of the catuai variety. Learn more and take some home here.
One of our favorite quotes of the weekend, on the international coffee sourcing chain- “It’s like a massive game of telephone.”
Capp notes: “caramel apple and cocoa powder…think of Apple Jacks” – Mr. Fasman working efficiently through his notes, maintaining a steady and controlled dialogue with his judges, multitasking all the while.
Sig drink: orange juice, muddled dried cherry juice, maple simple syrup, espresso, shaken with ice.
In the heat of the Twitter moment, we called this routine efficient, thought-provoking, professional and accessible, and those notes stand up on further review.
41. Patrick Burns, Palace Coffee, Canyon, TX @palacecoffee
“Being a barista, and having a wife and two kids, well, it doesn’t always pay the bills.” – Real talk from Patrick Burns, the owner/operator of Palace Coffee in tiny Canyon, Texas (just 13,000 folks or so).
Mr. Burns competes w/ coffee from Santa Marta, Costa Rica, roasted by @evocationcoffee in nearby Amarillo, Texas. You can learn more about this coffee and take some home for yourself right here at this click point.
A couple of different roast profiles being served by Mr. Burns of @PalaceCoffee – this is a trend we’ve seen throughout Big Central.
Mr. Burns’ sig drink is a take on your classic whiskey Old Fashioned, but with a bit of a twist. There’s an “ice sphere” made of cold brew, gum arabic, soda water, and a kind of “ginger spritz” made live on stage. In a competition of successful cocktail-style sig drinks, his may have been the most classic.
42. Trevor Gruehn, Kickapoo Coffee, Madison, WI @kickapoocoffee @thuglife4000
Mr. Gruehn competes w/ @kickapoocoffee‘s Ethiopia Idido – learn more, go shopping, and peruse the offerings from Kickapoo, out of tiny (but noble) Viroqua, Wisconsin.
Well it took until the last competitor of #BIGCENTRAL, but here, finally, we’ve got some ABBA courtesy of @thuglife4000 – “Dancing Queen”.
Capps: “a hint of cherry, tinge of acidity, sweetness from the milk…like cornflake milk.”
Here now, a wild one of a sig drink, starting with phosphoric acid and cherry wood steeped in water, then strained through a paper Hario v60 filter. Mr. Gruehn then added cane syrup, cherry concentrate, and almond extract, before carbonating the whole lot of it on stage with a Co2 charge. The end result was billed to the judges a “like a cherry soda with espresso.” Holler.
Photos by Charlie Burt for Sprudge.com. Follow @SprudgeLive for Twitter play-by-play from all the US Barista Competition events leading up to the World Barista Championship 2014 in Rimini, Italy.