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Veneziano Coffee had a connection with place-getters in every category of this year's national coffee championships.

 

The 2010 Australian Specialty Coffee Championships were held at the Queensland Exhibition and Convention Centre last weekend and were hotly contended.

 

The competitions select the Australian barista champion, latte art champion, coffee cocktail mixologist, as well as a tasting competition (called cupping within the industry) and a roasting competition.

 

The roasters at Veneziano did an excellent job placing third in the National Roasting category. In this competition green beans were sent to all entrants and these had to be roasted in a way that enhanced their natural characteristics.

 

This category could be likened to a cooking competition where a group of chefs are asked to cook a feature dish using the same basic ingredient, for example wagyu beef. The judges look for the most appropriate cooking methods that enhance the flavour, texture and presentation of the base ingredient.

 

The Coffee in Good Spirits competition involves making two identical Irish Coffees and two signature beverages combining coffee with liqueurs, spirits and other cocktail ingredients to produce a coffee cocktail.

 

The beverages are judged for taste, aroma and visual presentation. This very popular category saw David Seng, one of Veneziano’s top baristas, win third place with a cocktail he calls Devil’s Cherry, made with muddled fresh cherries, crème de cacao, vodka and a double espresso.

Congratulations to local barista Will Priestly (one of the Melbourne coffee group Cafenatics’ and Veneziano Coffee’s favourite baristas), for taking out first place in the Australian Latte Art Championship. Will is off to London in June to compete with baristas from around the world to vie for the title of World Latte Art champion.

Competitors had to create a pair of café lattes and macchiatos using only the jug and milk and then make a signature beverage using any tools they wished to create an individual piece of art.

To make it that little bit more difficult, they had to show the judges what they would be making beforehand! The judges look for creativity, for performance, for identical patterns in the pairs, and for the contrast in the patterns. And to ensure the integrity of the coffee, each cup is also judged on taste and aroma.

And of course, a huge round of applause goes to Jean Paul Sutton who won third place in the Australian Barista Championships. Jean Paul is the manager of Veneziano Coffee in Queensland and on the weekend proved once again, that once a barista, always a barista.

 

Each competitor prepares four espressos, four cappuccinos and four original signature drinks using coffee chosen and roasted especially for the competition. A total of seven judges watch each performance.

 

With a head judge overseeing proceedings, two technical judges watch the barista’s machine skills, allocating points for consistency, care and cleanliness, whilst the four sensory judges assess the appearance, flavour and aroma of each cup of coffee as well as the knowledge and overall presentation skills of the barista.

 

Veneziano Coffee is committed to the Australian Specialty Coffee championships as the path to growing support and specialty coffee knowledge in Australia. Erin Sampson, Australia’s 2009 Latte Art champion and third in the world, will be managing the team of Veneziano’s clients and employees as they continue to supply award-winning coffee and prepare for next year’s round of barista competitions.

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