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What are the U.S. Coffee Championships and why do we care?
By Kristin Lerner, Kean Coffee
U.S. Coffee Championships
For those of you who have always dreamed of competing in the U.S. Coffee Championships, now is your chance! For the first time ever, the Coffee Championships are offering eight CoffeeChamps Preliminary Competitions from August to September across the United States. These competitions will begin to determine who will go on to the Finals for the U.S. Barista Championship and the U.S. Brewers Cup Championship. Due to the fact these will be hosted by local coffee shops, these will be fun and low-cost chances to compete at a regional level.
The idea is to make it possible for more coffee shops to be the host and serve their local communities. It also opens up the floor for more Baristas to have the experience at an affordable level and allows them a practice round for the main competition. Hence, across the board, the Preliminaries are making it easier for more Baristas and Coffee Professionals to have the competition experience.
For the Preliminaries, all Barista competitors will have the wares, equipment, and coffee provided for them. They may bring their own wares or grinder if desired, but this is not a requirement. They will, however, be required to use the Host-provided coffee. All Brewers Cup competitors will need to bring their own manual brewing devices, filter media, and kettle. They can bring their own grinder if preferred, but this is also not a requirement. The Host-provided coffee will be required for the competition.
Preliminary Dates and Locations
*August 25-27th (Rancho Cucamonga, CA)
Klatch Coffee and Curtis
*August 25-27th (Barista Competitors Only) (Seattle, WA)
Synesso, Camber Coffee, Seattle Coffee Works, Stumptown, Royal Drummer, Anchorhead Coffee
*September 8-10th (Brewers Cup Competitors Only) (Portland, OR)
Portland Coffee Social Club and Buckman Coffee Factory
*September 22-24th (Denver, CO)
Rocky Mountain Craft Coffee Alliance
*September 22-24th (Greenville, SC)
Ally Coffee
*September 22-24th (Washington D.C.)
Coffee District
*September 28-30 (Louisville, KY)
Quills Coffee
*September 29-1 (Tulsa, OK)
Topeca Coffee
U.S. Barista Championship
The U.S. Barista Championship (USBC) is an exciting opportunity for Baristas to compete on a national level to demonstrate their espresso beverage making skills and knowledge. They will be required, in fifteen minutes, to both prepare and serve espressos, cappuccinos, and a signature beverage personally crafted by each Barista. They will be scored by four sensory judges and two technical judges on their beverage preparation and presentation.
For the new Preliminary Rounds this year, there will be between twelve to thirty-six competitors for each event. The top eight Baristas at each Preliminary Round in August and September will reserve an automatic placement of their choice in the U.S. CoffeeChamps Qualifying Competitions. All the remaining available Barista spots for the Qualifying Competitions will be determined by Open Registration.
The CoffeeChamps Qualifying Rounds will consist of sixty different competitors who have either reserved a spot from the Preliminary Round or through Open Registration. Thirty-six of these competitors will successfully advance to the Final U.S. Coffee Championships, hosted April 21-23, 2018 in Seattle, WA. From the two Qualifying Rounds, the top six competitors from each event will be chosen to advance directly into the Semi-Finals round of the final competition. The subsequent twelve competitors from each Qualifying Competition will be given a place in the First Round of the Final Barista Championship.
The winner of the 2018 U.S. Barista Championship will have the honor and privilege to represent the United States in the 2018 World Barista Championship in the Netherlands, within the capitol city of Amsterdam.
U.S. Brewers Cup Championship
The U.S. Brewers Cup Championship (USBrC) is an amazing opportunity to demonstrate Coffee Professionals knowledge, technique, and expertise in the art of manual brewing. The competitors will have to perform three separate services: Compulsory, Open Service, and Serve the Audience, which will be judged by well-trained coffee experts. The Compulsory round will be a blind tasting; the competitors will be required to brew the same coffee on their chosen devices. In the Open Service round, the competitors will have seven minutes to brew and showcase their chosen coffee to the panel of judges.
For the new Preliminary Rounds this year, there will be between eight to twenty-four competitors for each event. The top four Brewers at each Preliminary Round in August and September will reserve an automatic placement of their choice in the U.S. CoffeeChamps Qualifying Competitions. All the remaining available Brewers Cup spots for the Qualifiying Competitions will be determined by Open Registration.
There will be two different Qualifying Competitions, each featuring 36 total Brewers Cup Competitors. Of these Brewers Cup participants, the top twelve from each Qualifying Event will successfully advance to the Final U.S. Coffee Championships, hosted April 21-23, 2018 in Seattle, WA.
The winner of the 2018 U.S. Brewers Cup Championship will have the honor and privilege to represent the United States in the 2018 World Brewers Cup Championship, with the location yet to be determined.
Kean Coffee at the U.S. Coffee Championship Preliminaries
We are excited to announce that our very own Gabe Venegas will be representing Kean Coffee as he competes in this year’s U.S. CoffeeChamps Brewers Cup Preliminaries this Saturday, August 26th. The event will take place at Klatch Coffee in Rancho Cucamonga, CA.
Gabe holds an impressive Level 2 Barista Certification and will be sharing his passion for coffee with the judges during his 7-minute brewing presentation. The top four competitors will be chosen to continue on to the Qualifying Round. Watch the competition Live Streaming on Facebook!
For more information go to: http://www.uscoffeechampionships.org/