Queensland Barista Championship Continues Veneziano Success Story
Announcement posted by Harvest Ideas 28 Nov 2011
Jean Paul (JP) Sutton, manager of specialty coffee roaster Veneziano in Brisbane’s West End, has placed third in Queensland’s 2012 barista championship over the weekend and Adrian Zucker, also from Veneziano's Brisbane roastery and The First Pour cafe, placed second in the latte art competition, continuing Veneziano's reputation for performing strongly in competitions and justifiably laying claim to being Australia’s most awarded coffee company.
Part of the highly regarded competition in the specialty coffee circle that selects state barista champions, JP and Adrian will now vie for the Australian titles, together with Veneziano’s Victorian champions Craig Simon (2012 Barista Champion and Cup Tasting Champion), Jen Marks (2012 Latte Art Champion) and Erin Sampson to be held at the landmark event Melbourne International Coffee Expo, at the Melbourne Showgrounds on May 4 - 6, 2012. They will be joined by Veneziano’s newly appointed head barista of the soon to open First Pour Adelaide espresso bar and showroom, Mike Wells. Mike, from Veneziano client cafe Blefari Caffe & Cucina in Adelaide recently won second place as the 2012 South Australian Barista Champion and runner up Latte Art Champion.
JP is no stranger to competing, having placed second in the 2009 state competition and third in the national competition, as well as winning the 2011 Queensland competition, placing fourth in the nationals of the same year.
JP’s competition blend this year included a mind-blowing Kenyan Nyeri AA Kangocho and a Guatemalan Finca La Esmerelda Yellow Bourbon, selected by him personally and roasted by Victoria’s 2012 champion, production manager and licensed Q Grader, Craig Simon who flew to Brisbane to assist.
The barista's in-depth coffee knowledge including geography, climate, processing and roasting is imperative to performing well and Veneziano's philosophy of investing heavily in coffee knowledge certainly pays off.
"Australian barista competitions are more challenging than ever due to the competitors' level of experience; it's no longer just about who can give a good presentation", says Craig Dickson, Veneziano CEO.
"The competing baristas must excel in all areas of coffee making they are being judged on including espresso machine skills, notably consistency, cleanliness and care, whilst sensory judgement takes into account coffee appearance, flavour and aroma, and the scoring is rounded off with judging the competitors’ coffee knowledge and presentation skills; to be imprecise in even one of these factors can mean a huge blow to the final score", he says.
Each competitor is required to prepare four espressos, four cappuccinos and four original signature drinks using a coffee selected and roasted exclusively for the competition, presented before seven judges – a head judge, two technical judges and four sensory judges.
The aim is to select a coffee that is outstanding in each beverage type, as the characteristics will alter somewhat in a milk based coffee from an espresso.
Contested categories in the Australian Specialty Coffee Championship are barista champion, latte art champion, cup tasting (referred to within the industry as cupping) and coffee in good spirits, which is a signature cocktail combining espresso and alcohol.
Veneziano Coffee is committed to the Australian Specialty Coffee championships as a clear way of supporting and growing coffee knowledge in Australia. The prestigious event precedes the World Barista Championship, with all eyes being on Vienna for the 2012 world event.
The multi-million dollar Australian specialty coffee industry is transcending coffee and caf culture and the beneficiaries are everyone from the avid coffee consumer through to the grower.
Additional information:
Veneziano Coffee - specialty roasters, supporter of certified organic and certified Fairtrade coffee, supporter of direct trade and with producers and cooperatives, onsite world class barista training school, First Pour cafs, home of Australian barista and latte art champions, recipient of countless awards, and proud supplier to over 500 of Australia’s best cafes. Roasteries located: 22 Bond Street Abbotsford, VIC and Montague Rd, West End, QLD.
Part of the highly regarded competition in the specialty coffee circle that selects state barista champions, JP and Adrian will now vie for the Australian titles, together with Veneziano’s Victorian champions Craig Simon (2012 Barista Champion and Cup Tasting Champion), Jen Marks (2012 Latte Art Champion) and Erin Sampson to be held at the landmark event Melbourne International Coffee Expo, at the Melbourne Showgrounds on May 4 - 6, 2012. They will be joined by Veneziano’s newly appointed head barista of the soon to open First Pour Adelaide espresso bar and showroom, Mike Wells. Mike, from Veneziano client cafe Blefari Caffe & Cucina in Adelaide recently won second place as the 2012 South Australian Barista Champion and runner up Latte Art Champion.
JP is no stranger to competing, having placed second in the 2009 state competition and third in the national competition, as well as winning the 2011 Queensland competition, placing fourth in the nationals of the same year.
JP’s competition blend this year included a mind-blowing Kenyan Nyeri AA Kangocho and a Guatemalan Finca La Esmerelda Yellow Bourbon, selected by him personally and roasted by Victoria’s 2012 champion, production manager and licensed Q Grader, Craig Simon who flew to Brisbane to assist.
The barista's in-depth coffee knowledge including geography, climate, processing and roasting is imperative to performing well and Veneziano's philosophy of investing heavily in coffee knowledge certainly pays off.
"Australian barista competitions are more challenging than ever due to the competitors' level of experience; it's no longer just about who can give a good presentation", says Craig Dickson, Veneziano CEO.
"The competing baristas must excel in all areas of coffee making they are being judged on including espresso machine skills, notably consistency, cleanliness and care, whilst sensory judgement takes into account coffee appearance, flavour and aroma, and the scoring is rounded off with judging the competitors’ coffee knowledge and presentation skills; to be imprecise in even one of these factors can mean a huge blow to the final score", he says.
Each competitor is required to prepare four espressos, four cappuccinos and four original signature drinks using a coffee selected and roasted exclusively for the competition, presented before seven judges – a head judge, two technical judges and four sensory judges.
The aim is to select a coffee that is outstanding in each beverage type, as the characteristics will alter somewhat in a milk based coffee from an espresso.
Contested categories in the Australian Specialty Coffee Championship are barista champion, latte art champion, cup tasting (referred to within the industry as cupping) and coffee in good spirits, which is a signature cocktail combining espresso and alcohol.
Veneziano Coffee is committed to the Australian Specialty Coffee championships as a clear way of supporting and growing coffee knowledge in Australia. The prestigious event precedes the World Barista Championship, with all eyes being on Vienna for the 2012 world event.
The multi-million dollar Australian specialty coffee industry is transcending coffee and caf culture and the beneficiaries are everyone from the avid coffee consumer through to the grower.
Additional information:
Veneziano Coffee - specialty roasters, supporter of certified organic and certified Fairtrade coffee, supporter of direct trade and with producers and cooperatives, onsite world class barista training school, First Pour cafs, home of Australian barista and latte art champions, recipient of countless awards, and proud supplier to over 500 of Australia’s best cafes. Roasteries located: 22 Bond Street Abbotsford, VIC and Montague Rd, West End, QLD.