WHOLESALE - INTELLIGENTSIA BARISTA CHAMPIONSHIPS

Admittedly there was no gold, silver or bronze medal at stake, and granted no flags were hoisted to the sound of the “Star-Spangled Banner”, but this did not detract from the air of excitement and tension surrounding the inaugural, Intelligentsia in-house Barista Championships that took place over the weekend of August 14th-15th.

Amanda Ladas pouring her latte art style cappuccinos

Danny O'Neill judging espresso during competition.

Stephen Rogers setting his table He grew the Zulu Prince daisy himself.

Technical judges Barry Jarrett and Ellie Matuszak assessing the spent puck.

Eight talented members of the Intelligentsia staff had battled through grueling qualifiers in the weeks preceding, qualifiers that had provided them with an opportunity both to practice their routines and experience a taste of barista competition. The efforts each had made were clear for all to see with their performances at the finals doing both themselves and the company proud. Each competitor was required to show their routines on both Saturday and Sunday with each entrant being given the opportunity, at the end of day 1, to speak with the judges about how their performance could be improved. When the coffee grounds finally settled on Sunday afternoon it was Amanda Ladas who deservedly found herself in first place, with Matt Riddle (second), and Stephen Rogers (third) close behind. As winner of the IBC Amanda wins a trip to origin, which will probably be somewhere in either Central or South America.

L to R: Bob Quinlan, Barry Jarrett, John Sanders and Danny O'Neill examine the guts of a new model Marzocco with build-in PIDs.

The competition was based on the United States Barista Championship, with each competitor being given 10 minutes to prepare and serve 4 espressos and 4 cappuccinos. Unlike the USBC, competitors were not required to prepare a “signature drink”. Judging the competition were Danny O’Neil  of The Roasterie in Kansas City, John Sanders of Hines Public Market in Seattle, Barry Jarrett of Riley's Coffee & Fudge, Jeff Taylor of PT’s Coffee in Topeka, Steve Fritzen of Coffee Hound, and Ellie Hudson Matuszak and Amber Sather, both from Intelligentsia.  Aside from Steve, Ellie, and Amber, these are USBC and even WBC certified judges. Competitors are scored both on their technique and the sensory quality of the drinks, with eagle-eyed judges also mindful of dosing, tamping, cleanliness and general presentation.

Spectators were also treated to the programs of Ellie Hudson-Matuszak, Amber Sather and Aaron Duckworth of Espresso Dell’Anatra in Kansas City. Ellie, Amber and Aaron have all previously competed at the regional and national level.

Our thanks to the judges, organizers and supporters for helping make the competition a success. The top finishers at the IBC will go on to become part of the Intelligentsia Barista Team which will compete in Regional, National, and World Competitions as well as represent Intelligentsia at trade shows around the country. Keep an eye out for these talented individuals!