If you think pouring hot – not boiling, or you’ve failed the first test – water over coffee grounds is enough of a chore first thing in the morning, spare a thought for competitors in the World Barista Championships which get underway in the RDS, Dublin today. The judging process will require them to make four espressos, four milk beverages and four signature drinks, in the space of 15 minutes, in a highly choreographed performance set to music.
Ireland's representative, 27-year-old Natalia Piotrowska, originally from Poland now living in Castlebar, finished 32nd in the event Seattle last year, and having retained her Irish barista champion title, she's back for another shot.
The competition is being compered by Colin Harmon, owner of the 3fe coffee shops in Dublin. Harmon has competed at the world championships four times, finishing third in Vienna in 2012 and fourth in each of his other appearances.
If you want to wake up to a better cup of coffee, Piotrowska advises paying attention to “the origin of the coffee, when it was roasted and who roasted it”. But the single most important factor, she says, is to grind your own beans, just before brewing the coffee.
“Fresh crop coffee, freshly roasted, freshly ground, freshly boiled water and freshly brewed,” are Harmon’s directions. “Also, water makes up about 98 per cent of a cup of coffee, so it’s incredibly important. Water not only affects extraction, it also affects how the extracted coffee tastes. Water with a low hardness is best. If your tap water is not too hard, a simple taste and odour filter will drastically improve your brewing. Any decent coffee shop will be able to advise you on water quality in your area, so ask them when you buy beans.”
There are 61 baristas taking part in the championships, which are being held in Dublin for the first time. It is part of the World of Coffee trade show and exhibition, which gets underway on Thursday and runs until Saturday.
“The competitors choose their own beans and many of them would be directly involved at farm level, helping with variety choice, processing methods and even harvesting techniques,” Harmon says. “Many of them roast their own coffees too. It’s incredibly competitive. They all have to use the same machines and grinders and they’re judged on everything from knowledge, to presentation skills, to how many finger prints they leave on the machine.”
Piotrowska, who has been training for the competition for between eight and 10 hours a day for the past six months and is coached by the defending world champion Sasa Sestic from Australia, and Irish-based Konrad Kwiatkowski, will be using Sudan Rume beans from Colombia.
The signature drink is where competitors get a chance to show their creativity, and Piotrowska is serving an apple infusion – espresso with dried Turkish apple, Panelia sugar from Colombia, smoked plum and ice.
The competitors also choose the music that will be played during their 15-minute judging session. “It has to be music I like and it has to enhance the experience. I’m on early, so nothing too harsh,” says Piotrowska, who is first in front of the judges, at 8.35am. But there’s another aspect to the soundtrack. “They keep me on track, time wise.”
Some don’t stop at a soothing soundtrack. “They often often have elaborate table settings and even illustrations to demonstrate their message more effectively, Harmon says.
Piotrowska says she drinks, “ a lot” of coffee during training, and plans on having her first sip, “with a fresh palate” at her practice round at 7am. It won’t be to calm her nerves. “I am not nervous, I’m excited,” she says.
Winning the competition "has changed the life of everyone who has done it", according to Alex Bernson, marketing manager at World Coffee Events. "They've gone on to open their own cafes, become consultants. They get on the radar of equipment manufacturers and get involved in testing and training. It's a stamp that says you are a master of coffee."
There has only ever been one Irish winner of the world championships, Stephen Morrissey, who took the title in 2008, and now works as an advisor to the Specialty Coffee Association of America.
Tickets for World of Coffee include admission to the World Barista Championship and the World Brewers Cup, for filter coffee experts. They can be bought online at worldofcoffee-dublin.com.
The first round of the competition continues on Thursday, with the semi-final on Friday and the final round, for the top six, on Saturday. The event is being livestreamed, details at worldcoffeevents.org/dublin
