The Cupping

The Cupping tests the barista’s ability to understand taste profiles in a highly-competitive time-pressed battle.

Each competitor is presented with six coffees set in a particular order. The competitors have three minutes to taste and memorise the order in which those coffees are placed on the table.  The coffee bowls are then shuffled randomly and competitors have two minutes to taste and return the coffee bowls back to their original order.

The Brewing

Chemex, AeroPress, Kalita or V60 - which coffee do you choose to match?

Baristas are tested on their grinding skills as well as their ability to select the right coffee to match a randomly selected hand brewing method to maximise taste. The baristas select one of the six coffees tasted in The Cupping round to brew. Judges will make a call based on the correlation between choice of coffee and brewing method, their presentation and the taste of their coffee.

The Latte Art

The Latte Art tests the barista’s mastery of milk, challenging them to create specific patterns in milk-based drinks against the clock.

The judge will roll a dice three times, determining three different coffee patterns that competitors have to replicate and present to the judges.

The presented coffees will be judged on visual appearance of the pattern, milk quality and contrast.

The Order

A real world test. Baristas are challenged to deliver an order of 10 espresso-based drinks, common to a quality café menu.

Baristas will be presented with an order docket, which they will be challenged to produce in nine minutes or less. The competitors will be judged on their technical skill, professionalism and time.

The Signature Drink

Baristas will need to replicate and present the same Signature Drink as per their online submission video.

A signature drink is a coffee based mixed beverage consisting of three or more ingredients, as long as they are safe and legal to use.

The competitors will present three identical drinks to the judges and will be judged on taste, creativity, consistency and presentation.

The Espresso Blend

Baristas will create an espresso blend from the coffees used in The Cupping.

The ‘Espresso Blend’ discipline will only occur during the semi-finals. The two finalists will need to replicate their bespoke blend during the final.

The Origin

The Origin tests the barista’s ability to identify coffee origins by taste, in a highly competitive time-pressed battle. Each contender is presented with six coffees, and a table-top map of the world. The contender will have five minutes to taste the coffees and place them on the map in the correct geographical location from where they originate.