Here on Finals Sunday of the 2014 US Barista Championship and US Brewers Cup, World Coffee Events and our friends and partners at Nuova Simonelli are putting on their fun new WCE Allstars friendly competition, where some of your favorite Coffee Champions of years past compete “back to back in a series of challenges, including trivia, pop quiz, and more!”
It’s been an exciting year of competition, from the dynamic regional competitions, all the way to the show floor here in Seattle. This year’s semi final round was one of the most competitive USBC’s we’ve seen, and the room is already packed as we get into the first competitors from the US Barista Championship, and US Brewers Cup, being presented back to back this year on the same floor, creating an exciting big-top feel.
The big top atmosphere is being taken to the next level this year, with the WCE All Stars event taking place between the end of the competition, and the beginning of the winner’s announcement. Traditionally, this has been kind of a dead time, while the judges madly calibrate and tabulate, so it’s great to have an engaging intermission this year. It’s all going to be one big global coffee kiki, with some recent stars of the WCE world:ย 2013 World Barista Champion, Pete Licata, 2013 World Brewers Cup Champion, Erin McCarthy, and 2010 World Barista Champion, Michael Phillips. One big laugh!
All of this hilarity is being hosted by Nuova Simonelliย and Stephen Leighton ofย Has Bean Coffee, who is currently wearing a red suit that truly defines the word eye-popping.ย
