We are a mere two-and-a-half months away from the return of the US Coffee Championships. After two years of starts and stops and hiatuses, the national round of the US Coffee Championships is headed to Boston in early April, with a full roster of six different competitions, and in a press release published Tuesday, January 25th, the registration process for each competition has been laid out.
When we last left the USCC in early 2020, competitions were in varying stages of completion. The US Barista Championship and Brewers Cup had both crowned their champions whereas the Cup Tasters, Coffee in Good Spirits, and Roasters Championship were caught between the regional qualifiers and the national round; the Latte Art Championship had yet to return. To accommodate the not-yet-complete 2019-20 events, competitors to qualified for the national rounds two years ago will be able to compete at nationals this year in Boston. This means there will be no registration for new competitors for the US Cup Tasters, Coffee in Good Spirits, and Roasters Championship.
Returning yet again to the USCC roster, the Latte Art Championship will feature 18 competitors, with spots filled on a first come, first served basis beginning February 1st. Registration will be available here at that time.
For the US Barista Championship and Brewers Cup, registration is going to be a bit different. Due to the overwhelming popularity of the two events, 24 Barista and 18 Brewers Cup competitor slots will be determined via a “weighted lottery.” Per the announcement:
In order to encourage a fair and diverse competition group that truly reflects our community, the Lottery form collects optional demographic data for the purpose of determining how each lottery entry will be weighted… The goal of lottery selection is to open up the competitions to the entire coffee community without restriction. That said, there will be a weight to the selection process in order to encourage diversity and have a competition group that truly reflects our community.
Registration for both events is open as of January 25th, the day of the announcement, and will run through February 7th. Lottery selections will then be notified via email the week of February 14th “with next steps on how to accept the nominations and register.” Potential competitors can register here for either event.
For more information on the 2022 US Coffee Championships or to register any of the of four available events, visit the USCC’s official website.
Zac Cadwalader is the managing editor at Sprudge Media Network and a staff writer based in Dallas. Read more Zac Cadwalader on Sprudge.
