Posted on

BREW-HA-HA

March will be an incredible month for coffee lovers as the “Brew Ha Ha” weekend sees some of the most eagerly awaited coffee events coincide on one big weekend at the Twisted Pepper on Dublin’s Middle Abbey Street.

Coffee lovers from as far away as Russia, Scandinavia and even Australia convened on Dublin for last year’s event and this year will be even more equally enticing to coffee enthusiasts everywhere.

First up on the Friday 30th March is the Irish Brewers Cup where we seek to find our national representative who will follow up on Keith O’Sullivan’s victory at last years World Championships. This event pits some of the countries finest baristas in a battle to find the most skilled filter brewer and promises to be a hotly contested event.

Saturday sees Tamper Tantrum Live return to the stage at the Twisted Pepper in what is one the coffee industry’s premier education-focused conferences with a unique urban twist.

Last year’s speakers included World Barista champions, Espresso Machine innovators and Coffee bloggers; tickets sold out in a matter of days. This years line-up is a tight-lipped secret at the moment but is guaranteed to be just as prestigious.

Sunday is a double header with proceedings opening with the Irish Cup Tasters Championships. This event requires participants to spot the odd coffee out of three on eight separate occasions to determine who’s pallet is the most refined. Irelands representative in the past two years, David Walsh, has gone on to finish second at the World Championships two years running.

Following that is the inaugural Hasbean World Home-Barista Championships, aimed at crowning the finest home-barista there is. Amateur contestants will bring their own equipment and present to a panel of professional judges to determine who will be the first ever Hasbean World Barista Champion.

Entry is free on Friday and Sunday but Saturdays even is a ticket-only affair and can be purchased here for €50 which includes lunch and filter coffees for all attendees.

This is one of the most exciting events on the international coffee calendar and is a unique opportunity for coffee lovers to experience the best of what the specialty coffee industry has to offer.

Friday 30th March Irish Brewers Cup

Saturday 31st March Tamper Tantrum Live

Sunday 1st April Irish Cup Tasters Championship

Hasbean World Home Barista Championships

Entry for the Brewer’s Cup and Cup Tasters Championships will be online shortly.

Posted on

2012 Avonmore IBC Scores

Colin 700.5

Lorraine 632

Megumi 623.5

Julia 607

Rob 595.5

Vini 534.5

 

The SCAE would like to extend its congratulations to Colin and to Ruslan who won the Latte Art Competition on the day.

Photos to follow (ps if you have photos drop me a message in the comments below).

Posted on

Avonmore Irish Barista Championship Finalists

Congratulations in no particular order are due to your 2012 (yes, I know) Avonmore Irish Barista Championship finalists:

  • Rob Smyth (Brew Bar Café)
  • Lorraine Whelan (3FE)
  •  Vinicius Arruda (The Humble Bean)
  • Colin Harmon (3FE)
  • Julia McKenna (Clements Coffee)
  • Megumi Ueno (Brew Bar Café)

 

Massive thanks to all the competitors for their tremendous efforts. While the 6 above succeeded on the day, there were other competitors who showed great promise and will no doubt be future finalists, perhaps champions.

We must also note the great efforts of the judging team, who gave up not just this weekend, but also days for workshops and calibration. The standards of judging in the Irish Competition have been raised significantly this year. Well done all.

Thanks to the organising team for days and nights of work leading up to the event, to make sure everything ran smoothly on the day.

Thanks to our sponsors CMA Astoria and Avonmore for their ongoing committment, ensuring this competition has a future.

 

Finally, a big thanks to our hosts, Java Republic, who provided a great venue and great support throughout.