USBC Finals: Kevin Bohlin Kevin Bohlin - Ritual  Kevin is sharing a washed coffee from Honduras, La Piñona. Kevin recently visited the farm, met the farmer, and was able to cup the coffee on the farm. Pacas profile - savory sweet aroma, citrus acidity,  Leaves a dry ground sample.  Invokes crema color rule calling out hazelnut crema with golden amber. Espressos down first - honey sweetness, stir thoroughly and drink to bottom for candy sweetness. 3:30 in and he goes to work on capps…    In capps the coffee’s sweetness really comes forward with tastes like an Italian florentine cookie.  Sweetness comes from the producer’s quality control program and relies mostly on his family to pick the cherries. Super sweet coffee = super sweet cappuccino. Kevin describes his sig drink to be like his visit to this farm - simple yet complex, sweet yet bright, cool and refreshing like the mountain air was when he was hiking the finca. He pulls three sets of shots for his sig drink, juices some pineapple on stage, and serves them together. The coffee is the base and filters out the crema using a paper filter and a V60. He adds the pineapple juice as a base creating a refreshing and balanced drink with a sweet fruity acidity. The next element is a raw meadow-foam honey that acts to round out the edges of the drink. He adds the coffee to a low-mineral content sparkling water to add efferevesence and make it refreshing, adding a little bitterness to balance out what was lost in the crema.  Asks judges to sip pineapple juice first, pour the juice in with the water and espresso in a wine glass. Asks judges to coat inside of their mouth with the honey, take a sip of the combined elements, note experience, finish quickly to include the sweet honey.  Plenty of time remaining, Kevin makes it look easy and calls time at 14:52. USBC Finals complete!

USBC Finals: Kevin Bohlin

Kevin Bohlin - Ritual 

Kevin is sharing a washed coffee from Honduras, La Piñona. Kevin recently visited the farm, met the farmer, and was able to cup the coffee on the farm. Pacas profile - savory sweet aroma, citrus acidity,  Leaves a dry ground sample.  Invokes crema color rule calling out hazelnut crema with golden amber. Espressos down first - honey sweetness, stir thoroughly and drink to bottom for candy sweetness. 3:30 in and he goes to work on capps…    In capps the coffee’s sweetness really comes forward with tastes like an Italian florentine cookie.  Sweetness comes from the producer’s quality control program and relies mostly on his family to pick the cherries. Super sweet coffee = super sweet cappuccino.

Kevin describes his sig drink to be like his visit to this farm - simple yet complex, sweet yet bright, cool and refreshing like the mountain air was when he was hiking the finca.

He pulls three sets of shots for his sig drink, juices some pineapple on stage, and serves them together. The coffee is the base and filters out the crema using a paper filter and a V60. He adds the pineapple juice as a base creating a refreshing and balanced drink with a sweet fruity acidity. The next element is a raw meadow-foam honey that acts to round out the edges of the drink. He adds the coffee to a low-mineral content sparkling water to add efferevesence and make it refreshing, adding a little bitterness to balance out what was lost in the crema.  Asks judges to sip pineapple juice first, pour the juice in with the water and espresso in a wine glass. Asks judges to coat inside of their mouth with the honey, take a sip of the combined elements, note experience, finish quickly to include the sweet honey.  Plenty of time remaining, Kevin makes it look easy and calls time at 14:52.

USBC Finals complete!

USBC Final Standings So much good coffee, so many solid presentations. Here’s how it played out score-wise: FINALS ROUND 1st: 658 Pete Licata - Honolulu Coffee Co -USBC Champion 2011!!! 2nd: 632.5 Nik Krankl - Gelato Bar & Espresso Cafe 3rd: 623 Ryan Knapp - MadCap 4th: 604.5 Trevor Corlett - MadCap 5th: 585.5 Lorenzo Perkins - Caffe Medici 6th: 567.5 Kevin Bohlin - Ritual SEMI FINAL ROUND 1st: 678 Nik Krankl - Geltao Bar & Espresso Cafe 2nd: 670 Pete Licata - Honolulu Coffee Co. 3rd: 643 Ryan Knapp - MadCap 4th: 627.5 Kevin Bohlin - Ritual 5th: 620.5 Trevor Corlett - MadCap 6th: 607 Lorenzo Perkins - Caffe Medici 7th: 595.5 Jared Truby - Verve 8th: 593 Ian Levine - Verve 9th: 591 Jeremy Sterner - Peregrine 10th: 588.5 Scott Lucey - Alterra 11th: 587.5 Tyler Stevens - BARISTA * 12th: 587.5 Park Brannen - Cafe Grumpy * 13th: 585 Joseph Marrocco -  Kaldi’s 14th: 581.5 Laila Ghambari - Stumptown * 15th: 581.5 Sarah Dooley - Espresso Parts/Olympia* 16th: 571.5 Robbie Britt - Espresso Parts 17th: 567 Jacque DesMarais - The Coffee Ethic 18th: 564.5 Devin Chapman - Coava 19th: 558 Sam Purvis - Coava 20th: 550 Row Aczon - Honolulu Coffee Co 21st: 543 Ryan Wilbur - Stumptown 22nd: 542 Nicole Call - Kaldi’s 23rd: 540 David Delchamps - 1000 Faces Coffee 24th: 511 Chandler Rentz - Batdorf & Bronson 25th: 510 Phillip Search - Dallis Bros. 26th: 506.5 Michael Harwood - Carrboro *In the event of a tie, the competitor with the higher total espresso score (on all sensory sheets) beats the tie/gets the higher placement. ROUND ONE TOP TEN (Regional Champions not included in this round) 1: Jared Truby - Verve  2: Ryan Wilbur - Stumptown 3: Ian Levine - Verve 4: Trevor Corlett - MadCap 5: Park Brannen - Cafe Grumpy 6: Lorenzo Perkins - Caffe Medici 7: Kevin Bohlin - Ritual 8: Laila Ghambari - Stumptown 9: Nik Krankl - Gelato Bar & Espresso Caffe 10: Tyler Stevens - BARISTA We suggest you avoid comparing round-to-round scores and competition-to-competition numbers too much. Raw scores are not a good indicator of performance in other competitions (WBC etc.) and there are many factors that will impact scoring. The purpose of each round is also different - to find the finalists, to find the semi-finalists, to find the champion.

USBC Final Standings

So much good coffee, so many solid presentations.

Here’s how it played out score-wise:

FINALS ROUND

1st: 658 Pete Licata - Honolulu Coffee Co -USBC Champion 2011!!!

2nd: 632.5 Nik Krankl - Gelato Bar & Espresso Cafe

3rd: 623 Ryan Knapp - MadCap

4th: 604.5 Trevor Corlett - MadCap

5th: 585.5 Lorenzo Perkins - Caffe Medici

6th: 567.5 Kevin Bohlin - Ritual

SEMI FINAL ROUND

1st: 678 Nik Krankl - Geltao Bar & Espresso Cafe

2nd: 670 Pete Licata - Honolulu Coffee Co.

3rd: 643 Ryan Knapp - MadCap

4th: 627.5 Kevin Bohlin - Ritual

5th: 620.5 Trevor Corlett - MadCap

6th: 607 Lorenzo Perkins - Caffe Medici

7th: 595.5 Jared Truby - Verve

8th: 593 Ian Levine - Verve

9th: 591 Jeremy Sterner - Peregrine

10th: 588.5 Scott Lucey - Alterra

11th: 587.5 Tyler Stevens - BARISTA *

12th: 587.5 Park Brannen - Cafe Grumpy *

13th: 585 Joseph Marrocco -  Kaldi’s

14th: 581.5 Laila Ghambari - Stumptown *

15th: 581.5 Sarah Dooley - Espresso Parts/Olympia*

16th: 571.5 Robbie Britt - Espresso Parts

17th: 567 Jacque DesMarais - The Coffee Ethic

18th: 564.5 Devin Chapman - Coava

19th: 558 Sam Purvis - Coava

20th: 550 Row Aczon - Honolulu Coffee Co

21st: 543 Ryan Wilbur - Stumptown

22nd: 542 Nicole Call - Kaldi’s

23rd: 540 David Delchamps - 1000 Faces Coffee

24th: 511 Chandler Rentz - Batdorf & Bronson

25th: 510 Phillip Search - Dallis Bros.

26th: 506.5 Michael Harwood - Carrboro

*In the event of a tie, the competitor with the higher total espresso score (on all sensory sheets) beats the tie/gets the higher placement.

ROUND ONE TOP TEN (Regional Champions not included in this round)

1: Jared Truby - Verve 

2: Ryan Wilbur - Stumptown

3: Ian Levine - Verve

4: Trevor Corlett - MadCap

5: Park Brannen - Cafe Grumpy

6: Lorenzo Perkins - Caffe Medici

7: Kevin Bohlin - Ritual

8: Laila Ghambari - Stumptown

9: Nik Krankl - Gelato Bar & Espresso Caffe

10: Tyler Stevens - BARISTA

We suggest you avoid comparing round-to-round scores and competition-to-competition numbers too much. Raw scores are not a good indicator of performance in other competitions (WBC etc.) and there are many factors that will impact scoring. The purpose of each round is also different - to find the finalists, to find the semi-finalists, to find the champion.

USBC Barista BINGO Competitors say and do cute things in competitions. To help you get through all 38+25+6=69 rounds, here’s a Houston Edition USBC Bingo card. (Inspired by ones we’ve seen in the past, with some current barista buzz-words.) How to play: Version 1 - Standard Game Play Each time a competitor (or emcee) utters one of the phrases (or does the thing indicated), mark that box with an X.  You can play from the USBC audience, or play along at home with the live stream.  Challenge your friends to see who can get the first Bingo in any given round.  We’ve given you the adorable WBC Champ Mike Phillips is a FREE space to get you started. Version 2 - Drinking Bingo Same as above, except instead of just putting an X in the box, you have to take a drink of your favorite beverage (coffee, root beer, milk, water (still or sparkling), beer (microbrew’s only please), whiskey, tea, fruit juice, wine, kombucha, or strawberry milk shake).  Drink until you can’t drink no more.  In this version, everybody winz!

USBC Barista BINGO

Competitors say and do cute things in competitions. To help you get through all 38+25+6=69 rounds, here’s a Houston Edition USBC Bingo card. (Inspired by ones we’ve seen in the past, with some current barista buzz-words.)

How to play:

Version 1 - Standard Game Play

Each time a competitor (or emcee) utters one of the phrases (or does the thing indicated), mark that box with an X.  You can play from the USBC audience, or play along at home with the live stream.  Challenge your friends to see who can get the first Bingo in any given round.  We’ve given you the adorable WBC Champ Mike Phillips is a FREE space to get you started.

Version 2 - Drinking Bingo

Same as above, except instead of just putting an X in the box, you have to take a drink of your favorite beverage (coffee, root beer, milk, water (still or sparkling), beer (microbrew’s only please), whiskey, tea, fruit juice, wine, kombucha, or strawberry milk shake).  Drink until you can’t drink no more.  In this version, everybody winz!

USBC Finals: Lorenzo Perkins Lorenzo Perkins - Cafe Medici, Austin TX Story between two farmers, Separated into two lots, Jose Antonio by Cuvee.  This coffee is three months off patio and not yet available. One bag was air shipped up for Lorenzo to use in the competition. This coffee has a lower yield than some varietals due in part to a lot more shade. The challenges of cultivating this coffee are only equalled by its rewards. Specialty coffee is not an accident, it is intentionally crafted. To take a little extra risk, we can produce something that’s hopefully beautiful with no guarantee of success. Coffee features jasmine on the nose, sweet orange acidity in front, jasmine in the middle, and sweet tangerine and chocolate in the finish.  Orange bourbon is carefully harvested by highly trained pickers which can result in a quality cup.  Roasted to 422 degrees F in just under 14 minutes, this coffee is wonderful in a press pot, on the cupping table, or in a portafilter. With milk, should get citrus and cream and the chocolate becomes a wonderful light caramel. Capps down with 6 minutes and some change remaining.  Sig drink has two elements. First to emphasize high ends, second to emphasize low ends.  Tanzanian chocolate and concord grape juice to counter balance the jasmine. White chocolate ganache to represent creamy body. Pixie tangerine juice emphasize the high tone structure. Espresso is the final element of the drink.  Starts high and ends low.  White choc, tangerine and espresso, has judges stir and enjoy in three sips. The low is espresso with the dark chocolate and again three stirs and three sips.   Drinks down and calls time! Done.  Why he could be champ: Lorenzo is the local favorite and is almost on home turf. (He lives & works in Austin which is about a 3 hour drive.) He’s competed in the SC regional and this is his fifth competition routine, having done this twice in regionals and made it through round one and semi-finals of the USBC to land in finals. Here’s a video of Lorenzo discussing his SCRBC presentation. The coffee is just off the patio, and according to Lorenzo is “sparkling.” Fresh coffee seems to be key in this year’s USBC.

USBC Finals: Lorenzo Perkins

Lorenzo Perkins - Cafe Medici, Austin TX


Story between two farmers, Separated into two lots, Jose Antonio by Cuvee.  This coffee is three months off patio and not yet available. One bag was air shipped up for Lorenzo to use in the competition.

This coffee has a lower yield than some varietals due in part to a lot more shade. The challenges of cultivating this coffee are only equalled by its rewards. Specialty coffee is not an accident, it is intentionally crafted. To take a little extra risk, we can produce something that’s hopefully beautiful with no guarantee of success.

Coffee features jasmine on the nose, sweet orange acidity in front, jasmine in the middle, and sweet tangerine and chocolate in the finish. 

Orange bourbon is carefully harvested by highly trained pickers which can result in a quality cup.  Roasted to 422 degrees F in just under 14 minutes, this coffee is wonderful in a press pot, on the cupping table, or in a portafilter.

With milk, should get citrus and cream and the chocolate becomes a wonderful light caramel. Capps down with 6 minutes and some change remaining. 

Sig drink has two elements. First to emphasize high ends, second to emphasize low ends.  Tanzanian chocolate and concord grape juice to counter balance the jasmine. White chocolate ganache to represent creamy body. Pixie tangerine juice emphasize the high tone structure. Espresso is the final element of the drink.  Starts high and ends low.  White choc, tangerine and espresso, has judges stir and enjoy in three sips. The low is espresso with the dark chocolate and again three stirs and three sips.  

Drinks down and calls time! Done. 

Why he could be champ: Lorenzo is the local favorite and is almost on home turf. (He lives & works in Austin which is about a 3 hour drive.) He’s competed in the SC regional and this is his fifth competition routine, having done this twice in regionals and made it through round one and semi-finals of the USBC to land in finals. Here’s a video of Lorenzo discussing his SCRBC presentation. The coffee is just off the patio, and according to Lorenzo is “sparkling.” Fresh coffee seems to be key in this year’s USBC.

USBC Finals: Ryan Knapp Ryan Knapp - MadCap Coffee (NCRBC Champ) Ryan is one of two regional champion to make finals. Ryan is the roaster at MadCap. He’s sharing two fantastic Colombian coffee from the Herrera region in Tolima. Each coffee is grown about two miles apart by two brothers, and named for each. The first coffee is in the Luis Reinoso in the capps. Yields a malt flavor, great body which pairs well with 1700-1800 m, washed and patio dried bourbon and caturra. Dark chocolate, notes of citrus, smooth and creamy. Dosing 21 grams to highlight big flavor. 2 miles north, similar elevation and practices, and similar soil, but brighter, more clear, 100 percent caturra single varietal. A bit more sparkly, slightly cooler, longer ripening which produces a sweeter cup. These show up in the espressos. Ryan roasted this coffee 2 minutes less than the Luis Reinoso and dropped 5 degrees earlier. He’s dosing at 18 grams with a faster extraction brings out the fruity acidity. He asks the judges to stir well to incorporate all the elements and get nose to experience aromatics. Big, clean, sweet and balanced all the way across. Snappy acidity and a nice grapefruit bitterness. Sig drink: chocolate ganache with depth and complexity that pairs with the Luis Reinoso that contains a bit of citrus and a nutty flavor. Paired with grapefruit juice, a bit of honey and some water. He’s using both coffees in the sig drink, two different extractions. Get to work on shots with 3 minutes and change remaining. (These finals competitors are really pulling a lot of shots in their 15 minutes!) Part 1 is the Luis Reinoso pulled into the dark chocolate. Rich, deep and intense. He asks the judges to take little sips. The second beverage is the dedeiere pulled into grapefruit juice, stir, smell and take small sips. Not meant to be a pairing or for balance, but experiencing how two coffees grown so close together can be so different. Ryan calls time at 15:00 on the nose. Well done! Why he could be Champ: Ryan is the roaster at MadCap, so he has complete control over the roast profile of his coffee. His training has been supported by his team mate Trevor, also in the finals. His technical knowledge of his coffee paired with explanation of dosing and extraction, and how those things impact the cup quality, paired with his good use of story could really wow the judges and be just the sort of thing they’d like to send to WBC.  His Colombian coffees could also fare very well given the location of the upcoming World Barista Championships.

USBC Finals: Ryan Knapp

Ryan Knapp - MadCap Coffee (NCRBC Champ)


Ryan is one of two regional champion to make finals. Ryan is the roaster at MadCap.

He’s sharing two fantastic Colombian coffee from the Herrera region in Tolima. Each coffee is grown about two miles apart by two brothers, and named for each.

The first coffee is in the Luis Reinoso in the capps. Yields a malt flavor, great body which pairs well with 1700-1800 m, washed and patio dried bourbon and caturra. Dark chocolate, notes of citrus, smooth and creamy. Dosing 21 grams to highlight big flavor.

2 miles north, similar elevation and practices, and similar soil, but brighter, more clear, 100 percent caturra single varietal. A bit more sparkly, slightly cooler, longer ripening which produces a sweeter cup. These show up in the espressos. Ryan roasted this coffee 2 minutes less than the Luis Reinoso and dropped 5 degrees earlier. He’s dosing at 18 grams with a faster extraction brings out the fruity acidity. He asks the judges to stir well to incorporate all the elements and get nose to experience aromatics. Big, clean, sweet and balanced all the way across. Snappy acidity and a nice grapefruit bitterness.

Sig drink: chocolate ganache with depth and complexity that pairs with the Luis Reinoso that contains a bit of citrus and a nutty flavor. Paired with grapefruit juice, a bit of honey and some water. He’s using both coffees in the sig drink, two different extractions. Get to work on shots with 3 minutes and change remaining. (These finals competitors are really pulling a lot of shots in their 15 minutes!) Part 1 is the Luis Reinoso pulled into the dark chocolate. Rich, deep and intense. He asks the judges to take little sips. The second beverage is the dedeiere pulled into grapefruit juice, stir, smell and take small sips. Not meant to be a pairing or for balance, but experiencing how two coffees grown so close together can be so different.

Ryan calls time at 15:00 on the nose. Well done!

Why he could be Champ: Ryan is the roaster at MadCap, so he has complete control over the roast profile of his coffee. His training has been supported by his team mate Trevor, also in the finals. His technical knowledge of his coffee paired with explanation of dosing and extraction, and how those things impact the cup quality, paired with his good use of story could really wow the judges and be just the sort of thing they’d like to send to WBC.  His Colombian coffees could also fare very well given the location of the upcoming World Barista Championships.

USBC Finals: Nik Krankl Nik Krakl - Espresso Bar & Gellato Cafe Nik is focusing on shot weight. Although his presentation is numbers heavy, he tells judges that’s not important, wants judges to pay attention to how the beverage weight changes impact flavors. He’s using a fresh lot peaberry coffee from Caracol- Finca Matalapa El Salvador roasted by Ecco Caffe. Nik’s table includes some small menus with coffee info, and his Robur-E grinder is on top of a wooden drawer for his knock box. Espressos are pulled at 28 grams (shot weight, not coffee dose). They offer sugary cranberry up front, and spice of mild cinnamon and nutmeg in finish. Capps come to the table, offering a warm buttered croissant quality with a subtle raspberry jam. Beverage weight increased to 31/32 grams to pull out more savory qualities and less dry cranberry. Proposed of pacas and peaberry varietals. Drops some farm info, La Liberdad region of El Salvador. The farm faces the Pacific which receives a great deal of moisture. Coffee is 6 days off roast.  The peaberry is easier to roast uniformly because of the shape. A typical peaberry lot is comprised of coffees from across the farm, and therefore not a zone specific lot. The lot comes from all over the farm which helps explain why this coffee can be so dynamic in the cup. More info here. He’s creating a French press which he pours through a V60 paper filter to change the mouth feel into something more clean. For the espresso weight, he’s using 25/26 gram brewed beverage weight which will really bring forward those cranberry notes. He adds the espresso to the refiltered French press gaining the richness without the grittyness. For the final drink, he’s using aeration to enhance sweetness and cool the coffee, softer mouthfeel and increased sweetness. Progression in color, temperature, mouthfeel and taste, beginning sipping from left to right French press sip, aspirate the raspberry, then drink the espresso anyway you want, and calls time. Done.  Why he could be Champ: Nik has some stellar fresh-crop coffee and has been trained by some of the best in the business.  With the roasting power of Ecco Caffe behind him, and some training support from Intelligentsia, Nik has the elements that can make a champion. He placed third in the SWRBC (two competitors in USBC finals) and don’t count him out of this race. His signature drink is killer.

USBC Finals: Nik Krankl

Nik Krakl - Espresso Bar & Gellato Cafe


Nik is focusing on shot weight. Although his presentation is numbers heavy, he tells judges that’s not important, wants judges to pay attention to how the beverage weight changes impact flavors. He’s using a fresh lot peaberry coffee from Caracol- Finca Matalapa El Salvador roasted by Ecco Caffe.

Nik’s table includes some small menus with coffee info, and his Robur-E grinder is on top of a wooden drawer for his knock box.

Espressos are pulled at 28 grams (shot weight, not coffee dose). They offer sugary cranberry up front, and spice of mild cinnamon and nutmeg in finish.

Capps come to the table, offering a warm buttered croissant quality with a subtle raspberry jam. Beverage weight increased to 31/32 grams to pull out more savory qualities and less dry cranberry.

Proposed of pacas and peaberry varietals. Drops some farm info, La Liberdad region of El Salvador. The farm faces the Pacific which receives a great deal of moisture. Coffee is 6 days off roast.  The peaberry is easier to roast uniformly because of the shape. A typical peaberry lot is comprised of coffees from across the farm, and therefore not a zone specific lot. The lot comes from all over the farm which helps explain why this coffee can be so dynamic in the cup. More info here.

He’s creating a French press which he pours through a V60 paper filter to change the mouth feel into something more clean. For the espresso weight, he’s using 25/26 gram brewed beverage weight which will really bring forward those cranberry notes. He adds the espresso to the refiltered French press gaining the richness without the grittyness. For the final drink, he’s using aeration to enhance sweetness and cool the coffee, softer mouthfeel and increased sweetness. Progression in color, temperature, mouthfeel and taste, beginning sipping from left to right French press sip, aspirate the raspberry, then drink the espresso anyway you want, and calls time. Done. 

Why he could be Champ: Nik has some stellar fresh-crop coffee and has been trained by some of the best in the business.  With the roasting power of Ecco Caffe behind him, and some training support from Intelligentsia, Nik has the elements that can make a champion. He placed third in the SWRBC (two competitors in USBC finals) and don’t count him out of this race. His signature drink is killer.

Chandler Rentz - Batdorf & Bronson Showcasing a coffee from Colombia. Walnut & pecan aromatics, bergamot, dried fruit as you sip into the drink. Silky medium mouthfeel, finish Capps: showcase almond and pecan notes, with hints of citrus still coming thru, nots of the Bergamont. Sig drink: Heavy cream, added some dried cherry syrup to balance bitterness of dark chocolate, and Earl Grey tea to compliment citrus.  Two syrups for 2nd element, a soda made from raisins and dried cherries with sparkling mineral water. Start with

Chandler Rentz - Batdorf & Bronson

Showcasing a coffee from Colombia. Walnut & pecan aromatics, bergamot, dried fruit as you sip into the drink. Silky medium mouthfeel, finish

Capps: showcase almond and pecan notes, with hints of citrus still coming thru, nots of the Bergamont.

Sig drink: Heavy cream, added some dried cherry syrup to balance bitterness of dark chocolate, and Earl Grey tea to compliment citrus.  Two syrups for 2nd element, a soda made from raisins and dried cherries with sparkling mineral water. Start with

Devin Chapman - Coava Devin is using an Ethiopia Kochere.  He’s recreating a traditional coffee ceremony where coffee is roasted, ground, boiled in hot water to create a dense & rich brew, sweetened and spiced and served in three bowls. He adds 130 g of star anise and black tea, 9g melted dark choc, 6 shots of espresso. Served in traditional Ethiopian cups dressed with lemon rind. The beverage introduces you to flavor profile of coffee. He adds shots into tea pot for sig with some lemon peel. 30% of coffees come from this region. Coffees are sought after because of their quality. Grown at 1900m, heirloom varietal, zesty aroma and lemony acidity. Wet processed, raised bed dried which cements a clean complexity. Fruit in aroma, dark chocolate in cup Capps: notes of lemon but not sharp, round like meringue. Flavors focus on silky body, flavors of milk chocolate. This was one of the first coffees exported from Ethiopia this year. Harvested in January, received in March. This coffee has been helping to fund a medical center and school in the community where the coffee originates. Espresso: crema - invokes the color rule and calls the color like the ligher portion of saucers with milk choc flecking, flavors of lemon, silky body, flavors of dark chocolate, and subtle hint of black tea. Calls time at 15:09. jams: Talkdemonic (PDX Band), Menomena (PDX Band), Beastie Boys, Boy Eats Drum Machine (PDX Band), Tallest Man on Earth.

Devin Chapman - Coava

Devin is using an Ethiopia Kochere. 

He’s recreating a traditional coffee ceremony where coffee is roasted, ground, boiled in hot water to create a dense & rich brew, sweetened and spiced and served in three bowls. He adds 130 g of star anise and black tea, 9g melted dark choc, 6 shots of espresso. Served in traditional Ethiopian cups dressed with lemon rind. The beverage introduces you to flavor profile of coffee.

He adds shots into tea pot for sig with some lemon peel.

30% of coffees come from this region. Coffees are sought after because of their quality. Grown at 1900m, heirloom varietal, zesty aroma and lemony acidity. Wet processed, raised bed dried which cements a clean complexity.

Fruit in aroma, dark chocolate in cup

Capps: notes of lemon but not sharp, round like meringue. Flavors focus on silky body, flavors of milk chocolate.

This was one of the first coffees exported from Ethiopia this year. Harvested in January, received in March. This coffee has been helping to fund a medical center and school in the community where the coffee originates.

Espresso: crema - invokes the color rule and calls the color like the ligher portion of saucers with milk choc flecking, flavors of lemon, silky body, flavors of dark chocolate, and subtle hint of black tea.

Calls time at 15:09.

jams: Talkdemonic (PDX Band), Menomena (PDX Band), Beastie Boys, Boy Eats Drum Machine (PDX Band), Tallest Man on Earth.

Nikolas Krankl - Gelato Bar & Espresso (USBC Finalist) Beverage weight is the focus of Nik’s presentation and the impact on flavor profile and cup quality. He’s aiming for 19 grams. El Salvador Finca Matalapa peaberry. Clean, bright, juicy. Goes to work and returns with tasting notes. This coffee is roasted by Ecco Caffe. Fresh cranberry acidity. (This coffee is different than the one he used at the Southwest Regional.) Four days off roast. Nik uses a French press of the coffee, and changes the mouthfeel by pouring it through a glass V60. Allows it to cool down to optimize the aromatics. Nik aerates the coffee by pouring it thru a wine aerator to not only cool it down, but open up the aromatics. Tells judges to drink however they want, and that it keeps getting sweeter. Calls time at 14:40. Plenty of time.

Nikolas Krankl - Gelato Bar & Espresso (USBC Finalist)

Beverage weight is the focus of Nik’s presentation and the impact on flavor profile and cup quality. He’s aiming for 19 grams. El Salvador Finca Matalapa peaberry. Clean, bright, juicy. Goes to work and returns with tasting notes. This coffee is roasted by Ecco Caffe. Fresh cranberry acidity. (This coffee is different than the one he used at the Southwest Regional.) Four days off roast.

Nik uses a French press of the coffee, and changes the mouthfeel by pouring it through a glass V60. Allows it to cool down to optimize the aromatics.

Nik aerates the coffee by pouring it thru a wine aerator to not only cool it down, but open up the aromatics. Tells judges to drink however they want, and that it keeps getting sweeter.

Calls time at 14:40. Plenty of time.

→