Barista Battle Challenge

Preparation

The barista has 10 minutes to prepare the working environment. The coffee grinder provided by the organizer is already set up and contains the sponsored coffee. The competitor is obliged to check the settings of the coffee grinder and adjust them if they think it is necessary. The competitor can bring their own grinder with their own coffee. After preparation, the barista must be ready to start the first discipline within 5 minutes. If the barista exceeds 10 minutes to prepare the working environment, a 15-point penalty will be deducted from the competitor's total score.

Over-time (−15): The preparation time is 10 minutes. Exceeding this time will result in a penalty of 15 points.

1. Order — 50 points

In this discipline the competitor faces the challenge of the everyday work environment. The order of competitors will be chosen randomly and each barista will receive the same order of 6 different drinks, the same equipment and conditions. The order includes espresso drinks and filter coffee. The barista will have to present all drinks to the judges. When the barista is finished, they call time and signal to the judges that they are finished.

Time (up to 20 points)

1st — 20 pts · 2nd — 18 pts · 3rd — 16 pts · 4th — 15 pts
5th — 14 pts · 6th — 13 pts · 7th — 12 pts · 8th — 11 pts

Quality (up to 30 points across 6 drinks)

Per-drink scale: 0 points unprepared or incorrect · 1 point poor quality · 3 points good quality · 5 points exceptional quality.

2. Latte Art — 50 points

This discipline is a knockout using the Latte Art Throwdown format and points will be awarded based on placement. The judge rolls a Latte Art die and the contestant must place a cup with the same pattern as the die in front of the judge within 3 minutes. The pairs will be randomly selected and the winner will advance to the next round, all the way to the final. After serving the cup, the contestant clears the work surface.

Placement scoring

1st — 50 pts · 2nd — 45 pts · 3rd — 42 pts · 4th — 40 pts · 5th–8th — 35 pts

Bracket: First Round → Second Round → Final for 1st Place / Final for 3rd Place (Pairs 1–4).

3. Cupping — 50 points

In this discipline the barista has to recognize different coffee profiles by taste. The competitor has 3 minutes to taste and remember the flavors of the coffees placed in the order A, B, C, D, E. The cups are then shuffled by the judge, and the competitor has a maximum of two minutes to taste them again and place them in the correct order. Each correct cup is 5 points; all five correct brings an extra 5 points.

Time (up to 20 points)

1st — 20 pts · 2nd — 18 pts · 3rd — 16 pts · 4th — 14 pts
5th — 12 pts · 6th — 10 pts · 7th — 8 pts · 8th — 6 pts

4. Espresso Martini — 50 points

Competitors must prepare their own interpretation of an Espresso Martini, as long as the drink remains recognizably structured as an Espresso Martini. Before the start, the competitor must submit a written recipe to two judges. The barista has 8 minutes to prepare two identical drinks. Any deviation from the submitted recipe results in a score of 0. All ingredients must be supplied by the competitor (coffee may be provided by the organizer).