Kitchen equipment supplier Goldbell Philippines Impex Corp. will organize the inaugural Philippine National Latte Art Championship set on November 27 to 29. Preliminary rounds are scheduled in the first two days at Aloha Hotel, while the championship round is at the SM City in BF-Paranaque.
Initial articles of Hospitality News about the event indicated that the championship venue was at SMX Convention Center. This has since been changed.
The winner of the championship will be the first Philippine representative at the World Latte Art Championship, which will be held in Gotheburg, Sweden next year.
“We are thrilled to have sealed a two-year partnership with the Association of Filipino Baristas Inc. (AFBI) in bringing the Inaugural Philippine National Latte Art Championship to the local coffee industry,” says Desmond Chua,
president of Goldbell Philippines Impex Corporation. “We have very talented and skilled latte artists, and it’s time that we bring a competition that truly reflects the nature of World Latte Art Championship. We cannot wait to see our nation is being represented at the world stage, as well as witness the first-ever Filipino perform at the most prestigious latte art competition in the world.”
A non-profit organization for the advancement of coffee preparation, AFBI is the licensed national body of World Coffee Events to the Philippines.
“Competitions sanctioned by World Coffee Events are the premiere platform for excellence in coffee craftsmanship, and we are happy to be working with Goldbell Philippines Impex, Corp. in staging the Inaugural Philippine National Latte Art Championship,” comments May Juan, executive director of AFBI. “We are more than excited to be able to offer another avenue for our talented Filipino baristas to showcase their passion for coffee.”
“World Coffee Events is very pleased to know of the recent developments in the specialty coffee scene in the Philippines,” says Cynthia Ludviksen, managing director of World Coffee Events, organizers of World Latte Art
Championship. “We are happy to see that the local industry appreciates the quality and value of our national competitions, and we are thrilled to welcome the first-ever representative of the Philippines to the World Latte Art Championship.”
The championship highlights artistic expression in a competition platform that challenges the barista in an on-demand performance. During the preliminary round, competitors will perform at the bar and stage areas of the competition. Baristas produce a single creative latte pattern at the bar area, then move to the stage area to create two identical free-pour lattes and two identical designer lattes.
The top six highest scorers from the preliminary round will advance to the final round, wherein all finalist are asked to create two identical free pour espresso macchiato, two free pour identical latte, and two identical designer pattern lattes. The grand winner of the Inaugural Philippine National Latte Art Championship will represent the Philippines to the 2015 World Latte Art Championship, June 15 to 18, at the Speciality Coffee Association of Europe’s World of Coffee Expo in Gothenburg, Sweden. –Press release
