The Mile High City got its first taste of The Barista League last week. Here’s a recap.

BY J. MARIE CARLAN
BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE

Featured photo by Sarah Joy for The Barista League

On Saturday, August 17, The Barista League made its first ever stop in Denver. Local institution Huckleberry Roasters hosted the festivities at their spacious roastery and warehouse on Virginia Avenue.

A whopping 10 teams—each consisting of two baristas—participated in the competition, and they all brought their A-game for the audience and judges.

Kicking Off

This was not my first foray into The Barista League; I attended a huge party during HOST Milano 2023, so I knew we were in for a great night. The best way to describe the atmosphere? High energy.

Kat Melheim (aka Roaster Kat), a former Denver resident, was our emcee for the night, and they said it best: The Barista League is ”a party disguised as a competition.” A DJ pumped up the competitors with remixed classics from New Order and Fleetwood Mac, along with current hits. The Huck warehouse was lit up with bright pink and blue lights. The trademark neon Barista League signs dotted the stations set up throughout, and on the main stage, where drink creators wowed the crowd.

Outside, the guys from Huck provided booze and NA drinks to beat the heat (told you it’s a party). Comfortable tables were lined up outside so folks could enjoy their drinks. In keeping with The Barista League’s tradition of veg-only, local purveyors Dos Caras provided plant-based tacos and agua fresca.

Competition Rules

Every Barista League event is a little different. For this one, the 10 teams had to demonstrate their skills in a variety of ways, and had only 15 minutes to compete. For the Drinks Challenge, the team had to produce two espressos, two cold brew mocktails, and one plant-based milk drink. But it didn’t stop there; while all that was happening, the team would also have two mystery judges approach and order a drink. More on that later!

For the last hurrah, teams also had a Sensory Challenge where they put their palates to the test, trying to identify different mystery infusions in water.

Running The Stations

There was more than a competition happening, of course. In the next room, there were stations set up to keep the crowd occupied between rounds. The Brew Bar featured coffee from Novo Coffee and Switchback Coffee Roasters earlier in the evening; later on, Boxcar Coffee and Queen City Coffee provided the brews. The popular Barista League shop was stocked up with T-shirts, totes, and lots more for sale.

Huckleberry Roasters provided the cold brew for the competition; local legends Sweet Bloom Coffee Roasters provided coffee for the hot drinks challenges. Moccamaster brewed and served the competition coffees at their station throughout the night for attendees to try.

Colorado’s own Toddy provided a fun activity: a taste test to determine which cold brew came from which origin (Peru or Uganda). Rancilio provided a full espresso bar for guests to play around on, set up with a PUQpress, and connected with Cropster, so baristas could track the stats on their espresso shots. There was also a sensory station with five mystery infusions, mimicking the Sensory Challenge portion of the competition.

Recipes on the Fly

One of the fun things about the competition: Teams had very little info to go on for drink preparation, so much of their decision-making process happened on the fly. The teams managed to craft their drinks in the allotted time, and even took some time to entertain the onlookers and the mystery judges.

For example, a team representing the Denver coffee community, the Pourstars, shared their mocktail recipe after the competition. Matt Komins (representing Crema Coffee) and his teammate Arianna Angeles (independent) concocted a passionfruit cold brew mai tai. The base was Huck’s Phantom Limb blend cold brew, mixed with coconut creme, lime, passionfruit, lemon spritz, and a lemon rind for garnish.

High Stakes, Great Performances

Yours truly was dragged into the mystery judge’s proverbial seat (we were standing). My companion and I approached the competition table and were greeted by Veronica Pearl, whose team name cracked us up: Here to Win But Historically Speaking, More Likely to Take 2nd or 3rd. I ordered a lavender mocha from the provided menu, and the other mystery judge ordered the cherry blossom hot chocolate.

The other HTWBHSMLTT2O3 team member, Avery Leith (Queen City Coffee), happened to be competing on his birthday. Veronica, who had flown in from Los Angeles to compete with Avery, announced the occasion. Emcee Kat led the audience in a rousing chorus of ”Happy Birthday.”

Despite the excitement, Avery and Veronica pumped out delicious drinks for us mystery judges. We then discussed our drinks and scanned a QR code to record our findings (five stars).

The Results

Among the sweet coffee gear prizes provided by sponsors, teams vied for the coveted first-place prize: a Mystery Coffee Vacation!

The official judges diligently tasted their drinks for almost four hours, occasionally taking dance breaks. The end results saw three teams come out on top. Third place went to OX Bros (Chris Dennis and Daniel Teplitz from OX Coffee Roasters in San Diego). Second place was Lil Drips (Charli Maher of Sweet Bloom and Miranda Haney of Barista Friend).

And first place went to Barista Sweep 2.0: Oscar Lin of Parcel Coffee Co. and Paulo Asi of Seattle Barista Academy. I asked Paulo about their winning mocktail, the P.O.P.: ”Our inspiration was flavors that help the cold brew pop,” Paulo says. ”We used 2 oz. of cold brew concentrate in a shaker tin and added 2 oz. of orange juice, 0.25 fl oz. of passion fruit, a slice of pineapple chunk, and ice. … I steamed and aerated the mocktail to add an even creamier texture than if we had shaken it. The resulting drink featured a POP of tropical flavors with a creamy texture.”

Paulo added that their method of preparation was key to making the drink shine. ”To prepare for competition, we reviewed the rules and brainstormed unique ideas to help set us apart from the competition. We believe using the unconventional method of steaming our mocktail instead of shaking it created a new experience that our judges did not see coming.”

There are plenty more Barista League events on the horizon. Check them out!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

J. Marie Carlan (she/they) is the online editor for Barista Magazine. She’s been a barista for 16 years and writing since she was old enough to hold a pencil. When she’s not behind the espresso bar or toiling over content, you can find her perusing record stores, writing poetry, and trying to keep the plants alive in her Denver apartment.

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