Here we are again, at the end of another year and Golden Bean competition! The fourteenth annual Golden Bean Australia/New Zealand competition was held in its customary location, the scenic town of Port Macquarie.
Dozens of roasters from across the country descended on the town, with hundreds more submitting their beans for review in hopes of winning a category medal, or being named an overall champion of the conference.
We kicked off on Tuesday 20th November with a spectacular Sensory Analysis and workshop run by Brandon Bir of Crimson Cup Coffee, USA. With the Australasian Café School space full to the brim, Brendan spent the day demonstrating some efficient methods for re-calibrating your senses as a roaster, moving past your own bias and key ways to turn these skills into profit.
During the three-day Judging Round samples of the coffee were prepared and served to attendees of the conference, then scored based on sweetness, acidity, body, and overall balance. Head judges then come around to ensure fair scoring and provide their own assessment.
During breaks between tastings, attendees were able to watch informative seminars given by industry experts including: CEO of Barista Technology, Brett Bolwell, who gave a talk on workflow improvements for profitability; green bean importer Carlos Arcila of Cofinet, who talked about alternative fermentation processes from Colombia and the impact of low prices at origin; UTZ and Rainforest Alliance Market Development Manager for Australia/New Zealand Melanie Mokken, who gave a talk about sustainability and the value of sustainable certification; and coffee entrepreneur Phil Di Bella, who spoke on the art of communication between origin and roaster.
To finish up the conference on Saturday, the day started with our Green Bean Zone, where some of the industry’s top suppliers showcased their wares to the legions of roasters.
Not only that, we had a one-time demonstration from Carolina Ibarra Garay, the winner of the World Aeropress Championship 2018! She talked us through her routine and how she developed it, an incredible opportunity to see into the mind of a true champion! Later that evening, we threw one of our legendary themed awards parties (Medieval, so there were knights and ladies aplenty!) and announced the winners of each of the 10 categories as well as overall conference champions.
The Overall Small Franchise/Chain Champion title went to ONA Coffee Roasters, the Overall Large Franchise/Chain Champion trophy was awarded to Nine Bars, and Victoria-based Coffee Snobs took home the award for Overall Golden Bean Champion. We would like to extend our congratulations to everyone who won an award, and in particular to our overall winners!
Di Bella Coffees also managed to take home 23 Golden Bean titles in six categories. During the ceremony, Scott Bennett of Bennetts Coffee was also recognized for his excellence and dedication to the coffee industry and was awarded the 2018 Golden Bean Hall of Fame trophy. Click here to see the complete list of winners from this year’s 2018 Golden Bean Australia/New Zealand.
Thanks once again to everyone who helped make this event such a success, continuing our trend of growing year on year and helping bring the whole roasting community together!
We will be back next year for a Cowboy-themed Throwdown, so buckle on your spurs and get ready to roast!
See slideshow….
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