First, congratulations to Mike Phillips for winning the United States Barista Championship. I worked through the weekend so unfortunately missed seeing the events unfold live, but plan to revisit the videos of the finalists to see if I can’t pick up a few new tricks.
I was pointed to an insightful post by James Hoffmann about the cost of competing, and within it he raises a great deal of valid points. The cost of competing can get expensive quickly, there’s no debating that. I’ve been fortunate enough in the past to have various expenditures taken care of for me, most notably my espresso and cappuccino cups provided by Terra Keramik, but by and large I’ve financed my own competitions on a students’ budget. The point of raising this is to at least offer that hope to those working for cafes and companies unable to invest the money and time into training and preparing for a barista competition. I’ve never had formal competition training before, and actually prepared wholly for the 2007 Canadian Nationals by watching videos of James Hoffmann and Colter Jones. I had a great deal of good fortune in that competition that allowed me to place as high as I did, but still feel I proved to any aspiring competitor that you don’t need a giant behind you to succeed in competition. In Canada especially, our national champions have all come from Cafe Artigiano, leading many to assume the economical advantages of working for a big company stack the odds in favour of their baristas. What many also fail to realize, however, is the extraordinary work ethic of Sammy Piccolo, Colter Jones, and Mike Yung. Regardless of whom these baristas worked for or with, they would have won their respective competitions.
Since I started, the climate of competing (at least in Canada) has shifted considerably. The calibre and talent level has increased to a stunning degree, which is exactly what we want to see. The aforementioned work ethic is contagious; more baristas are interested and I expect this year that all four regional competitions will be filled to capacity. Going back to some of what James was commenting on, I think a lot of the costs associated with these events have been inflated by baristas looking for an edge. The feeling of being forced to “keep up,” so to speak, is compelling and nobody wants to be done in by appearances. At the last regional, I was outraged that one of the judges commented that my signature drink glassware was boring. I was shooting for a classic look, and it irked me that in my mind, I had been misjudged. I, like James, lamented that competitions would soon price themselves out of range for the average skilled entrant, thus disqualifying many qualified potential champions from even throwing their hat into the ring. And that’s even before travel and accommodation costs factor into any budget.
I was given a fresh perspective at this year’s nationals. George from Crema competed with about what the average person could fit into a carry-on bag. His pared down routine fell just short of the finals, but in no way did he appear less polished than any other competitor based on his aesthetic setup. I very much encourage any prospective competitor with budgetary concerns to watch his video to see how far you can get on just a little. Of course, you have to consider George’s “awesome” factor, which charts approximately 67% higher than the average barista. I think it’s his bone structure.
In summary, don’t be afraid to compete based on cost. There are affordable options for all the essential equipment, and a minimalist approach when done effectively can be extremely refreshing.
Regional date announcements for the Canadian Championship should be announced soon. Let’s see if I can actually win one this year.
March 9, 2009 at 4:09 pm |
If there is someone who can steal it from the west, you might be the one…
lawrence
March 9, 2009 at 4:18 pm |
[...] Anthony Benda on competing. [...]
March 9, 2009 at 6:15 pm |
Let’s hope the regional for the east is a little more east than montreal so our maritimers can compete as well. Seems like more than anything, travel and accomidations may be the killer in terms of cost.
I’m rootin’ for ya too buddy, although, I’ll try my best
March 9, 2009 at 9:52 pm |
Hey Anthony
I realy enjoy this blog, I’ll be honest that cost is huge factor right know for me, (I have moved across the country 3 time in 4 years) and money spent by the owner of our cafe, is right know better served in the cafe it’s self, we need some major reno’s, a grinder, and our LM could be traded out for a Mirage.(LOL)
I guess my question is at what point does the WBC out way the needs of my cafe? Is it selfish for me to compete at the expense of the cafe?
That said I would really love to compete this year if not for anything else but the comradery.
Zane
March 9, 2009 at 11:32 pm |
I was going to get you a five-star hotel room for next year’s Canadian Nationals, but if you’d like to keep the costs down, I guess you can just stay at Motel 6. Maybe steal the styrofoam cups from the motel room for your sig drink?
Hey Laura, you want Anth’s room?
March 9, 2009 at 11:34 pm |
Such a traitorous tone to your note, El Rao.
And Zane, I can only really speak to the community and social aspect of competing which I really enjoy and have led to many really good friendships and learning opportunities. The benefits to your cafe are probably indirect, I suspect, and it’s hard to justify spending money that isn’t there to be spent. At the same time, it’s a lot of fun and I have learned a great deal from the people I’ve met at competitions or because of them, and that knowledge has had an impact on how I make and serve coffee.
March 10, 2009 at 4:13 pm |
though the travel costs could be prohibitive, I’m trying to look at it this way: I want to go to montreal. If I have an excuse? AWESOME! I figure if some of my costs (cups,some training time) are covered by my cafe, I don’t mind spending a bit on travel. Plus, Anthony has room for most of us at his place, right anth?
I think the the pros to competing outside my comfort zone outweigh the cons. Getting a chance to meet and learn from/with baristas from all over eastern canada is worth it.
March 10, 2009 at 10:51 pm |
Thanks for the props Anthony.
I’m really glad you wrote this actually, because John and I were at the USBC’s this weekend and I can tell you that ‘money’ had nothing to do with the outcome of the winners, and that’s the bottom line. It was obvious to anyone watching that all the guys who made it to the finals were clearly the most deserving and most polished competitors. Of course, access to money can help, but if one is going to take that argument then where can you draw the line?
Is it unfair if you are a barista who works for a coffee roaster? What if you work at a cafe that uses an Aurelia (the espresso machine used in current competitions)? What if you have access to anfim grinders while others are forced to use mini mazzers? I could go on and on, but these are all things the barista competing has to overcome, and as far as I’m concerned everyone has a chance to be the champion. It is a competition that is won neither by money or luck, rather technical skills, coffee, and creativity.
I’ll end with a simple reminder that of the possible 870 points, 716 of them are based completely on the coffee and presentation, while the remaining 154 points are purely technical skills. Doesn’t leave much points left over for dishware and expensive table clothes…
March 10, 2009 at 10:58 pm |
Oh and Zane –
in order for a certain barista to get to the nationals last year, she told me that they set up some kind of tip cup (or something of the sort) where all the money earned went towards covering all the costs to get to the nationals.
I would like to think a lot of customers would really support the idea of sending one of ‘their own baristas’ so to speak over to competitions like these, and I would also be willing to bet it would build an ever stronger relationship with them and you AND motivate you to practice hard in order to honor that.
March 21, 2009 at 5:04 am |
great thread btw …
One of my biggest worries each year as we head into competition is that somewhere in a city in Canada is a barista brimming with passion who just cannot muster the resources to compete in a regional, let alone a nationals.
If I had my way, we’d have regional competitions in every major city in Canada, but as it is, we’re already stretched putting on the four regionals ,Pacific, Prairie, Central and Eastern.
I don’t know if the rest of the world realizes that Canada is a HUGE country and that managing anything across the country means expensive travel, infrastructure and complicated logistics. Plus we have to make everything make economic sense to the sponsors who, along with our great volunteers, are the backbone to every competition
Btw… we’re trying to see if we can add a 5th regional…the Atlantic region, if the barista interest and the sponsor interest can justify it.. (did I mention that I’m insane?)
When you see some of the elaborate presentations that competitors compile, it’s impressive.. but like George says.. the points for the silverware and cups is a small percentage overall, however, one can’t help but think if a judge’s taste perception is swayed by drinking something in lead crystal vs, blue tupperware… Hey.. we’re only human.
I love what baristas have dreamed up to impress the judges, but my behind the scenes viewpoint of the championships has also allowed me to see how much stuff gets shipped in addition to carry on and checked in luggage.
Back up sig-drink cups.. back up serving ware, back up capp cups.. back up espresso..back up water pitcher… you get the idea…
I personally would like to reduce this amount of freight, to simplify the competiton for the baristas….and reduce the percieved advantage of the well-financed barista…but the as often is the case preparation can play a part in the final results.. and you can never pack enough…
Just ask Mike Yung, whose primary supply of butane AND his BACKUP supply for his vac pot failed in Japan and cost him a chance to podium in the World’s in Japan last year….
What do you do? Pack and ship back-ups for your back-ups?
I’ve also witnessed the great camraderie and sportsmanship amongst baristas, where people have lent other competitors glassware, etc, after mishaps, and other competitors sharing supplies.
Ok.. straight to the point now. Ways to reduce shipping costs..
If I were only allowed to ship one item, (besides coffee , duh) I would pick my grinder. The problem is small cafes rarely have more than one main grinder, so this means seriously handicapping your staff at the cafe so you probably need to make arrangements to borrow one.
To help out the smaller cafes, each year we announce the Grinder Sponsor, and try to make arrangements to have a grinder available for baristas to practise on at their local distributors. If you are confident with using the stock grinder, then you can save yourself this expense.
Grinder innovations have been advancing rapidly, and grinders are fast becoming more user friendly, less idiosyncratic, and more accurate with timer controls, so you don’t need to have such an intimate relationship with your grinder to get the most out of it. I expect to see some important new models at SCAA this year.
If I were king…… I would have everyone use the same espresso cup and cappuccino cups. This would allow us to get a sponsor for the cups to pay for cups and keep a large supply at the competition site, thus avoiding the need for the competitor to bring these cups and saucers.
This also levels the playing field for espresso and cappuccino, making it easier on technical and sensory judges to compare drinks from competitor to competitor, to estimate volume, evaluate crema, foam and just concentrate on taste.
The downside? Less creativity.. less innovation …
Creativity and innovation can then be channelled towards the specialty drink…
Hmm.. but then again, what the barista saves in luggage space from the espresso and cappuccino cups/saucers, he’ll probably just pack more stuff for his specialty drink..