2007 United States Barista Championship

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UPDATED: In a surprising upset, Heather Perry of Coffee Klatch in San Dimas, CA, has won the national barista championships

The 2007 USBC National championships are being held right now in Long Beach, California. The winner of the 2007 USBC will go on to represent the United States at the 8th Annual World Barista Championship, hosted by the Specialty Coffee Association of Japan, July 29 – August 2, 2007 in Tokyo, Japan.

Competitors prepared and served 12 coffee beverages – one espresso, one cappuccino, and one signature drink of their own creation, for each of the four sensory judges in a space of 15 minutes. Since I have gotten quite a few emails asking about the results, I figured I’d post what has happened so far.

Competitors from the Pacific Northwest were:
Tatiana Becker, Trabant, Seattle, WA
Maki Campbell, Zoka, Seattle, WA
Kevin Fuller, Albina Press, Portland, OR
Kyle Hill, Zoka, Seattle, WA
Kyle Larson, Stumptown, Portland, OR
Jon Lewis, Bumper Crop, Newman Lake, WA
Lorrie McCullaugh, Trabant, Seattle, WA
Dismas Smith, Borogrove, Everett, WA (2002)
Phuong Tran, Lava Java, Ridgefield, WA (2005)
Billy Wilson, Albina Press, Portland, OR

By Saturday night, the first round of competitions were completed, and the semi-finalists were announced.

From the Pacific NW:
Maki Campbell, Zoka, Seattle, WA
Kevin Fuller, Albina Press, Portland, OR
Kyle Larson, Stumptown, Portland, OR
Jon Lewis, Bumper Crop, Newman Lake, WA
Phuong Tran, Lava Java, Ridgefield, WA (2005)
Billy Wilson, Albina Press, Portland, OR

All of the Portland contingent were still in the running.

Sunday night the finalists were announced. They will be competing for the final awards to be given out on Monday May 7th. In a bit of an upset, all of the NW entrants have been eliminated. The remaining competitors nationwide are:
Matt Riddle – Intelligentsia, Chicago, IL
Kyle Glanville, Intelligentsia, Los Angeles
Chris Defurious (Deferio), Carriage House, Ithaca, NY
Pete Licata, PT’s, Overland Park, KS
Heather Perry, Coffee Klatch, San Dimas, CA
Peter Middlecamp (1st time USBC Competitor), Black Sheep, St. Paul, MN