A ‘caffeine clash of titans’ will take place in Glasgow this month as Scotland’s most talented baristas battle it out in the heats for two national competitions.
For the first time ever, both the UK Latte Art Championship and Roast Hero competition heats will be hosted in the city as part of the Glasgow Coffee Festival on Saturday, May 11.
During Latte Art Championships, 14 "aficionados" will go head to head as they work to achieve a picture perfect pour.
Those who succeed could find themselves at the semi-final and final of the competition, set to take place May 27 and 29 in London, with the winner of that heading to Copenhagen to represent the UK at the World Latte Art Championships.
READ MORE: Major festival showcases Scottish city as one of Europe's best for coffee
Going for gold is Kangni ‘Connie’ Dai, owner of Space Speciality Coffee House in Partick and Kafei Studio by Space in Finnieston.
Dai, originally from China, fell in love with coffee while working as a barista in 2015.
Since graduating from Glasgow University in 2017, she’s competed regularly in latte art competitions, winning her first latte art "throw down" at the Manchester Coffee Festival in 2017.
The skilled barista also claimed victory in last year’s semi-final before narrowly finishing second in the UK Championships.
She said: “I’d been watching a lot of the videos and had always wondered what it would be like to compete - and I won”, she said. “I loved the feeling of competing and watching myself improve.”
“In 2021, I signed up for the UK Latte Art Championship, but I didn’t get through to the semi-finals. I was gutted but the second year around I tried again and placed second in the U.K. This year, I’m hoping I’ll get to the final.”
Ahead of the heats, Speciality Coffee Association UK national coordinator Alexx McKendry, said “We couldn’t be more excited to bring the second heat for this year’s Latte Art Championship to the Glasgow Coffee Festival.
“Within the specialty coffee community, Glasgow Coffee Festival has always had a reputation for being one of the country’s most dynamic and exciting coffee events, run by a passionate group of coffee people who always have the interests of the coffee community at the heart of what they do.”
The second high-stakes competition, Roast Hero, will be a peer-assessed challenge that “takes real-world roasting experiences and puts competitors' knowledge and skills to the test”
Inspired by the Nordic Coffee Festival and supported by Falcon, Brew It Group and Espresso Warehouse, the event will see 10 Scottish coffee roasters bring their best to Glasgow to find out who will be the 2024 Roast Hero.
Nikki Wren, head of Espresso Warehouse, specialists in the supply of coffee shop products and equipment for cafes, restaurants, hotels and more, said: “We’re delighted to be judging and supporting the Roast Hero competition at Glasgow Coffee Festival.
“So much goes into being a world-class coffee roaster. This competition focuses on those skills, and ultimately what goes into making a brilliant brew, from sourcing to roasting itself.
“We’re excited to see these skills in action and of course try the first-class coffees that are going for gold.”
The Glasgow Coffee Festival will run across Saturday, May 11 and Sunday, May 12.
For more information or to book tickets now click here.
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