Barista Magazine is proud to break the news that leading specialty coffee importer Café Imports will round out its three-year program as the World Barista Championship (WBC)/U.S. Barista Championship (USBC)/Regional Barista Competition (RBC) Origin Trip Sponsor by treating the winners of the RBCs, the USBC and the WBC in 2013 to a dream source visit to none other than KENYA.
Read it again if it didn’t compute ”I know it’s crazy amazing! But hey, when the crew at Café Imports commits to doing something, they commit their hearts and souls to it; just look what an extraordinary trip Café Imports put together for the first of its three-year USBC sponsorship: A 10-day journey through the growing regions of Brazil! (To read about this adventure that took WBC Champ Alejandro Mendez; Southwest Regional and USBC Champ Pete Licata; NW Regional Champ Sam Purvis; SC Regional Champ Joe Marrocco; SE Regional Champ Michael Harwood; NC Regional Champ Ryan Knapp; and NE Regional Champ Philip Search, check out the August/September 2011 issue of Barista Magazine). And for a look at the education, hands-on experience, good times, and memorable adventures we had, watch this short video and others available at http://vimeo.com/user3763981.
Cafe Imports Barista Origin Trip 2011 Part 1: Bahia Brasil from Noah N on Vimeo.
For the second year of Café Imports’ unprecedented origin trip sponsorship program, the company will take a group including reigning World Barista Champ Raul Rodas and 2012 United States Barista Champ Katie Carguilo to Costa Rica in March 2012. (Barista Mag Publisher Ken Olson will also be attending in order to bring you live coverage and write articles about the experience, so stay tuned.)
But this third trip from Café Imports… WOW. Kenya? Seriously? This is pretty effing fly.
“This is the third year we at Café Imports have been the official origin trip sponsor,” says Noah Namowicz of Café Imports, “and this experience has allowed us to meet some incredibly inspiring baristas, and allowed our producer partners to connect with the front lines of our industry in a way like never before. These trips have been more rewarding than we ever could have imagined.”
The trip is tentatively planned for November 2013.
“Good luck to all the baristas competing this weekend at the Big Central Barista Competition, and congrats to Lem Butler for already securing the 1st spot,” says Noah.
