With a reimagined format, the coffee competition turned Mexico’s capital into a coffee festival—and home team Karla Bravo and Victor Granados walked away as champions.
BY VASILEIA FANARIOTI
SENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT
Photos courtesy of The Barista League
After debuting its redesigned competition format in Prague earlier this spring, The Barista League touched down at Mexico City concert hall Foro Indie Rocks a month ago for the first Latin American stop of its 2026 season—and this time, it took over the whole venue.
A Roasters Village featuring names from across Mexico, a second stage for talks and panels, and a full-day festival experience surrounded the main event: six teams competing in front of a live audience and a judging panel drawn from some of the most respected roasters, champions, and producers in Mexico and Colombia.
Under the new format, service and concept account for 62 percent of a team’s total score. Judges act as café customers, engaging in live conversation throughout the performance, and teams are evaluated as much on the experience they create as on what ends up in the cup.
It was a format that suited the energy of the room, and no team seemed more at home in it than Karla Bravo and Victor Granados, who brought Mexican-made recipes, infectious warmth, and a bar-shift ease to the stage that was difficult to look away from. When the scores were tallied, they had won.
We sat down with Karla and Victor to talk through how they prepared, what the experience was like from the inside, and what comes next.
Barista Magazine: Congratulations on your win! How did you prepare for The Barista League competition? Did you have a strategy going in?
Karla & Victor: Thank you! We started by reading through the rules carefully, and from there ideas began to flow naturally without losing sight of what we really wanted to communicate. Our strategy was a lot like the way we work day to day—a brainstorm that feels overwhelming at first but gradually takes shape over time.
How did you aim to stand out from the other teams, whether in approach, style, or energy?
We put most of our effort into making the judges feel genuinely comfortable. We built our recipes around Mexican ingredients, developed from scratch by us, and we focused on making our service as friendly and energetic as possible. That warmth is just who we are behind the bar.
What makes The Barista League different from other competitions, and what did you love most about it?
The freedom. The freedom to create, to serve, to just be ourselves—without setting aside technique, but with the focus firmly on service and concept. And competing under the same conditions as everyone else, with the same supplies and tools, creates a genuine sense of equal opportunity that you don’t always find in competition.
How did the team dynamic work between the two of you? Any funny or memorable moments from backstage?
Our dynamic felt like a normal shift behind the bar: the ones where you share the counter, keep things fun, keep moving, and try to see the best in every situation. Always dancing, always transmitting the energy and love that we want people to feel when they’re being served by us.
One unique aspect of The Barista League is the live interaction with judges. How was that experience for you, especially being able to respond and engage in real time?
We found it really fun to be able to explain what we were doing in a casual way, and to have the judges ask genuine questions and get genuine answers back. That exchange is what makes it feel alive.
Let’s rewind. What got each of you started in coffee, and what’s kept you hooked?
For me (Karla), it was the culture and the connections the craft creates. For me (Victor), a love of enology led me to something that felt surprisingly familiar—and then I fell in love with coffee, with how deep and versatile it is.
Who or what inspires you most in the coffee industry right now?
We love to learn, to practice, to compete—that’s how we improve every day and how we feel we can contribute more to the industry and to the coffee value chain. Growth that’s active, not passive.
Looking beyond the competition itself, how were the months of preparation, and what was your overall experience working with the TBL team and everyone involved?
The TBL team was incredibly attentive. Communication was great, they were always close by—answering questions, checking in to see if we needed anything. We never felt forgotten or overlooked. We love everyone at TBL.
Now that you’ve taken home the win, what’s next for you? Any big goals, projects, or coffee dreams on the horizon?
Continuing to compete, to keep learning, to keep sharing what we know with the people around us. We have plans where we’re working to bring more people into competition and to be a positive influence for the colleagues we work with every day.
If you had to describe your Barista League experience in three words, what would they be?
Fun. Equal. Enriching.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Vasileia Fanarioti (she/her) is a senior online correspondent for Barista Magazine and a freelance copywriter and editor with a primary focus on the coffee niche. She has also been a volunteer copywriter for the I’M NOT A BARISTA NPO, providing content to help educate people about baristas and their work.
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