The World Coffee Championships are Back!

OCTOBER 20, 2021 — After more than two years of postponements, we’re excited to be joined by competitors, coaches, volunteers, coffee professionals, fans, and sponsors at the Milan World Coffee Championships from October 23-26. Competition is sure to be fierce with more than 90 competitors representing 40 licensed Competition Bodies across the 2021 World Barista Championship, World Brewers Cup, and World Cup Tasters Championship, which takes place at HostMilano. Join us in person at the WCC area in pavilion 13, or stream the competitions online at milan.wcc.coffee.

World Barista Championship

The World Barista Championship focuses on promoting excellence in coffee, advancing the barista profession, and engaging a worldwide audience with an annual championship event that serves as the culmination of local and regional events around the globe. 

Each year, competitors from around the globe each prepare 4 espressos, 4 milk drinks, and 4 original signature drinks to exacting standards in a 15-minute performance set to music. WCE Certified Judges from around the world evaluate each performance on the taste of beverages served, cleanliness, creativity, technical skill, and overall presentation. The ever-popular signature beverage allows baristas to stretch their imagination and the judges’ palates to incorporate a wealth of coffee knowledge into an expression of their individual tastes and experiences.

The top 15 highest-scoring competitors from the first round, plus wild-card winner from the Team Competition, advance to a semi-final round. The top 6 competitors in the semi-final round advance to the finals round, from which one winner is named World Barista Champion!

World Brewers Cup

The World Brewers Cup competition highlights the craft of filter coffee brewing by hand, promoting manual coffee brewing and service excellence. In this Championship, competitors prepare and serve three individual beverages for a panel of judges. During the first round competitors complete two coffee services – a compulsory service and an open service. For the compulsory service, competitors prepare three beverages utilizing whole bean coffee provided to them by the competition. For the open service, competitors may utilize any whole bean coffee of their choosing and must also accompany their beverage preparation with a presentation. 

The six competitors with the highest score from the first round will go on to compete in the finals round consisting exclusively of an open service. One competitor from the final round will be named the World Brewers Cup Champion.

World Cup Tasters Championship

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Coffees of the world have many distinct taste characteristics and in this competition format, the objective is for the cupper to discriminate between the different coffees. Three cups are placed in a triangle, with 2 cups being identical coffees and one cup being a different coffee. Using skills of smell, taste, attention, and experience, the cupper will identify the odd cup in the triangle as quickly as they can. A total of 8 triangles are placed in each round. The top 8 competitors with the most correct answers and the fastest time proceed to the next Semi-Finals round. Then the top 4 will compete again in the Finals round to determine the next World Cup Tasters Champion.

Between competitors, there’s a chance to try filter and espresso coffee from international specialty roasters at the WCC Bar right next to the stages. 

Interested in joining? Advance registration for HostMilano is the preferred option, with tickets available here. A detailed list of entry requirements for the venue along with COVID-19 precautions in effect in the WCC area are listed here.

Can’t make it to Milan? Stream the competitions live from milan.wcc.coffee — no registration is required. We’ll also be posting regular competition highlights and updates on the World Coffee Championship Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube channels.

The World Coffee Championships are supported by Official Espresso Machine sponsor, Victoria Arduino; Official Espresso Grinder sponsor, Mahlkönig.

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Contact

Connor Clarke

Event Marketing Manager

Email: press@sca.coffee

About the World Coffee Championships and World Coffee Events

The World Coffee Championships are produced by World Coffee Events (WCE) — the event management organization of the Specialty Coffee Association, and the premier producer of events for the coffee community worldwide. WCE’s mission is to develop events that engage the specialty coffee community and promote coffee excellence. The current WCE portfolio involves the World Coffee Championships; the World Barista Championship, World Latte Art Championship, World Brewers Cup, World Coffee in Good Spirits Championship, World Cup Tasters Championship, World Coffee Roasting Championship, and the Cezve/Ibrik Championship; the All-Stars program; and show features such as the Espresso Bar and the Brew Bar. Learn more at worldcoffeeevents.org.

About HostMilano

HostMilano is the international exhibition dedicated to the world of food service and hospitality. Taking place every two years, it offers everything needed to build a successful business, from raw materials to semi-finished products, from machinery to equipment, from furnishings to tableware, with one eye firmly focused on trends, technologies and innovation. 2021 will mark the 42nd edition.