Find out who was crowned best barista at the Bewiched Coffee Barista Championship 2023

In a celebration of all things coffee, Carrara Coffee Roasters recently played host to the Bewiched Coffee Barista Championship, a competition designed to showcase the incredible skills of baristas from across the Northants region.

Sponsored by La Marzocco, a leading Italian coffee machine manufacturer, the event featured three knock-out rounds, each one designed to push the contestants to their limits, with the three best contestants winning an all expense paid trip to London Coffee Festival 2023.

Taking place last month, the championship was a ‘spectacular’ display of the art and science of coffee-making.

Competitors were required to demonstrate a wide range of barista skills, including latte art, espresso preparation, and cappuccino crafting.

The competition was open to all Bewiched stores, who nominated a barista to represent them.

The first round saw the contestants create a latte that showcased their core understanding of how coffee should look, feel and taste.

The judges were looking for best practices, skill, timing and great taste.

In the second round, the baristas had to create a latte and a cappuccino, while demonstrating their technical proficiency in grinding, tamping and brewing.

Finally, the third round was a four-drink gauntlet, having to make one flat white, one cappuccino and two lattes, all in a short time frame.

The competition was fierce, with each round producing some truly impressive entries.

The judges had a tough job, but in the end, they were able to select the winners.

The first place prize went to Chrissy, a Bewiched barista from the Peterborough store.

She showed great consistency across all three rounds and kept a high standard throughout the competition.

Second place went to Louise, a barista from the Wellingborough Market Street store, who wowed the judges with her stunning latte art.

Third place went to Rich, who is the operations and sales manager of Bewiched.

All three will be heading for a paid trip to this year’s London Coffee Festival.

A spokesman for Bewiched said: “Overall, the Bewiched Coffee Barista Championship was a fantastic event that showcased the incredible talent of our local baristas.

"We are grateful to La Marzocco for sponsoring the event and helping us to bring the coffee community together.

"The full video is available online, and on Bewiched & Carrara Coffee’s social feeds.

"Congratulations to all of the contestants who participated, and we look forward to seeing what they come up with next year.”