Achi news desk-
During the 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 in the semi-final and final of the competition, which is to be held on May 27 and 29 in London, with the winner of that competition going to Copenhagen to represent the UK at the Art Championships Latte of the World.
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 Specialty Coffee House in Partick and Kafei Studio by Space in Finnieston.
Originally from China, Dai fell in love with coffee while working as a barista in 2015.
Since graduating from the University of Glasgow in 2017, she has regularly competed in latte art competitions, winning her first latte art “throw down” at the Manchester Coffee Festival in 2017.
The skilled barista also managed to claim victory in last year’s semi-final before coming narrowly second in the UK Championships.
He said: “I had been watching a lot of the videos and I had always wondered what it would be like to compete – and I won”, he 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 make it to the semi-finals. I was gutted but the second year around I tried again and came second in the UK. This year I hope I make it to the final.”
Ahead of the heats, Alexx McKendry, UK Specialty Coffee Association national co-ordinator, said, “We couldn’t be more excited to bring the second round of this year’s Latte Art Championship to the Glasgow Coffee Festival.
“Within the specialist coffee community, Glasgow Coffee Festival has always had a reputation for being one of the most dynamic and exciting coffee events in the country, run by a passionate group of coffee people who always have interests’ the coffee community is at the heart of what they do.”
The second highly regarded 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, which specializes in supplying coffee shop products and equipment for cafes, restaurants, hotels and more, said: “We are delighted to be judging and supporting the Roast Hero competition at the Glasgow Coffee Festival.
“So much is going to be a world-class coffee roaster. This competition focuses on those skills, and ultimately what goes into making a great brew, from sourcing to roasting itself.
“We are excited to see these skills in action and of course try world class coffee that goes for gold.”
The Glasgow Coffee Festival will run on Saturday, May 11 and Sunday, May 12.
For more information or to book tickets now click here.
