Big Central Barista Competition this Weekend

They make your coffee every day, but this weekend you can watch top baristas make coffee for bragging rights ... and a title. The Big Central Barista Competition, sponsored jointly by Intelligentsia, Counter Culture and Alterra coffee companies, will take place from March 23 to March 25 between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. daily at the Ravenswood Event Center (4011 N. Ravenswood) and is free and open to the public.

Baristas from 16 states in two regions, North Central and South Central, will converge on Chicago seeking the title in two competitions: the Barista Competition and the Brewers Cup. For the former, baristas will have to prepare and serve four espressos, four cappuccinos and four original signature drinks of their own creation ? all within a 15-minute timeframe—to judges. After serving the judges, the competitors will move to a coffee bar to give the public the chance to taste the coffee they just served to judges.

The Brewers Cup challenges the art of manual coffee brewing. Here, competitors will all brew from the same batch of coffee and be judged on taste. Next, finalists move on to then be judged on both taste and presentation.

Winners in both competitions, who will be named late Sunday afternoon, will move on to compete in the United States Barista Championship in Portland, Ore., this April. Those winners will compete in the 2012 World Barista Championship in Vienna June 12 to 15.
· Big Central Barista Competition [website]