2009 Prairies Regional Barista Championship

A great day.

2009prbc — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 05:25:09 +0000

Congratulations have to go out to all the competitors, and to the four going to Vancouver: Ben Put from Phil and Sebastian Coffee taking first place, Joel May from Fratello Coffee in second, and Chad Moss and Josh Hockin from Transcend Coffee taking 3rd and 4th respectively. The top five barista scores were very close and clustered between 602 and 638. The Fratello boys did a great job again this year, and were consummate hosts, and our hats need to go off to them. Andrea Picoclo did a stellar job as head judge, and pushed all of the sensory judges to really come to grips with their responsibility in toady’s events. A big thanks has to go out to all of our volunteers, and a shout out to Andrew Legg for doing an amazing job as emcee, and keeping everyone entertained in the dead periods as us judges calibrated back behind the curtain. So, we all head home tomorrow, and have a month to refine, practice, and then load up to make the short hop to Vancouver, where we will do it all over again. Thanks to all who watched both at the event, and from afar on Ustream – we very much appreciated your support.

schedule of competitors

2009prbc — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 17:31:42 +0000

Here’s the complete list of competitors and the order in which they are competing:

1. Jody Carlson – Whitecourt AB – Carlson Coffee
2. Jimmy Oneshuk – Saskatoon SK – Museo
3. Joel Person – Calgary AB – Café de Ville
4. Ashley Madsen – Calgary – Cawa
5. Mike Tam – Calgary – Phil & Sebastian
6. Joel May – Calgary – Fratello
7. Austin MacLeod – Calgary – Bumpy’s
8. Josh Hockin – Edmonton AB – Transcend Coffee
9. Ben Put – Calgary – Phil & Sebastian
10. Chad Moss – Edmonton AB – Transcend Coffee
11. Jessica Johnston – Cochrane AB – Java Jamboree

Judges in Calibration mode

2009prbc — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 20:55:06 +0000

It is finally upon us. The 2009 PRBC is under way, with calibration sessions going on. In the back they are setting up tables, and curtains, and by 7 pm, it will be Jam time. Andrea is already showing her talent as a head judge. Great discussion, and already too much espresso.

gettin’ ready to rumble

2009prbc — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 17:17:50 +0000

We’re only two days away from the big competition and really, the fun and craziness will start tomorrow. So this update is all about how to participate, watch, cheer on your favourites and connect with the coffee community at the 2009 PRBC.

schedule of events

Friday, Sept. 11
12 – 4 pm – Judges palate calibration
3 – 6 pm – competition set-up – volunteers are always welcome!
7 – 10 pm -Barista Jam! Open to all barista’s and coffee industry folk. Hang with the coffee community, chill, talk shop, pull shots and take part in the Latte Art Throw Down – $5 buy in / winner takes all! Beer & snacks will be served.

Saturday, Sept. 12
9:30 am – 2009 PRBC competition begins!
1 – 2 pm – lunch break
2 pm – competition resumes
6 pm – winners announced
Party to follow

If you live in, or you’re planning to be in Calgary:

Come in person, watch the event, participate, meet interesting coffee folk, get over-caffeinated.

All events take place at:
Fratello Coffee Roasters
4021 – 9 Street S.E.
Calgary, AB

Google map to Fratello

If you can’t be in Calgary:

Watch live on Ustream

follow 2009PRBC on twitter for live competition updates

connect on facebook

Prairies Regional Update

2009prbc — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 19:58:25 +0000

Thought we should update everyone on the comings and goings of the 2009 PRBC. We are getting close to the event date, less than a month away, and things are coming together nicely, with a few exceptions. We are set as far as sensory judges are concerned, but we could use a few more technical judges. So if you are interested, click on the link below and register as a tech judge.

We are very short on actual competitors. At this point, it looks like we have 7 confirmed competitors, and we were hoping for 16. In order to get everything squared away for the competition, we are setting a drop dead date for registration of August 31st, so that only leaves interested individuals 14 days to make up their minds.

The competition will run on one day, Saturday the 12th of September, in a shoot-out like competition. There is also going to be a barista jam at the Fratello Roastery on Friday night (September 11th) at 7 pm. Further, there will be an after party, following the competition, stay tuned for details.

If you have any questions, or would like to volunteer, or get involved, let us know. We will keep posting news at it develops on the blog site. Also watch for a twitter feed in the near future.

Steering Committee Meeting

2009prbc — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 22:38:32 +0000

Just thought I would update those who care, that the steering committee met today in Red Deer to further prepare for the upcoming 2009 PRBC. We are busy securing sponsorships and planning for media events. We would like to encourage anyone interested in competing this year to get their applications in, the link is below. Also, if you would like to volunteer this year (running, score keeping, timing, data entry, set-up, take-down) you can fill out a form for that too. Please be aware that there will be a barista jam on the Friday night before the competition at the Fratello coffee roastery. As always, if you have a question, or would like to throw money our way, drop me a line. poul@transcendcoffee.com

Registration Forms for 2009 PRBC

2009prbc — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 20:18:20 +0000

Please click on any link below to access the following forms. If you have any further questions, please send Poul Mark and email.

Competitor Registration Form
Judges Registration Form
Volunteer Registration Form
Competitor Rules & Regulations
Judges Rules and Regulations
Head Judge Score Sheet
Judges Code of Conduct
Technical Score Sheet
Sensory Score Sheet

Weekend of September 12th, 2009

2009prbc — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 22:03:42 +0000

The date has been set, we will be at the Fratello house in Calgary, Alberta on the weekend of September 12, 2009 for the Prairies Regional Barista Championship. Stay tuned as more details will quickly follow. We will post applications forms for competitors and judges here as well.

2009 Prairies Regional Barista Championship

2009prbc — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 00:00:03 +0000

This blog is a first step in promoting the 2009 Prairies Regional Barista Championship. As far as we know, it will be held in Calgary again, and most likely at the fine house of Fratello. Currently this blog is the sole effort of Poul Mark of Transcend Coffee, so if there is any blame to dish out for jumping the gun, it is all on me. I hope to spearhead the organization and promotion of this event this year, to ensure that we get the most bang for our buck in the Prairies. Feel free to comment at will.