Dear U.S. Competitions Community,
We are very excited to announce the dates and locations for what is sure to be a very good series of CoffeeChamps Qualifying Competitions and the U.S. Coffee Championships! Because this season will feel slightly different than seasons past, we felt it was important to reach out to all of you.
In 2020, the World Barista Championship and World Brewers Cup will take place in early May in Melbourne, Australia, which is just a few days after the conclusion of the SCA’s Specialty Coffee Expo in Portland, OR. The idea of sending our champions to the other side of the planet with less than a week to prepare was unacceptable. In order to give our U.S. Barista and U.S. Brewers Cup champions plenty of time to plan and practice for their performances at the world events, we’ve made what we feel are acceptable changes to how our season will flow:
There will be a standalone Qualifying Competition for Barista and Brewers Cup in Sumner, WA in December.
All five competitions will have a Qualifying Competition in Nashville, TN - we’ll be returning to the Track One for the second season in a row. We are delighted to revisit the Nashville coffee community in January!
Coffee in Good Spirits, Roaster, and Cup Tasters will have their second Qualifying Competition in February in Orange County, CA. This event will also be the U.S. Barista Championship and U.S. Brewers Cup Championship.
The U.S. Coffee in Good Spirits Championship, U.S. Cup Tasters Championship, and U.S. Roaster Championship will happen in conjunction with the Specialty Coffee Expo in Portland, OR.
CoffeeChamps - Sumner, WA | Dillanos / Barista 22
Dec 7-8, 2019: Barista and Brewers Cup Qualifying Competitions
CoffeeChamps - Nashville, TN | Track One
Jan 11-12, 2020: Barista, Brewers Cup, Coffee in Good Spirits, Cup Tasters, and Roaster Qualifying Competitions
CoffeeChamps + USCC - Orange County, CA | OC Fair & Event Center
Feb 22-23, 2020: Coffee in Good Spirits, Cup Tasters, and Roaster Qualifying Competitions
Feb 21-23, 2020: U.S. Barista Championship and U.S. Brewers Cup
USCC - Portland, OR | Oregon Convention Center
April 24-26, 2020: U.S. Coffee in Good Spirits Championship, U.S. Cup Tasters Championship, and U.S. Roaster Championship
We understand that it’s not excellent to have our championships spread out over two events in two separate cities two months apart, but we want the people representing our community on the world stage to have the opportunity to be extraordinary. We believe this schedule accomplishes that while not placing an undue travel burden on all of our competitors for Barista and Brewers.
“A key focus of the US Chapter volunteer leadership is to drive engagement across a wide variety of events, programs, and coffee gatherings,” said SCA USA Chapter National Coordinator, Marcus Boni. “The USCC program remains an awesome opportunity to not only showcase barista commitment and passion, but also grow and learn with a diverse part of our community. Even if competing or judging isn’t your thing, I warmly encourage you to come out to these events for fellowship, knowledge and coffee-buds networking. Each event will have a lot to offer, and I’m proud to say it’s where my love for our community began.”
General admission tickets for the U.S. CoffeeChamps Qualifying Events in Nashville, TN and Orange County, CA will go on sale November 1, 2019 for $10 advanced sale and $15 at the door via Eventbrite. No entry fee will be required for the event in Summer, WA. Competitor and judge registration will also open November 1, 2019 for Sumner, Nashville, and Orange County Qualifying Events.
In addition to the competitions in Nashville and Orange County, attendees will have access to unlimited coffee beverages at The Café, vendors and roasters in The Market and Roaster Village, food and roaster trucks, and can test their skills at a Latte Art Activation.
If you have any questions, please reach out to us: competitions@sca.coffee
Thank you!
Nathanael May
U.S. Competitions Committee, Chair
U.S. Chapter National Competitions Coordinator
