BeanScene Magazine

AASCA has had another successful round of national championships with a few more firsts under the belt. Australia was the first country in the world to run the new format for the Latte Art. This was a bit of a nightmare to administer and interpret, however the end result ran smoothly. A big thank you to Chaline and Ian from the Epic team and the computer program they devised for the “Wheel of Art.” It is going to be a handy tool when it comes time to implement it in our state based competitions.

We also had our first Ibrik competition. Although it was only in the format as a demonstration event, it was well received. With the WBC and Specialty Coffee Championships combining to form a new entity, you can guarantee that there are going to be some rule changes and new events coming out of the mix. The DVD of the event is almost ready and will be available on the AASCA website along with the T-shirts and the 2010 DVD.

We also welcomed some new sponsors wigth H.A. Bennet as our green bean supplier and Prodotti D’Italia as a crockery supplier. Not only do our sponsors help us stage events like the Nationals, but they are also our peers in the industry. In fact, three of our long-term gold and silver sponsors Caffeto, Davinci, and Pura have recently undergone judge accreditation, further showing their commitment to specialty coffee. They have extensive industry experience and can see things from a different perspective. So, if you are looking for a new product or something out of the ordinary, talk to our sponsors. If they can’t help you they may know someone who can.

The Nationals would not have been as successful if it wasn’t for all the hard work that has been put in by our members, judges, competitors and volunteers – this combined with the financial support and technical support of our sponsors and event organisers. I am also happy to announce that the 2012 National Competition will be held in Melbourne. After three very successful years at the Gold Coast it is time to move.

Now that the National Competitions have all been completed ,we tend to go into a state of hiatus. The exception to this is our National champions who are busy training for the world stage. This is now the time to build ourselves as an association, to develop and create more services for our members. The AASCA executive is looking to develop a five-year plan that will make the handover from each committee a much smoother transition. We are currently working to develop a travel partner to help reduce the cost of both our domestic and international travel commitments. This can also be used to bring international speakers out to Australia.

States should start planning their competitions for the 2012 season. The first step is to secure a venue and a date. Timing is important as we need at least a week between each event to move the equipment around Australia. The ideal model would have state competitions every two weeks from September to December. This would leave Christmas and the New Year holiday season free and clear the way for the Nationals in the New Year. Venues can take the form of town halls, cafés and even roasteries.