As World of Coffee Copenhagen came to a close on 29 June, the final World Coffee Championships 2024 winners were crowned, with Yi-Chen Xie representing Taiwan becoming the World Latte Art Champion and Seung Chan Wi representing South Korea taking first place in the World Coffee in Good Spirits competition.
In the World Latte Art Championship Manuela Fensore of Italy placed runner up and Guoqiang Liu of China came third, while Sandro Roth of Switzerland and Andrea Villa of Italy placed second and third respectively in the World Coffee in Good Spirits rankings.
Over the course of the three-day event in Denmark, four World Coffee Championships were held: World Latte Art Championship, World Coffee in Good Spirits, World Coffee Roasting Championship, and Cezve/Ibrik Championship. The Best New Product Competition and Coffee Design Awards also took place.
The World of Latte Art competition highlights artistic expression in a competition platform that challenges the barista in an on-demand performance. Judges assess beverages based on visual attributes, creativity, identical patterns in the pairs, contrast, and the barista on their overall performance.
For the final round, competitors were required to make two different matching sets of free-pour latte patterns, and one matching set of designer lattes.
Yi-Chen Xie’s final routine presented a blue whale, a moose, and a dragon, which he titled King of the Ocean, King of the Land, and King of the Sky.
For the first time in the competition’s history, competitors used a fully automatic qualified espresso machine, pulling their shots using a Thermoplan Black&White4 Competizione.
“We are delighted to be part of the SCA and the World Latte Art Championships with our Black&White4 Competizione and to share our passion for coffee with baristas from all over the world,” says Philipp Grammel, Thermoplan Coffee Specialist.
The World Coffee in Good Spirits competition showcases innovative beverage recipes that highlight coffee and spirits in a competition format.
The final round required competitors to produce two Irish Coffees (whiskey and coffee) and two coffee and alcohol-based designer drinks. Seung Chan Wi of South Korea claimed the final prize.
In addition to the announcement of the winners, the World of Coffee event also revealed a record-breaking attendance with more than 12,600 visitors from 140 different countries. This year the event hosted 492 exhibiting companies, marking the highest participation to date.
To see a full list of the finalists for the World Latte Art Championship click here, and for the World Coffee in Good Spirits Championship click here.
