Gabrel Tan’s crowning as Australian Barista Champion after podium finishes in the past four years highlights an incredible weekend of competition at the Australian Specialty Coffee Association (ASCA) National Specialty Coffee Championships.
After two runner-up finishes and a third-place finish within the past four years, Gabrel finally reached the pinnacle of Australian barista craft at Big Plans, North Melbourne.
Overcoming a strong field including runner-up Angus Mackie, third-place Liam Pratt, and fellow finalists Ziggy Varamulia, Tom Hutchins, and Yeseul Choi, Gabrel will now represent Australia at the World Barista Championships at World of Coffee Panama in 2026.
Gabrel, who works for Veneziano Coffee Roasters, says his journey of coming so close to winning the Australian Barista Championship set him up well for success this year.
“Every year of not winning gave me great learning experiences,” he says. “Honestly, I just want to shout out my team – especially Craig Dickson. He’s been supporting me ever since I started at Veneziano and he’s believed in me this whole time.
“It took many, many years to get here, but I’m really grateful for everybody who has been part of this journey.”
Gabrel was not the only champion crowned at Big Plans during the National Specialty Coffee Championships, with the venue also hosting the Australian Brewers Championship and the Australian Latte Art Championship.
Simon Gautherin of Zest Coffee and APAX Lab was named winner of the Brewers Cup ahead of podium finishers Alexander Moore and Dao Pirada, while Fran Lee, Tinley Li, and Dan Bottesini rounded out the top six.
He says while winning was not his main motivation behind competing, he’s excited to be representing Australia at the new champion in 2026.
“It’s been 10 years of hard work and dedication,” he says.
“I didn’t compete to win; I removed that from my mind. I wasn’t even too sure if I wanted to be on stage because of the hard work and commitment it takes, so for me it needed to have real meaning.”
Finally, Amy Zhang was named Australian Latte Art Champion ahead of runner-up Georgia Ellis and third-place Alvin Limbu, with Junnie Phyu, Daisuke, and Ryan Nguyen also competing in the final.
Amy’s victory comes after a more than two-year sabbatical from competing after he seventh-place finish at the World Latte Art Championships back in 2023.
She says the opportunity to recreate and improve designs she has used in the past were crucial to her victory.
“When I came in seventh in Taipei, I felt a little bit bad that I couldn’t show everyone my new design in the final,” she says.
“I kept going to fit my design, so when I recreated it and fixed it here on stage today, everyone loved it. Now, I have the chance to fly to America and show my designs to the world.”
Gabrel, Simon, and Amy will soon be jetting off around the world to represent Australia at the various World Coffee Championships around the world.
For Gabrel, a trip to Panama City and World of Coffee Panama await him in October, while Simon will be travelling to Belgium and World of Coffee Brussels in June.
Amy will be the first to represent Australia in 2026 of the trio, with the World Latte Art Championship taking place at World of Coffee San Diego in April.
