Cafetto relaunches its community hub to welcome the world’s best baristas as they return to Melbourne for the World Coffee Championships.
Experiencing a new city can be daunting at the best of times, let alone if you’re a barista who’s travelled halfway around the world to compete in the World Coffee Championships. For many, it’s not just the long-haul travel that can be overwhelming, it’s the Aussie lingo, jetlag, and unfamiliar territory.
There’s always a fear of lost luggage and equipment, and apprehension of settling into the environment ahead of what can be the biggest and most prestigious of a barista’s career.
It’s for this reason that Cafetto is relaunching its Barista Base Camp in the lead-up to the World Barista Championship, taking place at the Melbourne International Coffee Expo (MICE) from 27 to 30 September.
“We’re bringing it back and we can’t wait to extend a warm Aussie welcome to the world’s best baristas,” says Cafetto Director Christ Short.
“Barista Base Camp is a host venue for the world’s national champions to train ahead of the heats at MICE. It’s part of our hospitality to those who have travelled all this way to Melbourne for the chance to represent their country, and we want to ensure they have the best experience while they’re here. It’s about creating a welcoming, inviting, safe space for each barista and their team. We want them to be familiar with the equipment and supplies they’ll have available on the world stage, and give them a sense of comfort.”
Baristas will have the support of Barista Base Camp supporters Barista Attitude, who will supply the official Qualified Espresso Machine of the World Barista Championship (WBC), the Tempesta, for baristas to train on. Victoria Arduino’s Mythos MY75 grinder will be available as the event’s Qualified Espresso Grinder, as will BWT’s Qualified Water Filters, Riverina Fresh milk as Official Milk Supplier, and Cafetto cleaning products.
Cafetto first launched the Barista Base Camp concept in Melbourne at MICE in 2013. It continued the initiative in Gothenburg for the World Latte Art Championship in 2015, then again in Dublin in 2016, and Seoul in 2017 at the respective World Coffee Championship events.
“Demand for the first Base Camp in Melbourne was enormous. I remember we had baristas training from 7am all the way until 2am trying to get as much practice time on the machines as they could,” Chris says.
He anticipates a similar influx of around-the-clock training, with the Barista Base Camp opening three days before MICE in its original site in Kensington. Chris says it will be open around 12 hours each day, or more if necessary, concluding on 30 September, the day before the Finals.
“The coffee industry has always been about hospitality and connection, it’s one of the things I value most when I travel to the world’s best coffee expos and competitions. The people you meet and the experiences you have, can result in friends and memories for life,” Chris says.
“The global coffee community has faced enough time a part. After more than two years, Australia finally gets to welcome international guests back to our iconic coffee city, and we want to ensure that this year’s MICE and World Coffee Championships (WCC) are not just the best experience they can be, but a demonstration of good Aussie hospitality. Coffee is said to be a universal language, and Barista Base Camp aims to be a further extension and symbol of that unity.”
Chris has pioneered the use of cleaning and sanitation products in the prestigious global competitions. Prior to 2008, there was no such products used in the World Coffee Championships. Cafetto became the equipment cleaning sponsor of the WBC in 2008, and from 2015 to 2017, and this year returns as Qualified Cleaning sponsor for the 2022 WBC and WBrC.
“It’s a huge honour to be supporting World Coffee Events again,” says Chris. “Cafetto is recognised as a very important brand in the global industry, and to be a recognised partner of the world’s most prestigious coffee competitions, and in front of a home audience in Melbourne, is really special.”
Cafetto cleaning products are now distributed globally in more than 70 countries and Cafetto General Manager Christine Song says Cafetto’s sponsorship of the Barista Base Camp and of the WCC is another opportunity to show international representatives the origins of the Australian-manufactured brand, and that its products are worthy of use by the industry’s best talent.
“It means a lot to Cafetto, as a proud Australian brand, to support events that help grow the coffee industry. We have been supporters of the Australian Specialty Coffee Association, New Zealand Specialty Coffee Association national championships, and partnering with the WCC is another testament to the brand’s relevance to the global market,” Christine says.
“Cafetto has a strong reputation throughout the world as the ‘people’s cleaning brand’. We are passionate about our products which we know play a significant role in the cleaning of coffee equipment, but also in preserving the quality taste of espresso. Our partnerships mean everything to us, and our presence at MICE will be another wonderful opportunity to demonstrate who we are, and why we’re so connected to the global coffee community.”
As Cafetto prepares its Base Camp to be filled with products, personalities, and passionate performances in the days before MICE, Chris says all that’s left to do is set up the ping-pong table, and extend a big “G’day” and “welcome”, to the land Down Under.
For more information, visit www.cafetto.com
This article appears in the August 2022 edition of BeanScene. Subscribe HERE.
