Teo Jo-Hann of Laika Coffee Roasters has won the 2018 Western Australian AeroPress Championship, co-hosted by Laika and Micrology Coffee Roasters on 7 September.
“I participated in the 2017 WA Regionals and that was my first AeroPress competition. It was such a fun event I decided to participate again this year,” Jo-Hann says.
Gary Sawyer of Coffee Fusion was runner up and Phil Warnes placed third.
“Phil is a home-brewer. [It was an] exceptional performance from him that night,” Jo-Hann says.
“[It] just goes to show how level the playing field really is when it comes to Aeropress.”
Jo-Hann will now compete in the Australian AeroPress Championships, taking place at Seven Seeds in Melbourne on 19 September.
He has chosen not to disclose his recipe or methods as he may use them at the national competition.
The 2018 Western Australian AeroPress Championshiphad 200 attendees, including 27 competitors. The event had a house party theme, music by DJ Genga, a basketball competition running outside with free beers provided by Otherside Brewing and a pop-up yard barbecue provided by Short Order Burger.
The competition is a multi-round elimination tournament. In each round, three competitors face off against each other, simultaneously brewing a single cup of coffee using the AeroPress brewer.
Competitors have eight minutes in which to prepare, brew, and present their coffee to a panel of three judges. Drinks are presented in identical vessels, so judges can’t know who brewed which cup.
The judges evaluate each coffee and make their own assessment as to which is the best.
The 2018 World AeroPress Championship will be held at Commune in Sydney on 17 November.
