World Coffee Events (WCE) has announced the six finalists in its 2014 World Barista Championship (WBC) hosted at the SCAE’s World of Coffee in Rimini, Italy. Twelve National Barista Champions competed in the semi finals today and the six 2014 World Barista Finalists include the UK’s Maxwell Colonna – Dashwood:
| Name | Country | Company |
| William Hernandez | El Salvador | Viva Espresso |
| Kapo Chiu | Hong Kong | The Cupping Room |
| Maxwell Colonna – Dashwood | United Kingdom | Colonna & Smalls |
| Hidenori Izaki | Japan | Maruyama Coffee Co., Ltd. |
| Chris Loukakis | Greece | TAF |
| Craig Simon | Australia | Think Tank Coffee |
A total of 54 National Barista Champions took part in the competition and the 2014 World Barista Championship is in Italy for the very first time as part of the Specialty Coffee Association of Europe’s, annual coffee exposition in partnership with Rimini Fiera.
The semi final of the 15th World Barista Championship entertained coffee fans from Italy and around the world. The 800 seat grandstand at Rimini Fiera was filled and it has been live streamed by 38,755
unique viewers around the world.
The 15th World Barista Championship final takes place on Sunday 12 June at World of Coffee, and the 2014 World Barista Champion is announced the same day at 15:30pm.
For more information visit here or join in the conversation on Twitter @WCoffeeEvents using the hashtag #WBC2014.
To view videos and watch the 2014 World Barista Championship live click here
The WCE photo library can be found here: http://worldcoffeeevents.photoshelter.com/gallery-list
About World Coffee Events, Ltd
World Coffee Events’ mission is to develop events that engage the specialty coffee community and promote coffee excellence. Founded in 2011 by joint cooperation of the Speciality Coffee Associations of Europe and America, World Coffee Events is the premier producer of events for the coffee community and licenses national championships in more than 60 countries involving thousands of participants worldwide. For more information, visit our website here.
About World Barista Championship
World Barista Championship, produced by World Coffee Events, is an annual destination for national barista champions from over 50 countries. In each competition, with numerous local and regional preliminary events, baristas prepare espressos, cappuccinos and original espresso signature drinks to exacting standards for a panel of international judges. (www.worldbaristachampionship.org)
Pictured top: 2013 World Barista Champion Pete Licata, United States