Bartlett Mitchell, one of the UK’s leading independent caterers, has named Sarah Reynolds as the winner of its annual barista championship.
Reynolds, who works at Bartlett Mitchell site in Kent, took the title of Barista Champion 2019 after hotly contested final held last night at London Fields Brewery.
Baristas from across the UK entered this year’s competition, which was expanded to include a new quarter-final round to accommodate the increasing popularity of the competition since its launch in 2017.
The baristas were assessed on their coffee knowledge, grinding skills, coffee machine use and milk preparation techniques across three stages of the competition. The judges included previous BM barista finalists, as well as leading names from across the coffee sector.
Nobert Hegyi and Milka Valkanova, based in London, finished runner-up and third place respectively.
The five finalists were given 15 minutes to produce an espresso course, a milk course and a signature course in order to demonstrate a broad spectrum of barista skills to the judges.
Miguel Camara, Bartlett Mitchell’s coffee brand manager, developed the competition to further strengthen the caterer’s commitment to refining its coffee offer. This includes premium sustainable brand Perkee, which Bartlett Mitchell launched in 2016 in collaboration with beverage supplier Bewleys and the female-run Soppexcca coffee co-operative in Nicaragua.
He said: “It has been another incredible competition. We have seen competitors from a very diverse range of businesses enter this year, and the standard is higher than ever. “Its a pleasure to see our baristas showcase their skills with such finesse and passion. “Huge congratulations to Sarah and all of the other finalists.”
Wendy Bartlett, executive chairman, Bartlett Mitchell, added: “The Bartlett Mitchell Barista Championship has gone from strength to strength since its launch. It’s a great chance for the fantastic talent we have across the business to showcase what they can do and we’re immensely proud of everyone that took part.”