SEATTLE – Laila Ghambari of Cherry Street Coffee House in Seattle is the 2014 United States Barista Champion (USBC).
The United States Coffee Championships took place in the Activities Hall at The SCAA Event and featured, besides the US Barista Championship, the US Brewers Cup Championship, the US Latte Art Championship, the US Cup Tasters Championship and the Roasters Guild Roasters Choice competition.
The winners qualify for the finals of the World Coffee Events’ competitions to be held this year in Rimini and Melbourne.
Ghambari won the competition with a score of 651.5 points. She will travel to Rimini to represent the US in the World Barista Championships.
Charles Babinski, from G & B, Los Angeles, CA came second with 604 points.
Third place went to Trevor Corlett, MADCAP Coffee, Washington, DC with 564 points.
Cole McBride (PublicUS & Velton’s Coffee, Seattle, WA), Camila Ramos (Panther Coffee, Miami, FL) and Nora Brady (Blueprint Coffee, St. Louis, MO) finished in fourth, fifth and sixth-place,with549.5, 529.5 and 526.5 points respectively.
According to sprudge.com the coffees served by Laila Ghambari at USBC were grown and processed by the team at Cuatro M Cafes, hailing from the company’s El Manzano farm in the Santa Ana department of northwest El Salvador.
Cherry Street Coffee House, which serves coffee roasted by Dillanos Coffee Roasters, is owned and operated by Laila’s father, Ali Ghambari (pictured below), and has 9 locations throughout the Seattle area.
Simeon Bricker of the The Roasterie – Kansas City, MO won the first edition of the U.S. Latte Art Championship (USLAC).
The second and third steps of the podium were taken by Eugene Lee (Cafe Dulce – Glendale, CA) and Kyle Dols (Morsel – Seattle, WA).
Dean Kallivrousis (Onyx Coffee Lab – Kansas City, KS), Row Aczon (Honolulu Coffee Co – Honolulu, HI) and Donald Morrison (De Cafe Baristas, Pasadena, CA) took the remaining places in the final.
2014 U.S. Brewers Cup Champions
- 1ST Place – Todd Goldsworthy , Klatch Coffee, Los Angeles, CA – Points 87.02
- 2nd Place – Todd Carmichael, La Colombe Torrefaction, Philadelphia, PA – Points 84.29
- 3rd Place – Anthony Auger, Kaldi’s Coffee, St. Louis, MO – Points 84.05
- 4th Place – James Klapp, La Colombe Torrefaction, Philadelphia, PA – Points 83.15
- 5th Place – Jonathan Bonchak, Counter Culture Coffee Durham, NC – Points 81.79
- 6th Place – James Tooill, Argo Sons Coffee, Louisville, KY -Points 79.05
Amanda L- Juris (Starbucks) won the 2014, US Cup Tasters Championships
Andrew Bowman of Tony’s Coffee, Bellingham, WA was the 2014 Roasters Choice Champion.
