LONDON, UK – Giorgio Ventisei, a 19-year-old Costa Coffee barista from Dundee, Scotland, has been named Costa 2016 Barista of the Year Champion after demonstrating outstanding technical skill, creativity and a true passion for coffee at the global final.
Giorgio, who has worked at the Dundee Murraygate store for three years, beat off tough competition from Costa’s most accomplished baristas from across the globe.
He was named the best Costa barista in the world in the 11th annual international championship, which was held at the Royal Horticultural Society in London. Giorgio is the second Scot in a row to win the prestigious title following the win of Klara Rohal from Dumfries in 2015.
Giorgio impressed the expert judging panel with his outstanding performance in each of the stages of the two-day final.
The judging panel was led by Costa’s Master of Coffee, Gennaro Pelliccia. Joining Gennaro were well-known faces Nicola Millbank, a Top 100 food influencer with her debut cook book out in 2017 and esteemed restaurateur and MasterChef 2010 winner, Dhruv Baker.
The competition tested the contestants’ ability to produce a technically perfect cup of hand-made coffee; their creativity by inventing their own signature drink; flair and passion for coffee and understanding of the industry.
The showstopper of the competition was Giorgio’s signature drink, the Caffe XXVI. In this round, the contestants pour their own personality into their coffee and Giorgio displayed his talent, imagination and skill in his creation.
The drink was inspired by his long-time family love of espresso and drew on his passion for simple, quality coffee. Giorgio also impressed the judges by crafting 11 perfect espressos in an exhilarating one-minute espresso race against fellow competitors.
Barista, Giorgio said of his win: “It was such an honour to participate in the Barista of the Year event.
I have a huge passion for coffee and that was at the heart of my efforts at the competition. I adopted a back to basics approach to my signature drink and manged to keep my cool and serve top quality espressos in the espresso race.
I think that’s how I was able to win over the judges.”
Head judge and Costa’s Master of Coffee Gennaro Pelliccia said: “The calibre of this year’s finalists was hugely impressive. Our baristas from around the world are going from strength to strength, learning more each year and taking inspiration from current coffee and flavour trends. It was a very close competition.
The winning competitor, Giorgio Ventisei, was strong on every challenge – showing technical knowledge, creativity and a passion for great coffee in equal measures.
He demonstrated everything we look for in our baristas: true pride, passion and personality.”
In addition to taking home the coveted trophy, Giorgio was also awarded a 10-day trip for two to a Costa coffee destination.
