Caffè Ritazza seeks the world coffee crème de la crème.
Caffè Ritazza, the international café chain, has announced the launch of its first ever World Barista Championships, which will search the globe for its top performing barista. The championships aim to celebrate and reward the skills of the Caffè Ritazza baristas by putting them through their paces with the final being held in June in Rome, Italy.
More than 80 people from eight different countries have registered for the competition. Each country will be hosting its own local competition with the winner of each going through to the grand final. Contestants are required to make espressos and cappuccinos as well as a speciality drink of their own that demonstrates their understanding of blends and creativity in developing new drinks.
Judged by a selection of Caffè Ritazza’s experienced head baristas who have all been expertly trained in Milan, the contestants will need to exhibit excellent technical skills showing correct use of equipment as well as good presentation of the drink ensuring colour, temperature and taste is perfect.
Stuart Coombes, Brand Development Manager, who created and is organising the Caffè Ritazza World Barista Championship, said: “At Caffè Ritazza we pride ourselves on offering a high standard of coffee and an excellent service, skills which we aim to demonstrate through this initiative.”
Caffè Ritazza baristas are trained to the highest standard and are encouraged to continue to develop their coffee making skills throughout their career. Stuart continued: “The idea of the competition is to reward our expert baristas for their continued high standard of work and, in addition, we hope this will inspire others to follow in their colleagues’ footsteps and strive for coffee perfection.”