Congratulations to Anthony Douglas representing Axil Roasters and Australia!
He is the new World Barista Champion! Tensions were high as the conclusion of the World Coffee Championships held at Melbourne International Coffee Expo came to a close.
In a Top 6 that was full of big names in coffee (yes, that's a thing!), Anthony was a bit of a dark horse, but his set based around the idea of trust and keeping the promises you make, centred around an anaerobic Colombian coffee produced by Néstor Lasso Zuñiga of Finca El Diviso in Pilalito, Huila, obviously resonated with the judges. Also the Australian Nationals is one of the most hotly contested Nationals around the world, so we should really have seen this coming!
There were lots of incredibly technical sections of his performance (especially creating his milk with a complicated set of steps!) that he made look very simple. His use of colour building blocks was also very engaging. You can watch the full set below.
Congratulations to Anthony and his team!
