Images by World Coffee Championships
Georgius Audrey Teja, also known as Odi, has been crowned the 2025 World Coffee in Good Spirits Champion. They say dynamite comes in small packages!
He has been working in coffee for 7 years and started his career as a barista in a chain coffee shop in 2017. Currently, he works as a Research and Development Specialist for a coffee consultancy company called So So Good and an experience centre called Omakafé in Indonesia. And he is bringing the experience to South Africa alongside World Barista Champion, Mikael Jasin.
We are absolutely thrilled to confirm that Odi will be joining us in South Africa alongside the World Barista Champion, Mikael Jasin. This is a dynamite duo!!!
Not only that the amazing beverages they will be preparing will be accompanied by incredible pairings from Chef Johannes Richter, SA Chef of the Year, of The Living Room. A truly once in a lifetime experience.
We had the opportunity to chat to him a bit!
How did you start in coffee?
It was my uncle, the first person that introduced me to specialty coffee back in 2016, when moved from small city to my uncle's house in Tangerang, a satellite city next to Jakarta. Back in the day, he introduced me to filter coffee, taught me a few things about how a coffee could taste very complex and fruity to this young kid that has no idea what filter coffee is. Then in 2017, I decided to work as a barista at the one of the biggest coffee chain in the world, simply just to get the day going and to save up for college, and the rest is history.
What is it like being part of the So So Good Team?
I’m so grateful to be a part of SSG team, since Mikael took care of us and provide us with the tools we need to grow as a person and as an employee.
Tell us about one of your most memorable/favourite coffees?
One of my most memorable coffee is the very first filter coffee I had, it was a natural processed coffee from Puntang Mountain in West Java. I still remember it has a prominent mango notes, the very first time coffee caught my attention and made me wanting to learn more about it.
How did the moment on stage feel when they called your name as World Coffee in Good Spirits Champion?
To be honest, none of us expected that we will be coming home as a world champion, since we're all know that it is hard to become a world champion, especially this is my first world coffee competition and second WCIGS for us as a team.
I felt surreal, confused, proud, overwhelmingly happy, hyped; all at the same time. The thing that I have been dreaming of finally come true and all the hard work that we put as a team finally paid off in full. Becoming a champion is not an easy task for sure, however I am grateful to bear that title.
Just how much hard work went into winning this competition?
I don’t even know how to describe it in words, but it felt like I spent my entire extra hours after work to train, especially a few months before competition. Because for us, competition is like a bonus, meaning you still need to deliver same amount of work and necessary travels while manage to train aside our main job.
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