New WABA site launched
Crammed with new content and freshly launched, we’re pleased to announce that the WA Barista Academy’s (WABA) website is here for your browsing pleasure.
News - 'Coffee News'
NEWS FLASH: Head Trainer wins 2008 WA Barista Championships
Jennifer Murray, manager of the Western Australian Barista Academy, has taken out the 2008 Western Australian Barista Championship!
Now boarding
Wow, that came quickly, I’m about to hop on a plane to Melbourne tomorrow to compete in the National Barista Competition this weekend. It’s really exciting to represent WA and it seems like only a short time ago I was in Adelaide competing in the 2007 open heats.
Cawfee talk with Jen
After winning the 2008 Western Australian Barista Competition Jen began the hours of preparation for the national final. During this time she jotted down some thoughts of her coffee journey for Five Senses who put together a story on their site.
Australian Barista Competition 2008
I’m back, I’m inspired and I’m completely stoked to have taken out third place in the 2008 National Barista Competition.
Montréal, Québec ... Barista at Large
I’ve finally made it … apologies for the late post, however, to say that this is the first chance I’ve had in between all the wild welcoming parties, is only a minor understatement.
Café Santé Veritas - Synesso in Montreal
In a city saturated with stale drip coffee and many mediocre attempts at espresso, I’m very grateful to have come across Sam (owner/operator/barista) of Café Veritas in the Old Port.
Monkey Coffee
Yay, Sam from Cafe Veritas sent me an email asking if I wanted to come and taste some coffee eaten, digested and pooped out of some Indian monkeys!! Heck yeah I did …
Café Myriad Montreal - Coming Soon
Anthony Benda and Scott Rao are opening what without a doubt will become a go to coffee destination in the heart of Montreal.
Manic Espresso - Ethiopian Yergacheffe Beloya Estate
It’s not every day I get served a cup of coffee that is so incredibly delicious, I can’t help but involuntarily announce it’s greatness between each sip. T’was yet again another clover coffee that tweaked my senses, an Ethiopian Yergacheffe microlot to be exact, sourced and roasted by 49th parrallel. It promised so much on that little white board, and amazingly delivered it with a clarity I’ve come to expect from a well made clover.
Seattle Coffee Fest 2008
When I realised that I would be in the right hemisphere during this years Seattle Coffee Fest, I made an extra effort to make sure I could get there. All up, I got to spend a week in what felt like coffee Hollywood … happily stumbling across one famous café / roaster after another.
NEWS FLASH: Head Trainer wins WA Barista Championships ... again!
Mark Chandler, manager of the Western Australian Barista Academy, today took out the 2009 Western Australian Barista Championships held at the Mount Hawthorn Community Hall.
It is the second year in a row a WABA trainer has won the event with Jennifer Murray winning the 2008 event and going on to finish third in the Australian Competition earlier this year.
Introducing Jeremy Hulsdunk
We welcome Jeremy Hulsdunk as the new WA Barista Academy Manager and Head Trainer.
Well it seems like a pre-requisite that each trainer at the Barista Academy needs to compete and win the WA Barista Competition with Jen winning in 2008 and Mark recently winning 2009. In regards to Jeremy though, we thought we’d take the pressure off, as he already has that trophy in his pool room as the winner in the inaugural year 2006.
Eva Solo - A Simple Approach
Simply put, my first experience with the Eva Solo was memorable. I knew it must be mine for two reasons, simple and effective, which equates to less morning thinking more morning drinking.
Coffee Lab, Waterbury Vermont
Last month, I jumped at the opportunity to spend a week at Coffee Lab International on a 5 day roasting course. It was great to finally get some experience on a variety of commercial and sample roasters as well as a chance to use all the equipment in the “Lab” which is not only for namesake.
Traveling & Events
Wow .. time has flown! In just over 3 months I’ll be on my way back home to Perth.
2010 Western Australian Barista Championship
How quickly a year rolls around. It seems as though one minute Mark was celebrating his title as WA Barista Champion, and all too quickly, he’s set to defend it! That’s right; it’s time for the coffee industry’s glamour event of the year, the 2010 Western Australian Barista Championship.
Champion head trainer
The WA Barista Championship has been and gone for another year. It was an awesome weekend, with a field of 16 competing for the main title, and plenty of representation for the Latte Art and Cup Tasting Championships. Mark Chandler, from Five Senses Coffee, was crowned WA Barista Championship, with the WA Barista Academy’s Jeremy Hulsdunk taking silver.
Gearing up for the Australian Barista Championship
If you’ve wandered past the WA Barista Academy in the late afternoon hours of late, you might have wondered at the noise drifting out the door. With the Australian Barista Championship little more than two months away, WABA head trainer Jeremy Hulsdunk, along with Mark Chandler and Jen Murray from Five Senses, are putting in long (and noisy!) hours of practice.
WABA now offers night classes
Due to popular demand the WA Barista Academy now offers night classes. In addition to WABA's very popular Saturday classes the night classes have already started to fill up as people are finding it easier to fit into their busy schedules. The night classes will be available from 3 May, with limited spaces available.
WABA Closed until 28 July
Please note that WABA will be closed from 23 to 27 July. We’ll be back on Wednesday, 28 July. If you would like to book a place in one of our classes, please contact Shannon at Five Senses Coffee on 08 9528 6200.
Barista training at home
Now you can learn all the tricks and techniques of making the perfect coffee at home! We have produced a comprehensive DVD that breaks down the myths surrounding coffee preparation. This easy to understand, step-by-step DVD will teach you industry best practice techniques.
2011 WA Barista Championships
It’s that time of year again! The birds are chirping, the flowers are blossoming, and the Western Australia Barista Championships are just around the corner.
Little Trees, Big Hopes
WABA now has a green thumb and we have started to grow two coffee trees. The trees are of the Dwarf Arabica variety and with a bit of luck, won’t die!
Jeremy wins the 2011 WA Barista Competition
It was a packed house this weekend for the 2011 Western Australia Barista Competition that took place at Perth Town Hall. More people than ever before showed up to support fellow friends and baristas, or just to see what all the excitement was about. Now that the dust has settled we are going to put all modesty aside to announce how incredibly proud we are of our showing at this year’s competition.
The gift that keeps on giving
As the holiday approaches and you’re looking for something even more extraordinary to give that special someone, a gift voucher for a training course is an excellent way to spread peace and love through the art of great coffee.
Christmas is Here
The festive season is here and even our Dwarf Arabica coffee trees (Fee and Juan Pablo) are getting into the holiday spirit. Check out Christmas tree pics on the Flickr site.
Australian Barista Academy Opens in Melbourne
The fit out of our new training centre has been anything and everything but kept quiet. With whispers, rumours and some sneaky leaked photos floating around, it’s time to introduce the Australian Barista Academy to the world…
Is the Next World Champion Among Us?
Many of the country’s most knowledgeable and experienced coffee professionals came together in the Gold Coast last month to compete in the 2011 Detpak Australian Specialty Coffee Championships.
Caleb Wins Vic Barista Comp
Caleb Podhazcky goes back to back winning the 2011 Victorian Barista Comp at the St Kilda Town Hall Auditorium. This years field was the largest in many years with 17 competitors battling it out, including a few seasoned competitors such as Will Priestly and Erin Sampson.
2010 SA Barista Comp Results
Baby faced, Jonny Pisanelli takes out the 2010 South Australian Barista Comp with David Moen and Mike Wells coming in second and third using Five Senses Coffee.
The Tim Wendelboe Event
Tim Wendelboe, for those of you who don’t know, is one of the most well known and respected names in the specialty coffee industry. One of the most consistent performers at the World Barista Championships coming second in 2001 and 2002 he finally took out the crown in 2004. Taking out the World Cup Tasting Championship in 2005 before starting his own café/wholesale roastery in 2007 aptly named Tim Wendelboe (TW).
Twitter account launched
A few days ago the Barista Academy took the next step in its fresh new face launching a twitter account. Although a little slow to jump on the social media bandwagon the Barista Academy tweets will endevour to keep everyone updated with everything new and exciting in not only the local barista community but also the specialty coffee industry throughout the world.
ABA at Kitchen Warehouse
This Saturday the 18th at 10am I will be heading to Kitchen Warehouse Cockburn to conduct a home coffee demonstration.
The demonstration will include coffee samples of two of our favourite coffee’s here at the Barista Academy – the Ethiopian Nekisse and the Rwandan COE lot #5.
Bali - a thing of wonder
My first trip to a coffee-producing country or “origin” (for anyone in the coffee industry) was a thing of wonder. Recently I was lucky enough to be chosen to go on the Five Senses annual pilgrimage to visit the farms we work with in the Kintimani region of Bali. Landing at Denpasar airport was a slightly daunting adventure. Once you step outside the safety of those airport doors, your senses immediately go into overdrive!
Last Day to Sign Up for Cafes!
Cafes, coffee roasters and restaurants across Australia will be counting their beans on Friday August 5th to raise money for local homelessness projects across Australia. CafeSmart, a StreetSmart project, will take place during National Homeless Persons’ Week, 1-7 August 2011, and will bring together café owners, staff and their customers, to create change in local communities.
Ron from Five Senses takes out second place
This year there was a host of fresh competitors and judges at the Victorian Barista Championships and some stella performances. From the Five Senses roasting team Ron Ngo delivered a brilliant performance to take 2nd place in the Barista category. In the cupping Ben Bicknell (also from Five Senses) took out 3rd and Ron took 4th place.
Will Glover crowned the 2011 Siphon Champion
Will Glover was crowned the 2011 Siphon Champion yesterday at Small Batch Roasters. Second place was last years winner: John Vroom and third was Aaron Wood.
“It was a great standard of competitors with everyone making the judges work hard to separate them” said Ross Quail.
World Barista Champion to visit Australia
Although the exact dates are not quite confirmed the Australian Barista Academy (ABA) is excited to announce that the World Barista Champion for 2011, Alejandro Mendez, is coming to Australia! Hosted by ABA and Five Senses Coffee this will be the second in a running series of ABA Masterclass events. Alejandro and his coach and boss, Federico Bolanos, will be visiting the East coast of Australia in mid-January.
The Eagle Has Landed
After (im)patiently refreshing the tracking page for the shipping container every 15 minutes while it was en route, the new Giesen 90kg roaster arrived just after 3.30pm yesterday at Five Senses Coffee in Cheltenham Victoria. There was lots of jumping around with excitement and many high fives were exchanged.
Rosslyn Gets a Makeover
The west side wall of the Australian Barista Academy in Victoria is now undergoing a full makeover, with artist Fintan Magee from Brisbane hard at work over the weekend. Cheers to our friends and clients Rtist Gallery for hooking this up.
The ABA Makeover is Complete
After only three days, Fintan Magee has finished his mural on the Australian Barista Academy wall in Victoria. Although a few rain delays prevented the portafilter idea from eventuating the new artwork has still given the west side wall a whole new look. Check out how the some of the balloons are actually part of a coffee branch!
Q Graders at ABA
The Q grading course came to a close today with 15 out of 21 people becoming Australia’s newest Q graders! Although there are a disappointed few, there is still an opportunity for these folks to retake their section/s at another grading. More importantly everyone agreed it was a great week of learning and every participant can now speak a common language among the specialty coffee world.