International Conferences & Exhibitions LLC (IC&E), organisers of the UAE Barista Championship, have announced that the UAE's reigning Barista Champion, Vikram Kashyap, is all set to represent the country in the 2010 World Barista Championship (WBC), which will be held from June 23 to 25 in London. Kashyap has undergone extensive preparations with a special trainer after he ruled the UAE Barista Championship, which was organised as part of the Middle East Coffee & Tea Convention, the only dedicated trade event for the coffee and tea industry in the Arab World held in November 2009.
Kashyap will compete against 56 other national champions from all over the world who will vie for the 2010 World Barista Champion title. The World Barista Championship is expected to gather an on-site audience of over 5,000 coffee professionals along with a global online audience estimated to reach 30,000 people. The UAE will join Bulgaria and Romania as among the first-time participants in the global competition.
Anselm Godinho, Managing Director of IC&E said: "With thousands of coffee professionals attending the event and several thousands more following the competition online, I am sure that the WBC will provide an excellent exposure for the UAE's coffee industry, especially since this is the first time for the country to join the event. Moreover, the UAE's representative, Vikram Kashyap, has gone through extensive training and we are confident that he will be able to offer a creditable performance and give the rest of the competitors a good fight. This is truly a momentous event for the UAE's Barista practitioners and the country's coffee industry in general, which has certainly inspired us to continue to organise and support the UAE Barista Championship in the future."
Cynthia Chang, Executive Director of the World Barista Championship commented: "WBC continues to grow each year, impacting the specialty coffee community around the world. The addition of the United Arab Emirates in this year's competition as the first country from the GCC signifies the progressing interest and development of specialty coffee in that market."
Vikram Kashyap, reigning UAE Barista Champion, said: "I would present my special coffee blend during WBC 2010 and I would also like to show the attributes of developing UAE as a cosmopolitan country through my WBC presentation. Since this would be the first time for the UAE to participate in the WBC, it's a big responsibility for me to portray the UAE in Barista culture and to put up a good performance for the championship."
Goutham Srinath Kumbargeri, Kashyap's trainer, noted: "I take pride in working with Vikram and helping him prepare for the 2010 World Barista Championship, where he will be brewing the perfect cup consistently with zero tolerance – a combination of his blend, brewing technique, his understanding towards the blend, and building a signature drink according to the inherent characters present in the blend."
Goutham was the 2006 Indian Barista Champion and has been a consistent judge in WBC-sanctioned national competitions in India and the UAE. He has a very strong coffee education background with a post graduate diploma in Coffee Quality. In addition, Goutham has an excellent track of industry experience and has been involved in all aspects of the coffee industry – from seed to cup.
The World Barista Championship will be held at the Olympia Exhibition Centre in London. IC&E is WBC's licensed national body in the UAE. For further information about the UAE Barista Championship, interested parties may contact May Juan at [email protected].
The inaugural Middle East Coffee & Tea Convention in 2009 attracted more than 2,000 trade visitors and 50 exhibiting companies from over 10 countries. The 2010 edition of the convention will be held at the Al Bustan Rotana Hotel in Dubai from October 12 to 14.
