Italian coffee company illycaffè has unveiled the jury that will select the winner of the Best of the Best award at the Ernesto Illy International Coffee Award 2024.
Producers from nine countries – Brazil, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Nicaragua, and Rwanda – have earned spots in the final, with three producers representing each country.
The international jury will gather in New York, United States, on 12 November to taste and evaluate the coffees, which were selected by illycaffè’s quality laboratories based on rigorous quality and sustainability criteria throughout the 2023/2024 harvest.
The Ernesto Illy International Coffee Award 2024 jury includes Massimo Bottura, Chef Patron of Osteria Francescana and Casa Maria Luigia and Founder of Food for Soul, a non-profit organisation combatting food waste and social isolation.
Other jurors include Viki Geunes, Chef and Owner of restaurant Zilte in Antwerp, holder of three Michelin stars; Felipe Rodrigues, Head Chef of the Rosewood Complex in São Paulo and one of South America’s leading chefs.
Meanwhile, the three professional tasters include Vanúsia Nogueira, Executive Director of the International Coffee Organization (ICO); Felipe Isaza, Arabica Q Grader and member of the Board of Directors of the Coffee Quality Institute; Dessalegn Oljirra Gemeda, Ethiopian coffee consultant and Q Grader, with a background working for the Ethiopian Coffee & Tea Authority, Ethiopian Coffee Exchange, and Oxfam.
Additionally, the jury will consist of three expert journalists: Vanessa Zocchetti, Editor-in-Chief of the lifestyle section of Madame Figaro, who writes on gastronomy and design; Sebastian Späth, Editor-in-Chief of Germany’s leading food and lifestyle magazine Falstaff; Josh Condon, Editor-in-Chief of Robb Report, a leading luxury magazine.
This multidisciplinary jury is believed to combine culinary, technical, and journalistic expertise to assess the complex nuances of the world’s finest coffees and choose the “Best of the Best”.
Additionally, consumers will have the chance to participate by tasting the nine finalist coffees and voting for their favourite in a series of blind tastings held at illy flagship stores worldwide. The coffee with the most votes will receive the Coffee Lovers’ Choice award.
