World Coffee Events (WCE) has partnered with TED, the nonprofit organisation dedicated to Ideas Worth Spreading, to design and execute a coffee and tea program for TED2014 in Vancouver and TEDActive in Whistler. The conferences are taking place simultaneously from 17 – 21 March in Canada. WCE is working closely with its parent organisation, the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) and the Barista Guild of America (BGA) to organise and staff this year's event. “These events are a community building exercise for the baristas. It's a great chance to swap knowledge, work on the way we communicate quality coffee to interested consumers, and actively contribute to the dynamic, engaged audience at TED,” says BGA executive council member and Director of Coffee for Cherry Street Coffee House, Laila Ghambari.
TED2014 and TEDActive are taking place in Canada for the first time, and for that reason, the coffee program will focus on Canadian specialty coffee roasters, including Matchstick Coffee, Elysian Coffee, Phil & Sebastian, and Salt Spring Coffee. The coffee program is comprised of seven full service bars (five in Vancouver and two in Whistler). These will feature espresso, manual brew methods and loose-leaf tea service by Tealet, The Tea Smith and Harney & Sons Tea.
WCE's roster of more than 40 volunteer baristas will keep each of the bars running for over 10 hours each day. This list includes the 2013 Canadian Barista Champion, Jeremy Ho, from Phil & Sebastian. Each bar will have special programming and drinks available, including latte art demonstrations, coffee tasting, and training on home brewing methods.
Each of the coffee bars is custom built and outfitted with La Marzocco machines, grinders by Baratza, Mazzer and La Marzocco. Variable tea kettles will be used for tea service from Breville Canada, and the manual brew methods will include V60/pour-over by Hario, aeropress by Aerobie, French press by Bodum, and Chemex by Chemex.
Daily event coverage, including photos, videos and editorial will be found at WCE's blog, http://tedcoffee2014.wordpress.com. This includes a Vancouver coffee map provided by WCE’s Official Decaf Partner, SWISS WATER Process. You can also join in the conversation on Twitter @WCoffeeEvents using hashtag #TEDCoffee. Image courtesy of urban_data.