US coffee champions crowned at SCAA Expo in Boston

The USA's finest coffee professionals have been chosen at the Specialty Coffee Association of America's (SCAA) Annual Expo in Boston. Peter Licata of Parisi Artisan Coffee in Kansas City won the US Barista Championship, earning the right to represent his country at the world championships being held at the Melbourne International Coffee Expo in May. Erin McCarthy of Counter Culture Coffee in New York City will be joining Licata in Melbourne, earning her passage by winning the US Brewers Cup. Erin Wang from Molinos de Honduras proved that she had the most finely tuned palate, winning the Cup Tasters Championship by tasting her way through 24 cups of coffee, identifying which were the same and which were the odd ones out. She will travel to France to represent her country in the world finals in June. And the USA's top roaster is Caitlin McCarthy-Garcia of Equator Coffee, whose Columbia Cerro Azul Geisha AAA was judged as the finest roast on offer in the Roasters' Choice Competition. In the product categories, Breville took out the Coffee or Tea Preparation & Serving Equipment (Consumer) Award for their Barista Espress espresso machine with integrated conical burr grinder.