Last August 22, 2014, I was invited with blogger friends at The Terrace in Resorts World Manila, Pasay City by Allegro Beverage Corporation, the country’s leading provider of complete beverage solutions and exclusive distributor of the finest espresso equipment, brewers, coffee beans, gourmet syrups and sauces, and teas.

It was a very interesting event for two reasons:

• Briefing about the Philippine National Barista Championship
• Demonstration of how to professionally make an espresso and a cappuccino

National Barista Championship

 Championship Schedule

According to the President and General Manager  of Allegro Beverage Corporation, Mr. Leo de Leon, the Philippine National Barista Championship will be held from October 15 to 17, 2014.  The competition is in partnership with the Association of Filipino Baristas Inc. (AFBI),  will feature and highlight the skills of our country’s best Baristas.

On October 15 to 16, the preliminary rounds for the 2nd PNBC will be held at the Treston International College in Fort Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. The finals will be on October 17 at Resorts World Manila in Newport Boulevard, Pasay City.

Allegro Beverage Corporation and Resorts World are 2 of the major sponsors of the competition.

Reigning Champion

During the table talks, we also met Kevin Israel Fortu, the reigning Philippine National Barista Champion, who competed against 54 of the world’s finest Baristas in the 2014 World Barista Championship which was held last June 9 to 12 in Rimini, Italy.  “It was such a huge responsibility for me to portray the Philippines in Barista culture and to put up a good performance for the 2014 World Barista Championship. It was a long journey and preparation on my part, and I hope that I made our country proud by giving a creditable performance in the event,” noted Kevin.

“Kevin’s participation in WBC gave an excellent exposure for our coffee industry, especially since it is the first time for the Philippines to join the world’s most prestigious coffee competition. This was a remarkable event for Filipino Baristas and our industry in PHILIPPINE NATIONAL BARISTA CHAMPIONSHIP in general, which had certainly inspired us to help organize and support the Philippine National Barista Championship,” said Leo de Leon.

For more information, visit the official competition website www.philippinenationalbaristachampionship.com.

Coffee Making Demo

The highlight of the gathering for me was the coffee making demo by Kevin with the very informative commentary from Mr. Leo. Here are the videos of the coffee making and the coffee art.

Espresso

Cappuccino

Coffee Art

It was a great learning experience for me and my blogger friends who attended the event. Thank you Allegro Beverage Corporation for this gift pack.