Hello and welcome to another BMag Back Atcha, our weekly round up of all the action here on the BMag blog. Did you miss anything this week? Never fear! All the links are right here!
And boy, did we have a lot of great content and stories. If you missed any, you’ll definitely want to check them out. So let’s get started!
First we had an announcement of a cool barista jam. This one, hosted by Blue Star Coffee Roasters in Twisp, Wash., is in Washington State, but outside the normal coffee-centric Puget Sound region – home to Seattle, Tacoma and Olympia. Instead, this one’s on the east side and is going to be awesome!
Get Ready, Washington: It’s the 509 Barista Jam!
Then we had another story from Nicaragua by writer Nora Burkey looking at her experience with coffee co-ops in that country, their benefits and their drawbacks. It’s a really insightful and informative article.
The Cooperative Problem and Promise
Writer Jeremy Martin took a different tack looking at coffee and community, specifically he writes about Arbor Lodge in Portland, Ore., and its owners’ innovate way of working with its neighbors through their nonprofit Vocoform. It’s a really cool and inspiring story (presented in two parts) and you can read part one right here:
A Portland Cafe Builds Its Local Community
That brought us to Wednesday and of course that meant another round of Humpday Giveaway, our weekly contest for fun and prizes. This week’s prize was a copy of the new book CaffeinatedPDX, the story of how Portland became a coffee mecca.
Let’s Play Barista Magazine’s Humpday Giveaway! #62 (May 14, 2014 Edition)
And the winner announcement:
Barista Magazine’s Humpday Giveaway Winner! #62 (May 14, 2014 Edition)
We had another installment of our popular “10 Minutes With” feature. This time we talked with Justin DeWaard from Rowster Coffee where he’s general manager and director of coffee in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
10 Minutes With Justin DeWaard
Part two of Jeremy Martin’s story about the way Arbor Lodge is supporting its local community is here:
One Cafe Can Change the World
Dylan Jung of Aesthetic Coffee is putting together a barista jam in Asheville, North Carolina, withLindsay Lee of Counter Culture on May 31. You can find out all about it right here:
Southeast Barista Jam on May 31 in Asheville, NC!
BMag editor, Sarah Allen, writes: “Many of us in the international specialty coffee community are gathered here in Melbourne, Australia, for the Melbourne International Coffee Expo (MICE), and when we’re not at the show, we are trying to visit as many of the city’s famous coffeehouses as we can pack in. When Shanny Sena, a barista at Melbourne’s Axil Coffee Roasters, offered to write about the correct way to order in this sophisticated coffee city, I was delighted! But even if you’re not here in Melbourne this weekend, hopefully this guide will either be helpful to you on a future visit or simply insight about what makes for a truly great stop at a cafe in Melbourne.”
Shanny’s Guide to Ordering Coffee in Melbourne
Speaking of Melbourne (and MICE), we had a huge photo set from all of the action right here:
Heaps of Fun at the Melbourne International Coffee Expo
And three world championships were held at MICE, the Cup Tasters, Latte Art and Coffee in Good Spirits! We have the winners here:
Winners! World Latte Art, Cup Tasters, Coffee In Good Spirits
It was another busy week for us, and we hope you enjoyed reading what we wrote! Check back all this week for more great stories, contests, and news!
