The 2022 SCA Expo in Boston crowned winners in the U.S. Latte Art, Coffee In Good Spirits, Cup Tasters, Brewers Cup, Roasting, and Barista Championships.
BY KATRINA YENTCH
BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE
Photos courtesy of Nathan Lowe
This year’s U.S. CoffeeChamps event looked a little different compared to previous editions, but was met with just as much enthusiasm by the attendees of the 2022 SCA Expo in Boston this past weekend, April 8–10.
In previous years, the U.S. CoffeeChamps has hosted multiple rounds of 120+ competitors before narrowing it down to the finalists. This year, a lottery system was responsible for choosing as many as 22 competitors in some of the competitions, who faced off over the course of three rounds during the weekend.
Additionally, it was a significant moment for two competitions: the U.S. Coffee In Good Spirits Championship made only its second return to the stage after hosting its debut in 2019 (won by former Barista Magazine cover star Matt Foster). The U.S. Latte Art Championship also made a long-awaited return this year, which followed work to bring it back in early 2020.
With an action-filled weekend full of competitions happening alongside endless workshops and booths, here were the winners and finalists of every category for this year’s U.S. CoffeeChamps:
Barista
- Morgan Eckroth (she/they) Keeper Coffee – Portland, Ore.
- Brooke Wolfe (she/her) | Elixr Coffee Roasters – Nashville, Tenn.
- Elisabeth Johnson (she/her) Dayglow – Los Angeles, Calif.
- Meg Skop (she/her) Independent – San Francisco, Calif.
- Bryan Overstreet (he/him) The Coffee Movement – San Francisco, Calif.
- David Buehrer (he/him) Greenway Coffee Company – Houston, Texas
Brewers Cup
- Elika Liftee (he/him) Onyx Coffee Lab – Rogers, Ark.
- Marvin Duncan (he/him) Perc Coffee Roasters – Savannah, Ga.
- Tommy Kim (he/him) Balrog Coffee Inc. – Los Angeles, Calif.
- Sam Spillman (she/her) Caffe Vita – Seattle, Wash.
- Matt Brosinski (he/him) Blanchards Coffee – Richmond, Va.
- Elise Tanyag (she/her) Blanchards Coffee – Richmond, Va.
Cup Tasters
- Julien Langevin (he/him) Coffee By Design – Portland, Maine
- Lindsay (Ran) Rho (she/her) Idea Coffee – New York, N.Y.
- Thomas J. Chandler (etc) Black Oak Coffee Roasters – Ukiah, Calif.
- Charles Gonzalez (he/him) Ground Control – San Antonio, Texas
Coffee In Good Spirits
- Alexandra Hager (she/her) CJ Foodville USA – Los Angeles, Calif.
- Dakota Graff (he/him) Onyx Coffee – Bentonville, Ark.
- MiMo (they/them) Juno Coffee, Cora Coffee – Sacramento, Calif.
- Linnea True (she/her) Boxcar Coffee Roasters – Denver, Colo.
- Christina Lee (she/her) Round K Coffee Roasters – New York, N.Y.
- Mo Koolphanich (she/her) Slipstream – Washington, D.C.
Latte Art
- Piyapat (Flook) Lapteerawut (he/him) Coffee Project New York – New York, N.Y.
- Tracy Jiang (she/her) Intelligentsia – Boston, Mass.
- Ed Griffin (they/them) Messenger Coffee – Kansas City, Mo.
- Ujae Lee (he/him) PlantShed – New York, N.Y.
- Proph (he/him) Exemplar – Brooklyn, N.Y.
- Donald Perdomo (he/him) The Good Witch Coffee Bar – Hastings on the Hudson, N.Y.
Roaster
- Nick Berardi (he/him) Mostra Coffee – San Diego, Calif.
- Jen Apodaca (they/she) Mother Tongue Coffee – Oakland, Calif.
- Rudy Altamirano (he/him) Ilustre – San Diego, Calif.
- Evan Inatome (he) Elixir Coffee – Philadelphia, Pa.
- Andrew Coe (he/him) Elevator Coffee – Portland, Ore.
- Wenbo Yang (he) Blue Hill Coffee – Seattle, Wash.
The winners of this weekend’s U.S. Coffee In Good Spirits, Cup Tasters, and Roaster Championships will compete in their respective global competitions at the 2022 World of Coffee event, taking place June 23-25 in Milan, Italy. The U.S. Barista and Brewers Cup champions will take part in their world competitions at the Melbourne International Coffee Expo, taking place September 27-30 in Melbourne, Australia. Because this was the first year for the returned U.S. Latte Art Championship, the winner will not compete at the global event.
