Hooray, the Big Eastern is under way! There’s a hater out there who wants to make sure you know we’re not there in person, but Iwant you to know we love you guys and our hearts are right there with you! We would be there if we could, but with subscribers around the world, we have to cover more than just the U.S.! So Ken is in Italy at the Italian Coffee Championships, while I am working like crazy here in Barista Mag’s offices putting the finishing touches on the February+March issue ”we think it’s our best one yet! And we go to press on Tuesday, so I’m essentially chained to my desk.
Lucky for us, we have the amazing, talented, and ever-so handsome Lem Butler as our eyes and ears at the Big Eastern, and we want to share some of the photos he’s been sending me all day. Here they are! Lem, you’re the best!
Also, all of you out there around the weld who can’t be in Durham watching this amazing series of competitions go down, you can watch everything LIVE online by clicking HERE!
First things first: how about a big hand for these awesome sponsors?A view from where Lem sits: last year the SE Champ and this year, Emcee!Don’t cross this man: Scott Conary is a World judge, folks! He knows his stuff!Andrew Cash on stage.Packed house on Day 1! That’s awesome!Dawn Shanks in action.Fan club!Big ups to Counter Culture and Dallis Bros for doing such a tremendous job securing and organizing this stunning competition space.Judges at attention.Bright, airy, beautiful competition space.So many volunteers helping out. This wouldn’t be possible without them!
Sarah Allen (she/her) is co-founder and editor of Barista Magazine, the international trade magazine for coffee professionals. A passionate advocate for baristas, quality, and the coffee community, Sarah has traveled widely to research stories, interact with readers, and present on a variety of topics affecting specialty coffee. She also loves animals, swimming, ice cream, and living in Portland, Oregon.
