After a long day of getting acclimated to their new home at Øksnehallen, the venue for Wonderful Coffee and the World Barista Championship, the 52 national barista champions headed down the street for a Meet and Greet party hosted by Espresso Warehouse, Counter Culture Coffee and Intelligentsia Coffee to, well, meet and greet each other if they hadn’t already.
Considering the WBC kicks off in less than 16 hours as I write this, it was pretty amazing to see how relaxed and happy the champions were. They enjoyed some amazing food at the party venue, which was called Go Away (har har), sipped sodas and beers, shook hands with each other, received some damn cool t-shirts made just for them by Espresso Warehouse, and wound their way around the room getting their official 2008 WBC posters signed by their peers.
This intimate gathering was a great way to get the week going, as it promoted nothing but community and friendship.
Only a few short hours until we get under way with National Barista Champion number one, Argentina, tomorrow morning. It’s going to be GREAT.
Thanks again to our generous sponsors for making Barista Magazine’s 2008 WBC blog coverage possible!
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