TOP LOCAL BARISTAS TO COMPETE AT THE SACRAMENTO PUBLIC LATTE ART TOURNAMENT

I’m not sure if you realize this, but coffee is sort of a big deal in Sacramento; people take their brew seriously around here. And why shouldn’t we? Sacramento has amazing roasters sourcing their coffee beans from all over the globe, and we’ve got an abundance of chill ass coffee shops and madly talented, passionate baristas pouring at them. Some would even argue that coffee has as much of a “local scene” or “community” as does food, drink, music and art. Speaking of coffee as art, four of Sacramento’s best roasters—Chocolate Fish, Insight, Temple and Old Soul—are joining together to host the first-ever Sacramento Public Latte Art Tournament! Every second Thursday starting in March and carrying on through June 2014, top local baristas will compete pouring latte art, those amazing little designs sitting atop your drink that make you think, “how the hell did they do that?” Contestants’ pours will be carefully judged in four categories: contrast, texture and foam quality, symmetry of pattern and achieved difficulty (see what we mean, they take this shit seriously). The tourneys will kick off at 7 p.m. and will be held at Chocolate Fish on March 13 (UPDATE: Chris Ortega from Temple won the first tourney), Insight on April 10, Temple on May 8 and the finale will be at Old Soul Co. in the Alley on June 12. “These events are like a big barista party with an opportunity for the public to cheer on their favorite coffee house and enjoy the celebration of specialty coffee,” says the tournament’s press release. Organizers hope this will be the first of many coffee events in Sacramento. For more information, search for “SPLAT Sacramento Public Latte Art Tournament” on Facebook (or just Google it).