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PULL JOURNAL OF JAMS, COMPETITIONS AND BARISTA EVENTS DISCOVER: LEVER WITH ASTORIA Astoria debuted a series of educational sessions about the lever machine in February in conjunction with the Southeast Regional Barista Competition in Atlanta, Ga., by inviting barista competitors and coffee professionals to a party/exhibition at Batdorf & Bronson's Dancing Goats coffee bar featuring the lever machines' unique pressure profile, plus a hands-on educational experience. Summed up best by Sean Marshall of Fusion Beans Coffee Roasting: "Finally baristas will have access to a lost art in making espresso. The majority of baristas and café owners know of lever machines, yet " an extraordinarily small percentage have ever actually used one. The goal of discover: lever is to give them an opportunity to get hands-on with the Astoria Gloria lever machine. "I think that this is a unique opportunity for coffee shops to offer a new and exciting option on their menu," says David Buehrer of Greenway Coffee Company. A driving factor behind the proliferation of lever machines in today's marketplace is pressure profiling. A studied barista can manipulate the pressure of his or her lever machine with the right practice and education, making pressure profiling an affordable luxury for coffee shops nationwide. The second discover: lever event was held in conjunction with Coffee Fest New York in early March. Astoria teamed with Irving Farm Coffee Roasters and held a party and exhibition workshop at Irving Farm's training facility. Buehrer, Marshall and also Nicholas Lundgaard all made the trip from Houston to get people acquainted with the Lever machine. When asked why do this event, David said, "We just wanted to give people an opportunity to try it. I think a lot of people are curious about lever machines, and pressure profiling. " Those who participated in pulling shots on the lever machine received a healthy dose of espresso machine engineering from Nicholas, who is an engineer by day and coffee enthusiast all the time. He explained how the lever machine has different pre-infusion, temperature, and pressure profiles than a pump operated machine. While the lever was getting pulled, another 60 or so people were just hanging out drinking some great beer. And 20 barista magazine Michael Harwood (far left) of Carrboro Coffee joins the conversation about Astoria's lever machines at the discover: lever event held in Atlanta, Ga., in conjunction with the Southeast Regional Barista Competition. winner, peers would just start pointing. In the end, it was the perfect casual gathering of coffee professionals wanting to have fun and learn at the same time. The next discover: lever event will take place in conjunction with Coffee Fest Chicago in June. Follow the discover: lever events on the Astoria Facebook page to get further details about time and location. —Dan Streetman + Sarah Allen UK BARISTA CHALLENGE! The UK's leading event for the café bar market has announced the launch of The Caffè Culture Barista Challenge, a new competition to find the UK's Barista of the Year. The Barista Challenge aims to find the UK's best working barista and uncover the next big trend in coffee-based drinks. The final of the competition will be held at this year's Caffè Culture Show on May 16 and 17 in London. Along with being awarded the prestigious title of Caffè Culture Barista of the Year, the winner will also receive a trophy, a £1,000 cash prize, and a range of equipment and products for the business in which they work. In addition, they will be promoted within an extensive PR campaign. "Whilst we want baristas operating a competition that they work," to recognize within the UK, we the also fantastic want skills to of deliver relates back to the commercial world in which says Elliot Gard, Caffè Culture Show's Event Director. The competition will take place in three phases, with baristas presenting their signature drink, a written submission and fulfilling a number of skills-based tests. The judges will be looking for a barista who can demonstrate an exceptional talent for producing superb coffee, as well as the ability to translate those skills into devising drinks that will truly deliver for real customers. The baristas will need to demonstrate how their chosen signature drink has great marketability, is consistently quick and easy to deliver within a working café bar setting, while offering a healthy profit margin. For further details about the Caffè Culture Barista Challenge and to submit your entries visit www.caffeculture.com/barista-competition/ eventually the temptation was too great: you can't put espresso, milk and baristas in a room without a throwdown commencing at some point. No brackets, pot or judges necessary. These were duels of pride and prowess, baristas were calling each other out, and when debate arose over the