"Welcome to Five Senses Coffee"

Any coffee geek worth his beans knows all about Ben Bicknell. To say that Ben is one of Australia’s foremost figures in the specialty coffee world is no exaggeration. Ben takes his coffee very seriously. Start any conversation with Ben and it’s sure to head in a coffee-related direction. This is great news for all of us who are fellow coffee connoisseurs!

It came as no surprise, then, when Ben was accredited a World Barista Championship (WBC) judge recently. Ben is one of only four Australians certified for 2009 WBC judging.

The road to accreditation is no walk in the park; more like a winding, cross-country route – uphill. Before you can even try out to become WBC accredited, you need to have two years experience judging WBC sanctioned competitions under your belt. There are numerous other requirements, including a commitment to coffee excellence and promotion of the barista craft, and adherence to the WBC Code of Conduct. Yes, there really is a Code of Conduct for WBC Judges and take it from us, it’s long and detailed!

Fortunately, Ben’s commitment to specialty coffee is second to none, so there was nothing to stop him heading to Melbourne to attend a gruelling two-day workshop. Ben had to pass a swag of tests, including an intensive written exam and lots of hands-on practical tests. From WBC rules and regulations to coffee general knowledge, Ben was put through the proverbial wringer.

In true style, Ben aced all of the tests to become the first Western Australian to be accredited as a WBC judge. Ben hopes to put his judging skills to the test at a World Barista Championship in the near future. In the meantime, we all hope he won’t start putting his judging skills to the test here at the roastery – holding up a ‘3’ as someone passes his office really won’t go down very well!

For more information on the Australian Barista Championship visit the AustralAsian Specialty Coffee Association website or email vicepresident@aasca.com.

The World Barista Championship will be held in Atlanta, Georgia on 16 – 19 April 2009.