As a new era has approached in coffee masters, we have teamed up with the roasting party who will be curating their epic party of nine coffees for the competition. We caught up with co-owner Kirby Sinclair about their ethos and what they’re looking forward to at the festival this year.
Coffee Masters is back again for 2019. Our flagship event, this heart-pumping competition puts 20 baristas through the paces as they duke it out for the title — and a £5000 cash prize to sweeten the deal.
This year, Roasting Party has come on board as the official Coffee Masters sponsor. So we took the excuse to visit TRP’s beautiful Chelsea coffee shop – and chat with co-founder Kirby on all things coffee and London Coffee Festival.
Can you tell us about Roasting Party – what you do and your ethos?
We are a specialty coffee roaster that focus on roasting high quality espresso blends for short milk based drinks. This goes hand in hand with supplying seasonal premium specialty single origin filter coffee. Our ethos is that we don’t take ourselves seriously. However, we are serious about coffee. Trust, loyalty, community and service. Customer experience is at the forefront of everything we do from, B2B to retail.
Do you think there’s too much of a focus on single origin beans in the coffee industry?
Yes. Single origin coffee has its place, but specialty blended coffee has been unfairly sidelined, and that’s what we’ve chosen to focus on.
Does single origin always mean good taste?
No. The more important arbiter of taste is the barista, who really decides the fate in the cup. You can have the best single origin beans in the world, but if the barista doesn’t make it right, it won’t taste good.
What does community mean to you?
Simple, it means family. Once you’re in, you’re in.
How has the coffee community supported you over the years?
Coffee community has lead us to set up roasteries around the world, from Sydney to Winchester and now New York. It’s created long lasting relationships and an ever-growing family.
Why did you decide to get involved with Coffee Masters?
We feel that Coffee Masters is an excellent platform to showcase and expose our style to the wider coffee community alongside the specialty coffee industry.
What are you looking forward to most at the festival?
Creating new relationships, understanding how our style is perceived within the specialty industry, having fun and creating memories.
See more of The Roasting Party and their curated Party of Nine on the Coffee Masters stage during the London Coffee Festival.
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