Axl Chan from The Bunker Caf, Sydney has taken out the top stop at Breville’s Latte Art Smackdown competition held at The Rocks Aroma Festival over the weekend.
As well as the glory, Chan took home a $3000 in a cash pool prize.
This year, The Aroma Festival welcomed Moata Raya and Ansha Yassin, senior partners and brew experts at TechnoServe, a non-profit organisation that drives responsible employment in the African coffee industry. Moata and Ansha shared their experiences of following bean to brew in Ethiopia via an interactive workshop.
The Australian Specialty Coffee Association (ASCA) also brought together coffee celebrities, Sasa Sestic, the World Barista Champion, and Habib Maarbani, the NSW Barista Champion. Sestic demonstrated his signature winning cup, while Maarbani showcased his latte art talent.
Over 100,000 festival goers attended the event which was filled with coffee, chocolate, and handcrafted pastries from the city’s leading boutique roasters, cafes and food crafters.
CEO of Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority, Catherine Gallagher, praised the Festival as a unique celebration of Sydney’s caf culture: “Aroma brings Sydney’s best roasters to The Rocks and with them over 50 specialty coffee and food stalls. It’s a smorgasbord of culinary delights and a great chance to enjoy one of the city’s most iconic locations.”