As a means of introducing the Honduran staff to the International Jurors, an impromptu barista jam was organized at IHCAFE with their staff, challenging any of the International Jurors who happened to be barista (baristi just sounds so affected, doesn’t it?) and/or barista trainers. Being the good sports that we are, we naively accepted the challenge and got several of our team to compete on our behalf. The Specialty Coffee Community, globally, is pretty small. In origin countries, that community is even smaller, so someone who knew someone who had a cousin who is on the Honduran National Barista Team got in touch with said cousin . . . Get where I am going? The cousin got the members of the Honduran National Coffee Team interested, and they all showed up at IHCAFE to compete. Initially we were thinking, Hey, let’s take it easy on them, since they may not have any experience, etc. etc. You can pretty much guess what happened.  

The Honduran National Team members are:

Eleazar Caceres, Liquidambar

Valeria Carranza, Cafe Tinto

Pedro Lezama, Independent

Damaris Carranxa, Cafe Passion

Santiago Vasquez, Cafetano

Having watched the Hondurans prepare their warm-up drinks [see accompanying image], I put money on Team Honduras and then drank one of those colorful drinks . . . and then gave away the other before the Internationals could see the quality the Hondurans could produce. Yours truly was happy to take in the slaughter from the sidelines. The announcement came at the finish. Then a resounding cheer filled the room. The Hondurans trampled the International Jurors.  Humble Pie is the name of our new signature drink. Who says life is fair?

-Jeff Chean