Looking for a New West coffee shop to suggest to some friends, Google spat out the Georgia Strait’s latest article on coffee:

A latte should taste deeply of coffee, with no hint of bitterness, yet strong enough for the aroma to drift from arm’s length to nose. The milk should taste sweet; the foam, solid and never more than half an inch deep. The espresso, as it is pouring through the machine, should squirt through in 20 to 30 seconds and have three clear features: at the bottom, the dark heart; in the middle, a deep brown body; and at the top, a thick layer of flavourful crema.

Then writer Pieta Woolley brings up the Canadian National Barista Championships at today’s last day of the Canadian Coffee & Tea Expo. Our representative is Caffè Artigiano and 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters’ Barrett Jones. Now one of the most popular spectator sports in foodservice, contestants must prepare twelve coffee beverages: four cups of espresso, four of cappuccino, four of a signature drink, for four judges in fifteen minutes.*

The judges’ score sheet breaks down with academic exactitude, what makes a good drink. For the espresso, the taste and tactile balance, the colour, consistency and persistence of the crema; for the cappuccino, the taste balance, the temperature, the consistency and persistence of the foam, the its visual correctness; for the signature drink, taste balance, temperature, presentation, visual appeal and creativity; and for all drinks, not an errant drop on the saucer.

Today is the final round, with winners announced at 4:15 pm.

*Yesterday was the first ever Great Canadian Tea Steep-Off, with categories in Best Chai Latte, Best Brewed Pot of Scented Green Tea and Best Tea Based Beverage. The winners are not yet on the website.