Martin Wölfl of Austria wins World Brewers Cup Championship

Austria’s Martin Wölfl has won the World Brewers Cup Championship, which took place from 12 to 14 April at the Specialty Coffee Expo in Chicago, United States.

As part of Martin’s routine, he explained how six innovations have inspired the coffee industry and himself as a barista to create new experiences for others.

“One of my favourite moments as a barista is creating anticipation for the cup and sharing my flavour profile with you,” Martin told the judges during his performance.

Wataru Iidaka of Japan was runner up, Ryan Wibawa of Indonesia came in third, Tom Hutchins of Australia placed fourth, Charity Cheung of France placed fifth, and Jackie Tran of Czech Republic placed sixth in the final round.

“I’m feeling really good. [I’m] in the finals, [I’m] here in Chicago, and it’s amazing. I’m just enjoying the time,” Martin told the crowd post-performance.

Martin used a geisha coffee with natural anerobic processing from Finca Maya in Panama. It has a medium-intensity and aroma of honeydew, rosehip, and cherry. The coffee was roasted using the Link coffee roaster by Sam Corra.

“[The farmers] picked the ripest cherries, and this led to the sweetness in the cup, which was paired with the floral characteristic the geisha has to offer,” Martin told the judges. “The flavours include honeydew, cherry, and pineapple.”

Martin used Apex Water, Sibarist fast paper filters, the Comb distribution tool, Melodrip with custom mount, and Orea Brewer V4 for his brewing method.

Martin divided his pour into three stages: 60 millilitres at 40 seconds, 50 millilitres at 1 minute 20 seconds, and 100 millilitres at 2 minutes.

“[This is] to get a good complex flavour, fruity notes, and a good balance,” Martin said.

To watch performances on-demand, click here.