2008 GLRBC

This year is my first time not going to be inspired and awed by watching my favorite baristi compete at the Great Lakes Regional Barista Competition (GLRBC) in Milwaukee, because I have something else planned for the weekend.

Steve-O!

The Coffee Hound is making the news!

Steve-O!

Steve Fritzen
Originally uploaded by Spinnaker007.

I had a quick chat with Steve from Coffee Hound a couple of days ago, also to congratulate his top finish at the 2007 Great Lakes Regional Barista Competition. Steve is helluva great guy and he always wears a smile. On the phone, he told me the point difference between 1st place and 3rd place finish is merely 23 points, and Steve’s 3rd place score almost matches the top score from last year’s United States Barista Championship (USBC). Matt, Amber, and Steve, this trio is going to be hard to beat at the 2007 USBC in Long Beach this May. I see one from Western Regional (Kyle G.) and 2 from Pacific North West join the hunt for the national title…

2007 Great Lakes Regional Barista Competition.

The final announcement of the 2007 GLRBC championship concludes the 3 day Coffee Fest in icy and snowy Chicago. It is great to see friends at the show, but at the same time feeling disappointed for missing the others.

This year’s barista competition is like Deja Vu all over again. Steve Fritzen is 3rd, Amber Sather is 2nd, and Matt Riddle is again the GLRBC champion, the same sequence from previous year. I like all three of them, but there could only be one winner, and it is hard to watch the disappointment from some contestants.

Final 6.

Final 6
Originally uploaded by Spinnaker007.

Intelly dominates the Great Lake Regional Barista Competition again. All four of its baristi who entered for the competition will compete for the top spot in the final tomorrow.

I spent all day on my feet, walking the crowded show floor, playing with La Marzocco GS3(I love to have one), drinking tasty espresso, and snapping some competition pictures in between. I didn’t eat anything except my breakfast and a couple of the protein bars… I am totally exhausted!

The 6 finalists are (L to R):
Kristin Marks, Metropolis Coffee
Amber Sather, Intelligentsia Coffee
Matt Riddle, Intelligentsia Coffee
Mike Phillips, Intelligentsia Coffee
Chris Kornman, Intelligentsia Coffee
Steve Fritzen, Coffee Hound

Road Trip!

CoffeeHound exterior
Originally uploaded by pavasm.

Yesterday, after I said I would two years ago, I finally went to see Steve Fritzen of Coffee Hound in a picturesque Midwest town, Bloomington, IL. Steve is a top ranked US barista, he finished 6th in the 2006 US Barista Championship. I got to know Steve from coffeegeek.com at the time I was learning how to pour latte art, and meeting him and his wife, April, for the first time when they came to Chicago as Steve served as one of the judges for Intelligentsia’s in-house barista competition in early 2004.

It was sunny with some scattered thin clouds, a great day for an enjoyable interstate driving, and just a little over 2 hours (about 130 miles), I arrived at the front door of Coffee Hound. The shop is a good size of 1500 sf space, with high ceiling and plenty of room.

Steve, Chris, and I shoot the breeze about coffee and I chugged the shots as fast as Steve could pull. I even got to try some of Steve’s home roasted espresso blend. Steve’s Christmas arrived earlier this year, he just got a HotTop home coffee roaster. I liked his blend. Steve has a very good foundation for his blend, and he is tweaking a bit to his liking. Steve even let me to pull a shot on his 4 group La Marzocco FB/70 and steamed some milk. It was fun, but kind of nerve wrecking under the watchful eyes of a top barista.

Steve’s Coffee Hound is now serving Zoka Coffee’s award winning Paladino espresso blend. A great deal for any Midwesterners who don’t have to fly all the way to Seattle for some tasty treats…Did I mention Steve bakes?!

Direction from Chicago to Coffee Hound:
• South on I-55.
• Off at exit 167.
• Left (go south) on Veterans Park Way
• Right (go west) on Washington St.
• Right (go north) on Main St
• Right side of the street after a block and a half.