Being a coffee barista takes skill — and five baristas from Athens’ 1000 Faces Coffee will compete today and Saturday in Atlanta for the regional barista competition with the hopes of making it to the national round.

Representing 1000 Faces Coffee, alumnus David Delchamps will be joined by four of his co-workers to compete in Atlanta today. Photo by Taylor Merck

University senior Nathan Brand — along with David Delchamps and Hunter Garrison, University alumni; Jed Baxter, an Athens native; and Dut Goodman, a Gainesville State College student — begin competing at the South East Regional Barista Competition today.

“Four espressos. Four cappuccinos. And four signature beverages which you have to come up with and tailor to your specific coffee,” Brand said.

Each competitor is allotted 15 minutes to grind the coffee beans, brew and serve each course while interacting with the judges.

The barista may also play music of his or her choice while competing.

“There’s three courses and there’s four sensory judges, so 12 drinks total, which is so intense for 15 minutes,” Brand said.

Alongside the four sensory judges are two technical judges, who evaluate competitors on procedures, consistency, cleanliness and other technical details.

Brand and the other baristas are being sent by 1000 Faces, a major competition sponsor this year, to compete in the regional competition against 30 competitors from nine states, including Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama and Florida.

“The most points in the competition come from your coffee’s flavor itself,” Brand said. “That’s why we took so much care this year to make sure that everything tasted really good.”

For the signature beverage, each barista picks his specific coffee and what he want to highlight in the taste.

“You can either highlight your coffee or you can contrast what’s in your coffee,” Brand said. “Or you can do both.”

Brand’s signature beverage will be a mixture of blueberry, banana and maple syrup blended with his choice of 1000 Faces coffee.

“My coffee is really dry in the finish like a really dry red wine would be,” Brand said. “So, I put in the blueberries in there for the juice, and also for the blueberry smell to the nose. But then I put the banana in to compliment the flavors of banana that are already in it. The maple syrup is for a little bit of sweet to counteract the dry as well.”

Senior Nathan Brand takes a sniff at a coffee creation. The baristas hope to make it to the world competition. Photo by Taylor Merck

The beverages will only enhance the renowned taste of 1000 Faces coffee while expressing the individual tastes of the barista.

The five competing baristas hope to represent 1000 Faces Coffee and Athens alike through the coffee, the brand and use of local music.

Brand has previously attended the World Barista Championship, held in Atlanta in 2009, as a spectator and was inspired by his experience to compete this year.

“I went up [to the coffee bar] and got a cup of coffee from some guy,” Brand said. “That guy won the World Championships that year.”

Brand worked at Jittery Joe’s at the time, which sent him to watch the championship.

“I had this cup of coffee that was just unreal,”  he said. “It was this cappuccino. I still remember everything about it. I was like, ‘This is the most incredible sensory experience I’ve ever had. I need to be a part of this.’”

University alumnus David Delchamps has competed twice before in the regional competition.

He placed sixth last year at regionals and 26th at nationals.

1000 Faces is a part of what Brand calls the Third Wave of coffee.

The First Wave is coffee that came to the United States from Europe during the late ’40s and early ’50s when World War II soldiers returned home.

The Second Wave is similar to Starbucks.

It brought the idea of better coffee that people would drink for pleasure and less in the stereotypical roadside diner.

“The Third Wave was the best coffee in the world being prepared by specially trained people,” Brand said. “That’s Third Wave coffee and that’s what [1000 Faces Coffee] is a part of. The big thing is that [1000 Faces Coffee] is very sustainable and that it is super-high quality.”

The South East Regional Barista Competition is one of six regional competitions that are a part of the United States Barista Championship.

The competitions are “designed to highlight the craft of the barista and espresso-based beverage production,” according to its website.

Round one of the competition starts today and ends tomorrow.

The finals take place Sunday morning, with the winner and top six announced in the afternoon.

The USBC will take place in Houston, Texas, at the end of April.

The top six from each regional competition will compete at the National Competition.

The national winner will then represent the United States at the World Barista Championship, which will be held in Bogota, Columbia, this June.

For the contestants, not placing isn’t really an option.

Brand said his goal is to place in the top six this weekend and compete at nationals in April.

But Delchamps has a slightly bigger goal.

“I’m going there to win this,” Delchamps said.