Coffee talent and passion take center stage at the Starbucks Coffee Championship 2018

Mumbai, October 12, 2018: Behind the steady hiss of steaming milk, the whirl of blenders and the splash of coffee filling cups in Starbucks® stores, you’ll find passionate, hard-working Starbucks baristas who handcraft beverages for more than 75 million customers around the world each week. Starbucks has recognized baristas and their beverage artistry through Barista Championships in India and across the globe.

Tata Starbucks hosted the grand finale of the Coffee Championship in India, giving its partners an opportunity to showcase their expertise and knowledge of coffee along with their beverage crafting skills. The Starbucks baristas were flawless in their display of coffee passion and coffee making techniques, which were enhanced with an equal measure of warmth and connection.

After multiple competitive regional rounds, focused on coffee skills and acumen, Rubeena Qureshi from Starbucks store at Taj Mahal palace won the title of 'Starbucks Coffee Champion'. She will be representing India in the regional barista championship at Asia.

The Starbucks Coffee Championship India saw around 1500 partners participating across India culminating into the Grand Finale of the Championship which was held today in Mumbai.

The Championship saw sessions like - Pour Over in which the Starbucks baristas demonstrated both their knowledge & passion for coffee in an interactive coffee tasting, Bar Skill which tested the baristas' Beverage Artistry skills and Beverage Innovation skills.

This year Starbucks introduced two new to Starbucks Coffee Championships - Manual Espresso Competition & Brewers Cup Competition. We had our Regional Coffee Ambassadors and nominated District Coffee Masters from all three regions demonstrate their skills on Manual Espresso Competition and Brewers Cup Competition respectively.

"Today we celebrated our Starbucks partners by demonstrating their passion for elevated coffee craftsmanship during our Barista Championship 2018. Our partners are the strength of Starbucks and play an instrumental role in delivering the unparalleled, unique Third Place Starbucks Experience to each and every customer every day. We are passionate about our partners and the highest quality expressions of our coffee, that's what sets us apart", said Sumitro Ghosh, CEO Tata Starbucks Pvt Ltd.