Everybody’s Coffee to host Great Lakes Coffee Showcase in Chicago

Great Lakes Coffee Showcase is happening this Saturday!

BY ANDREW BETTIS
SPECIAL TO BARISTA MAGAZINE

Chicago is a city brimming with coffee purveyors, and on Saturday, February 27, an event will seek to bring Chicago-based roasters together, along with regional roasters. The Great Lakes Coffee Showcase (GLCS) is a new grassroots coffee event, and will take place from 3-9 p.m. at Everybody’s Coffee in uptown Chicago.The event will consist of brew bars featuring regional roasters, coffee equipment exhibits, the Midwest Regional AeroPress Championship, and a New Gotham Coffee Community Latte Art Throwdown to end the night. And to top it all off, the event will be free and open to the public.

The winner of the Midwest AeroPress Championship will go on to represent the region at the U.S. AeroPress Championship. After that, it’s on to the World AeroPress Championship.

The GLCS is organized by a few Chicago-based roasters and baristas, including myself. Our intention with the event is to create a sustainable way to foster regional connectivity among coffee professionals and enthusiasts. With the demise of regional barista competitions, we wanted to find a way to collaborate with other professionals regionally in a self-sustaining way. As it turns out, Everybody’s Coffee has a similar vision with their space, evidenced by their collaboration with Chicago roasters in hosting a showing of A Film About Coffee.

The Department of Brewology designed the event’s fabulous poster.

The aesthetic of the event will be much more similar to a coffee party than a showroom floor, and there will be an after party consisting of beer and ice cream at the Bow Truss on Broadway. So mark your calendars and get ready to guzzle!

Here are the 2016 Midwest Regional AeroPress Championship competitors:

Joshua Dusk-Peebles, Everybody’s Coffee

Sam Burchett, Geometric

Will Ferris, Standard Market

Philip Burchett, Geometric

John Petrenko, Bow Truss Coffee Roasters

Zak Wosewick, Anodyne Coffee Roasters

Matthew Gasaway, Intelligentsia

Cat Mendoza-Mungcal, Mojo Coffee Roasters

Erik Czuprinski, River City Roasters

Zack Piccozzi, River City Roasters

Benjamin Elliot, Cultivar Coffee

Eli Ramirez, Shift Coffee

Cortney Kern, Independent

Jacob Hilton, Handlebar Coffee Roasters/Independent

Dylan Frye, Pilcrow Coffee

Graham Mcnamee, Ipsento Coffee

Don Lawrence, Intelligentsia

Kayla Placencio, Beans and Bagels

The Great Lakes Coffee Showcase and Midwest Regional AeroPress Championship are sponsored by: Rancilio, Bow Truss, Pentair, Curtis, Aerobie, BonaVita, La Colombe, Acaia, Department of Brewology, Barista Magazine, Pilcrow, Big Shoulders, Abacus, and the New Gotham Coffee Community

Also appearing: Metric, Intelligentsia, Halfwit, Gaslight, Metropolis, Ruby, Kickapoo, Cafe Integral, Groundswell, Ipsento, Dark Matter, Passion House, and Counter Culture Coffee

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