Exciting new changes in 2017
Cafe Culture International is proud to present the Golden Bean Coffee Roasters Competition & Conference. This annual international event will once again be held in the following locations:
Golden Bean North America
DoubleTree by Hilton, Portland, Oregon
8.30am Wednesday 13th – Saturday 16th September 2017
Golden Bean Australia / New Zealand
Rydges Port Macquarie, NSW
8.30am Tuesday 21st – Saturday 25th November 2017
The Golden Bean is the world’s largest coffee roasters competition with roasters entering their coffees in a number award categories seeking recognition for excellence. Brew types include espresso, milk based and filter beverages with both independent roasters and franchise / chain stores preparing and submitting their entries. Gold, Silver and Bronze medals are awarded in each category with the overall Golden Bean Champion awarded based on the best combined espresso, milk and (NEW in 2017) filter scores. This is an award that recognises the work of the roaster in cultivating coffees across the brew types. In addition to coffee judging sessions during the conferences, we offer a number of workshops and seminars featuring key-note speakers and industry leaders.
With the West Coast of the USA known for its coffee, Portland is full of funky coffee fanatics with many highly rated cafes and roasters. DoubleTree by Hilton is conveniently located in the center of the up-and-coming Lloyd District, perfect for our third consecutive year.
Port Macquarie, NSW is also a great location to host the competition and associated conference activities. We know Australia is geographically huge, but now with direct flights from Melbourne, as well as Sydney and Brisbane, Port Macquarie’s reasonably central East Coast location is great for our Australia / 
New Zealand competition; generally offering stunning weather in November, and many accommodation choices to choose from in close proximity to the conference venue and social functions.
Conference Overview – North America
Venue – DoubleTree by Hilton, Portland, OR
Dates – 8.30am Wednesday 13th – Saturday 16th September 2017
Wednesday 13th September
Day – Conference & Competition kicks off
Night – Sponsored Evening Function
Thursday 14th September
Day – Conference & Competition continues
Night – Sponsored Evening Function
Friday 15th September
Day – Conference & Competition continues + Finals Judging
Night – Evening Free
Super Saturday 16th September
Day – Green Bean Zone
Night – Golden Bean Awards Dinner (Pirate Theme)
For more information about the North American Golden Bean visit goldenbean.com.au or sign up to the North American newsletter
Conference Overview – Australia / New Zealand
Venue – Rydges Port Macquarie, NSW
Dates – 8.30am Tuesday 21st – 25th November 2017
Tuesday 21st November
Day – Conference & Coffee Competition kicks off
Night – Evening Welcome Function with Just Coffee Insurance
Wednesday 22nd November
Day – Conference & Competition continues
Night – Sponsored Evening Function
Thursday 23rd November
Day – Conference & Competition continues
Night – Sponsored Evening Function
Friday 24th November
Day – Seminar, Finals Judging, Home Roaster Judging
Night – Zebu Bar with Silver Chef
Super Saturday 25th November
Day – Green Bean Zone / Cold-Brew OFF
Night – Golden Bean Awards Dinner (Pirate Theme)
For more information about the Australia / NZ Golden Bean sign up to the AU / NZ newsletter.
A more comprehensive program will be available on the ABOUT page of the competition websites closer to the event. Limited spaces will be available for the conference and the evening functions, so be sure to get in quick! (First in first served). You can sign up to the conference on the ENTER / ATTEND page.
If you can’t make the entire event, be sure you get along to the activities on Super Saturday where we hold the Green Bean Zone featuring many leading green bean suppliers, equipment suppliers and other specialty products. Come along for a free breakfast and get involved in the cupping to simplify your purchasing decisions with over 100 coffees on the table(s).
Following the Green Bean Zone is the Golden Bean Awards evening which we are excited to announce is a pirate’s theme. A few years back in Australia we had a crazy idea to have a Back to School themed awards party, with such a fantastic response to the dress-up theme, it has now become a part of the celebrations… so get working on your outfit, walk the plank and collect your medals!
Each year we seek to make small changes to the competition and conference. This year we aim to improve the experience for participants and will be tweaking the competition format a little based on competitor feedback.
New in 2017
• There will be 3 Overall Champion award categories for both events:
– Commercial Coffee Roaster
– Small Franchise (3-20 stores)
– Large Franchise (20+ stores)
• A filter score will also be incorporated into the overall results
– Espresso + Milk + Filter
• New Zealand roasters are now invited to participate in all facets of the conference and competition of the Australian event. The event will now be called “Golden Bean AU / NZ Coffee Roasters Competition & Conference”.
• The AU/NZ conference program has been adjusted to make this a 5 day event giving more time to further evaluate the coffee, workshop sessions and scope for attendees to peruse Port Macquarie.
• The AU/NZ conference registration cost has been reduced to $550 per person.
• We will continue to use the new online Award Force system for coffee entries to provide feedback post event. We’ll be making a few tweaks to further enhance this system and improve usage / functionality.
• Businesses who enter 10 or more coffees into the competition will receive a FREE delegate ticket valued at $550 +gst.
What you need to do now
Secure your position at your preferred Golden Bean event by completing registration and book your accommodation.
– Start working on preparing your coffee entries… ENTRIES Now Open!
We are keen to grow the number of roasters attending the competition as the number of entries increase; the need for industry judges to complete the epic task of judging thousands of coffees at the Golden Bean competitions. With new countries coming on board, the Golden Bean is truly now the World’s Largest Coffee Roasters Competition.
We wish everyone the best of luck preparing for this year’s competition and conference. Should you have any questions, please contact the Cafe Culture International team by emailing info@cafeculture.com otherwise we look forward to seeing you at one, or both, of our events!
News
Café Culture International, Australian partner of the Golden Bean, have joined forces with café media icon Fresh Cup Magazine.
Bellisimo Coffee Advisors have refocused their energy into some other parts of their local Portland based businesses. The Team at Bellisimo have done a great job helping establish this great event in North America using their vast coffee networks, giving credibility to the competition at its early stages of promotion.
The future for Golden Bean North America is very strong with two long established media businesses using their national networks to help promote the growth of the coffee roasting industry nationally and globally.
Jan Weigel, President of Fresh Cup Magazine, and Sean Edwards, Managing Director of Café Culture International, have been close friends for years and when the opportunity came available to run the Golden Bean together the pair took on this exciting challenge with lots of exciting and fresh ideas for the event. Jan has a passion for event management and can see some creative ideas for Golden Bean North America, helping to create even more amazing social and networking opportunities for coffee roasters.
