Xavier Navillo won the Barista Championship. Photo by Pro Ecuador.
Earlier this month, Daily Coffee News’s Kelsey Mutter traveled to Guayaquil, Ecuador, for the third annual Aromas del Ecuador event, showcasing the South American country’s coffee and cocoa industries.
Like many of its coffee producing neighbors, Ecuador has been hit hard by coffee borer beetle infestations, as well as roya outbreaks. But a running theme though this event — sponsored by Pro Ecuador, a division of the country’s ministry of commerce — was forward progress and agricultural advancement in the face of such adversity. While Ecuador primarily remains an exporter of commodity-grade instant coffee, this event brought forth many of the country’s top specialty coffee players, who are working to improve the country’s reputation for cup quality.
The event for the first time featured a barista competition — won by Xavier Novillo — and it brought back the popular Taza Dorada (Golden Cup) competition, scoring coffees from some of the country’s top producers. Miguel Rendón, CEO of Es Coffee, took home this year’s Taza Dorada.
(photos by Kelsey Mutter)
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- Miguel Rendon, CEO of Es Coffee
Nick Brown
Nick Brown is the editor of Daily Coffee News by Roast Magazine.
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