Community is important for our team at Acaia. Every year, as part of our community support, we sponsor a range of local & international industry events and barista competitors. We offer barista sponsorships to support and encourage a more diverse lineup of competitors. There are many obstacles for competing baristas on both the national and international levels. We hope the program will help them on their journey and achieve their goals on a more equal world stage.
Dominika Kowalska is the 2024 Polish Barista Champion.
Please introduce yourself.
Hi, I'm Dominika Kowalska, the Polish Barista Champion 2023 and 2024. I started working with coffee in 2018, and the passion of my coworkers inspired me. I began to discover coffee more and more. My second passion is underwater hockey. I learned there how vital teamwork and trust are to your team.
Why did you decide to enter coffee competitions?
I love rivalry. It gives me motivation to put in extra work and improve my skills. My friend told me that I should join a coffee competition, and we could train together. It would be fun! So, I registered. I was afraid but put in much work and had colossal help. It was fun! I'm thrilled I decided to join. Because of this, I met many amazing people who always supported me.
How was your experience during the competition? Did you have a theme to your routine? How did you build it?
This year, I tried an amazing Ombligon from El Diviso, and I knew it would be a great coffee to work with. The process of this coffee starts with thermal shock before fermentation. I got inspired by thermal shock and did my whole routine about it. My goal was to explain, in a straightforward way, exactly how thermal shock works. My friend helped me do the final routine. We changed it a bit during every training, and this is how we got an excellent presentation that I enjoyed.
What are your thoughts after competing? Will you compete again, and will it be in the same competition?
There are always things to improve, so I want to work on them and learn more about coffee. I know how to change my training plan to become more efficient and achieve better results.
How did you use your sponsored Acaia products?
I relied on Acaia scales daily to weigh my espresso shots and develop recipes for all my beverages. Their precision, speed, and sensitivity were instrumental in crafting perfect espressos. I use them on stage to create the best espressos for all my drinks.
What's coming up next in your journey with coffee?
My focus for the next two months is the World Barista Championship after some lovely holiday.
Thank you, Dominika, for sharing your competition experience with us!
You can follow Dominika's coffee journey through her Instagram: oodoominoo.