Cebuano brewer and Manileño barista represent PH in World Coffee Championship
Gio Visitacion of Cebu and Adrian Vocalan of Manila represented the Philippines at the recent Milan World Coffee Championships (WCC) 2021.
Visitacion competed for the World Brewers Cup, while Vocalan competed in the World Barista Championship against other baristas. From October 23 to 26, the two competed in their respective categories.
Regrettably, Vocalan was eliminated from the semi-finals on Sunday, October 24. Additionally, on Monday evening, October 25, Visitacion was informed that they would be unable to advance to the finals.
Despite this, the two remain hopeful and have received enthusiastic support from their coffee-loving community.
Visitacion stated on Facebook that he would cherish all of the memories he made during the two-day competition.
“I’m honoured to represent the Philippines in the best light possible,” he said.
Meanwhile, Vocalan expressed gratitude to his supporters and family for their unwavering support.
“Maraming salamat po sa lahat ng mga sumuporta at sa lahat ng nagbigay tulong para sa Team Philippines,” Vocalan wrote in a Facebook post.
Visitacion is the chief roaster and co-owner of The Good Cup Coffee Company in Cebu. Throughout the pandemic, Visitacion’s roastery offered unique tasting packages with online brewing tutorials to stranded-at-home coffee lovers.
“I envision myself working in coffee for the next 40 years, sourcing better green coffee, developing better roast profiles, producing higher-quality products, and enhancing employee happiness, all while providing the best possible service to customers,” Visitacion wrote on the Milan WWC website.
Vocalan, on the other hand, is well-known in the Philippines as the reigning national barista champion.
“I’ve been in the coffee industry for eight years and have worked my way up to becoming the 2017 Philippine National Latte Art Champion, the 2020 Philippine National Barista Champion, and a runner-up in the 2018 Philippines Latte Art Championships,” Vocalan explained.
