Courtesy Photo
Nora Brady (right) competes at the U.S. Barista Competition.
Blueprint co-founder Nora Brady is gearing up to participate in the U.S. Barista Competition for the sixth time, and the St. Louisan has her eyes squarely on the win.
"I've always done pretty well, [but] I'm still yet to secure that first place. So it is pushing me forward because I really want it, and I know that I can achieve it," Brady told the RFT in February.
Her preparations for the contest, as you might imagine, have been intense. One important part, she said, is getting the performance jitters out by practicing in front of a crowd.
Luckily for us, Brady has decided the best way to do that is to bring St. Louis in on the action. On Friday, April 14, Brady is hosting A Seat at the Table, a barista competition tasting experience at Blueprint Coffee's Loop location (6225 Delmar Boulevard). In sessions of 12 guests, Brady will practice her performance in the espresso course, the milk course and the signature beverage for attendees who will get to sample the brews.
Tickets for the event are $50 and include a bag of Kawo Kamina Anaerobic Natural Process Ethiopian coffee beans, which Brady will be using during the competition. She plans to highlight the relationships between Ethiopian and American culture within her performance, according to a statement from Blueprint.
There will be seatings at 6:30 p.m., 7:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. The public is also welcome to walk in and watch the show at no charge, but anyone who does so will not get to taste Brady's creations.
The competition is set to take place on April 20 in Portland, and if Brady wins there, she'll head to the world championship in Athens in June.
Learn more about Brady's entry into coffee, her wild early success in the ring, why she left for seven years and why she's back now in a previous RFT article:
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