Although not the be all and end all, a good sign of a competent barista is their latte art. Brighton is home to some incredible baristas, and through the various latte art competitions that take place over the year, they are able to meet up and show what they’ve got.

The upcoming Brighton Coffee Festival, taking place on 11^th August at The Open Market, features The Latte Art Champions Throwdown, showcasing the best that Brighton has to offer. 

Latte art is something relatively easy to learn, but hard to master. Like most things, in high pressure situations, such as a competition or busy Saturday service, maintaining a consistently high quality of texture, temperature, and a steady hand is deceptively difficult. Add in the fact that you’re probably on your nth coffee of the day, drawing on a liquid canvas, and things can get very wobbly very fast.

The popularisation of latte art is widely credited to David Schomer, the co-founder of Espresso Vivace, whose early focus on quality coffee led to latte art becoming more mainstream.

Bad latte art doesn’t necessarily equate to a bad coffee, but good latte art shows that the milk has been textured correctly. We here at The Independent Brighton & Hove Coffee Guide are firm believers in the idea that the enjoyment of a cup of coffee isn’t solely down to the taste of the drink, but the experience as a whole; the environment, the atmosphere, the barista serving you, and of course the latte art, all play a part in your enjoyment of a coffee.

To take part in The Latte Art Champions Throwdown at the Brighton Coffee Festival just follow this link and sign up.