Last night Dr Morse in Abbotsford held host to around 80 Melburnians spectating the inaugural Batchy Beatdown. With the event organised by Plug Nickel, 12 competitors representing various cafes plied their trade to take out the title. In the end Ben Bicknell of Five Senses coffee was the man whose batch coffee was deemed to be of the highest quality. After a quick vote from the crowd, Elizabeth Hatty of Hash Specialty Coffee was the People's Choice award winner, whilst our personal favourite batch was a Kenyan Peaberry made by James of Sensory Lab. Among the official judges was 2015 World Barista Champion and Ona Coffee owner Sasa Sestic, who was visiting from Canberra.
World Barista Champion Sasa Sestic consulting his scoring sheet.
Our stack of sample cups.
Eventual winner Ben Bickell discussing the finer points of his coffee to the audience before serving.
A competitor dishing out samples.
Plug Nickel co owner Chris thanking the crowd.