European top coffee masters met in Pärnu, ESTONIA

In October European coffee masters met in Estonian summer capital Pärnu. Two top events were held in ESTONIA Resort Hotel & Spa 4* – the brand new spa and conference hotel, where Camp’s educational activities, as well as accommodation and catering took place in the same complex.

• October 6-8 the top annual European coffee roasters’ event Roaster Camp 2016 was held, organized by the Roaster Guild of Europe hosted 130 participants
• October 10-13 over 180 baristas and coffee professionals from 26 different countries gathered for Barista Camp 2016, organized by Barista Guild of Europe

Both events offered professional workshops, seminars, round-table discussions and team challenges. To support the healthy way of living each day started with a yoga session or morning run and ended with spa baths and sauna visits. For the first time in the history of coffee professional camps, coffee masters could party in the pool – a great finish to a full day of lectures and discussions.

Participants from all around Europe left the Camps with new experiences and improved skills. Organisers managed to arrange great events that ran smoothly, delivered a great amount of knowledge and built a stronger feeling of the European coffee community.

Two international events were brought to Pärnu by Estonian Convention Bureau as the first point of contact for the Barista Guild of Europe, and Pärnu City Government, who helped to arrange transfers from Tallinn and Riga airports to the venue. A large number of volunteers from several European countries were involved and students from Pärnu College. To promote the coffee culture in Pärnu to the local community organisers arranged a complimentary Coffee Cupping Event – an eye-opening evening full of specialty coffee and new knowledge. Hundreds of kilos of coffee beans roasted during the event’s workshops were donated to the local Open Care Center for Elderly People.

Let the participants talk!

Bloom Coffee Blog:
For this year  of Barista Camp, Barista Guild of Europe‘s staff decided to leave the sunny mediterranean beaches and try it the “nordic way”, heading to Parnu in Estonia, a small touristic village by the sea right between Tallin and Riga. The location was absolutely gorgeous, Estonia Resort Hotel & Spa! A lot of space for trainings and lectures and an internal Spa to relax after a fully caffeinated day. Read more…

Ales Pospisil by European Coffee Trip:

Barista Guild of Europe brought 125 baristas from over 26 countries to participate at their annual event, third European Barista Camp. This time it was to Estonia. The location might surprise someone who knows there has been no active SCAE chapter in Estonia, resulting in no competition being organised for years. But isn’t that the right motivation to bring the event in the area?

The camp took place on the coast of Estonia, in a small town of Pärnu. It is also known as Estonian summer capital. Off season, Pärnu is more calm, less crowded and cold, but after a morning run on the beach anyone would be ready for the day. Estonia Hotel Resort & Spa provided the campers with all the comfort, great food, and technical support to take their lecture in prepped class rooms, before heading to their on-site spa baths. The spa felt even better considering the cold weather outside.

The camp was spread over 4 intense days of learning. Participants could choose one of 7 SCAE educational modules, based on their preference in brewing, sensory training or perhaps green bean understanding. Outside of the learning modules, inspirational talks by coffee industry professionals were open to all participants, enriching their learning experience even further with knowledge from various fields from the likes of brand designer and coffee writer Brian W. Jones, propagator of speciality tea Shawn Barber or Nicaraguan coffee producer Claudia Lovo. Read more…

Estonia Resort Hotel & Spa 4* is a spa and conference hotel located in Pärnu, Estonia. The hotel complex has a conference center that hosts more than 300 people, a unique spa and sauna center with nine different saunas, indoor pools and hot tubs where visitors can relax and reload their mind and body after intense business days. The location between two Baltic capitals Tallinn and Riga gives an advantage of better flight connections with an airport transfer time 1,5-2 hours.

More information:
Ave Pill, Estonia Resort Hotel & Spa, Sales and Marketing Manager, tel 372 5232 295, ave@spaestonia.ee