VINCENT Majola’s coffee always looks too good to drink, but it is also a measure of how far he has come as a barista and a latte artist.

The 28-year-old, who works at Now Coffee in Glenashley, recently placed second in the country at the Specialty Coffee Association of Southern Africa (SCASA) National Coffee Championships in Johannesburg in the latte art category.

His intricate and beautiful designs impressed the judges at the competition, including his own take on a Chinese Dragon and a Spartan helmet.

“I’m very proud of myself for not giving up on my dream and how far I’ve come. I was so privileged and honoured to compete in my first National Coffee Championships. My goal leading up to the competition was to do my best and see where that takes me. Part of the competition involved us making six cappuccinos in 10 minutes with two designs that needed to be identical.

“There were three rounds of judging, and I used a Spartan helmet, Chinese Dragon and stork design. Of course, I added a few elements, but the judges look for symmetry and how identical the designs are – because you make more than one cup of cappuccino with the same design – and most importantly, the sense of difficulty. Overall, I went over by 21 seconds in the competition, so perhaps, time management is something I need to look at. I checked my scoresheet from the judges, and I now know where I need to improve,” he explained.

While he won’t be travelling overseas for the World Latte Art Championship, Majola says his second-place finish was all the motivation he needs.

“Unfortunately, only the person who finishes in first place gets to travel overseas. That would be an amazing dream for me, and I’m determined to get there by continuing to practise and learn new techniques. There is always room for improvement,” he said.
Majola also explains what drew him into latte art.

“When I started out in latte art, I learnt from watching YouTube videos. I just love how intricate the art is – you have to have symmetry, innovation and blow people away with the patterns you produce. The first pattern I was able to reproduce was an inverted tulip. From there, I started experimenting and making a whole host of things. Using steamed milk to create patterns is really an art form,” he said.

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