INTRODUCING THE Judges

The Selati Battle of the Beans aims to find and review the great coffee drinking spots in KwaZulu Natal, to root out the best in different regions and, finally, to identify and reward the top three in the province.

It also intends to share the fun and mystery of this quest to find the best coffee in KZN with the public through social media - with the spin-off of creating an online Guide to Good Coffee Drinking in this province. The hope is that coffee lovers will be inspired to venture out of their comfort zones and explore and support the many amazing coffee venues that KZN has to offer.

This caffeine fuelled task will be allocated to our mystery panel of judges who have been chosen by the Coffee Colab in conjunction with members of the coffee industry.

The coffee shops that will come under their microscope will be divided into different regions - the Greater Durban area, the Highway area, the North and South Coasts as well as Pietermaritzburg and Midlands. Each will be visited, rated and reviewed and the best of each region will go forward to another round of judging.

The judging process – which will be done incognito - will cover flavour and appearance of both an espresso and a cappuccino, presentation, barista skills, coffee shop vibe, facilities, service and more. This magical process will be carried out under the watchful eye of our Queen Bean, Ingrid Shevlin.