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BY J. MARIE CARLANBARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE
Featured photo by Stan Lee
It’s not every day that you get to try a championship-winning coffee. But that’s exactly what’s happening at Be Bright Coffee in Los Angeles, the café owned by 2024 U.S. Barista Champion Frank La and his wife, Michelle. Be Bright is hosting “Kodawari: The Relentless Pursuit of Perfection Competitive Tasting,“ a series of tastings each Saturday in July at their Melrose location.
Ombligon at the Tasting
In this tasting series, guests will have the opportunity to taste the award-winning coffee from Frank’s U.S. Barista Championship routine in five different formats. The coffee is an Ombligon variety from Finca El Diviso in Huila, Colombia, grown at 1900 meters above sea level. “It’s called Ombligon because it’s Spanish for ’belly button,’ which is ombligo,“ Frank previously told Barista Magazine Online. “They say there’s a little nub on the cherry that looks like a belly button, so that became the name of the variety. My first introduction to it was Jack Simpson from Australia; he placed third at the 2023 World Barista Championship and that’s the variety he used.“
The coffee’s producer, Nestor Lasso, used anaerobic fermentation with Saccharomyces yeast inoculation, thermal shock, and controlled drying to bring out tart cherry, watermelon candy, dark chocolate, and raspberry notes in this special variety.
On the Menu
The Ombligon at the tastings will be served as a pourover, espresso, and straight cold brew to experience the flavor notes untouched. For the milk course, the coffee is paired with lactose-free, freeze-distilled evaporated milk. And for the signature beverage, clarified coffee milk punch, red seedless grape cheong, and Ombligon coffee saccharum join to create a new array of tasting notes like ginger ale and white grapefruit.
Seats are limited to four, at three separate sessions per Saturday. “The tastings have been going really well,“ says Frank. “We had 48 seats available for the month of July and we sold out all 48 seats! Super surprised and excited that people are willing and excited to participate in this tasting experience.“
Guests have ample time to savor their drinks and form conversation around the coffee, approaching the Ombligon with the intentionality that cemented Frank’s championship routine. Along with the tasting, participants will be given 30 grams of the Ombligon to take home, allowing even more interaction with the coffee.
Something For Everyone
For those who didn’t score a coveted seat at the “Kodawari“ tasting, Be Bright still has plenty to offer coffee lovers in Los Angeles. Their summer menu is available at their brick-and-mortar on Melrose, and at Smorgasburg LA on Sundays, and includes the new Orange Blossom Espresso Tonic and Sweet Corn Latte.
For more info, check out Be Bright’s website.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
J. Marie Carlan (she/they) is the online editor for Barista Magazine. She’s been a barista for 16 years and writing since she was old enough to hold a pencil. When she’s not behind the espresso bar or toiling over content, you can find her perusing record stores, writing poetry, and trying to keep the plants alive in her Denver apartment.
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