Mazza beat off stiff competition in a fiercely fought contest with over 20 contestants from 16 universities, who were all aiming for the top accolade.

Mazza impressed the judges with her cool calm precision and technical skill, as well as evidenced huge creativity with her signature coffee, entitled Pistachio Ice-Cream Americano.

Entrants had to make four espressos, four cappuccinos and four speciality drinks of their own concoction within 15 minutes.  The contest was judged by Barista skills and coffee experts from the Barista Championships, Peros and Davinci Gourmet.

“I started working as a Barista after developing a passion for coffee whilst waitressing, and being Italian, loving coffee is in my blood. I learned the tricks of the trade when I moved from waitressing to a speciality coffee shop, and from there I honed my skills even further at the University café under the watchful eye of my boss Annabel,” Mazza said.

“Annabel encouraged me to enter the competition, and I am so grateful she did, winning feels amazing, and has only reinforced my love for coffee making. Thank you TUCO!”

Chrissie Huxter, technical judge at the Barista Championships and one of three judges on the day explained:  “The level of skill we saw in the competition covered a wide range of essential coffee making talents.  Entrants showed knowledge of their coffee ingredients and sources, technical skill in both espresso making and milk frothing - which interestingly saw varying approaches from different competitors - and finally, a diverse and exciting range of recipes and designs when it came to creating their own signature coffee.  
 
“We saw everything from coconut and dark chocolate mochas to homemade pistachio ice-cream Americanos, and the level of innovation shown really was excellent.”

Julie Barker, managing director of TUCO, added: “At TUCO our role is to support university caterers such as Baristas with learning and development and this inaugural year for the Barista Competition has showcased fantastic standards, commitment and inventiveness to rival any high street coffee shop whilst simultaneously nurturing these skills.  We are certain that demand will be even higher for next year’s competition, which is a great way for us to foster the talent in this rapidly expanding area.”