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40 Fresh Cup Magazine | freshcup.com NINE BARS Competing for Community B Y M AT T H E W B A R A H U R A A N D J E S S I C A P E R C I F I E L D s we prepared for the San Diego Coffee Network's first event, a latte art competition at local craft roaster Coffee & Tea Collective, we were a little nervous. The first pour was scheduled to happen in forty-five minutes, and there were seven people milling about, the four SDCN found- ers included. Where was the crowd? Would there be enough baristas to hold a competition? Why did we do all this if no one was going to show up? And then they arrived. In wave after wave, the community filtered in and before we knew it, the place was packed, with standing room only if you were lucky to get in. Over a hundred people showed up to watch the return of the San Diego Thursday Night Throwdown, to look on as nineteen local baristas went head-to-head until one was crowned the winner. Clearly we had stumbled upon a demand much greater than we had ever anticipated. The SDCN was founded by the two of us plus Mike Helms and Jared Wardle, each of us passionate about coffee and offering a different view- point on the industr y. Mike and Matt were inspired to jumpstart our anemic scene after a trip to Boston for a coffee trade show where they spoke with baristas from around the countr y who had built strong com- munities. The four of us met weekly, for months, voicing our visions for the coffee community in San Diego and brainstorming ways to make them a reality. The idea of reviving the San Diego's TNT, a bracket-style latte art tourna- ment, was immensely popular, both within our group and with the few P H O T O S B Y J A R E D A R M I J O - W A R D L E A Over a hundred people showed up to watch the return of the San Diego Thursday Night Throwdown, to look on as nineteen local baristas went head to head until one was crowned the winner. A Thursday Night Throwdown at Young Hickory in San Diego. May14_magazine.indd 40 4/18/14 10:44 AM