Baristas Abuzz With Caffeinated Competition

Take on the local coffee scene: "We are trying to bring a real coffee culture to Denver. For example, espresso should be enjoyed at the bar. We will never do an espresso to go."

Thoughts about the competition: "Timing is essential. You've got to pretend you're taking a test like the LSAT. Figure out where to save a second here and a second there."

If this were the WWE, your name would be: "The Iron Barista."

If you were a coffee drink, you'd be: "A double shot of Black Cat espresso [which he's using in the competition]. It's strong yet smooth and has a lingering sweet finish."

Theme music during the competition: "'Some Heads Are Gonna Roll,' by Judas Priest," he says jokingly. "It's gonna happen to most people when they get up and compete against me!"

Craziest thing a customer has asked you: "I had someone come in and order eight shots of espresso, and they drank it straight. It was a doctor who did that."

Where would you rather get coffee, Starbucks or McDonald's? "Starbucks. When Starbucks does well, the independents do well."

Greatest coffee experience: "I was a ten-year-old-kid, playing chess with my grandpa and drinking coffee so strong it was like a Turkish coffee."

Signature drink: "Kava s hrukou," a drink involving almond cheese, fruit, and a vanilla cream sauce that his mother used to make for him. He won't say more, but he hints, "I am going to be cooking with a double burner."

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Johanna Everts

Job: Co-manager at Novo Coffee at the Denver Art Museum, 1200 Acoma Street.

Background: "I started drinking coffee when I was nine. It was the only grownup drink I was allowed to have."

Training regimen: "Every single latte I do, I put latte art on it — latte art, latte art, latte art. I'm using a wrist brace and taking herbs for my carpal tunnel — the bane of a barista's existence. We are also considering jumpsuits."

Take on the local coffee scene: "Coffee in Denver is people-centered, not coffee-centered. There are a lot of coffee drinkers who just want to drink coffee. Not exceptional coffee, just coffee."

Thoughts about the competition: "My strength is my charisma. As a barista, you are only as good as the conversations you hold. My weakness has been my palate. I was smoking, so I had a dampened sense of smell. I stopped smoking six weeks ago, so my greatest weakness is slowly dissipating."

If this were the WWE, your name would be: "The Strong Arm. Baristas have amazing upper-body strength."

If you were a coffee drink, you'd be: "Ethiopian Worka black coffee, single origin." ("It's got a nice femininity without being girly," says coach Johnny Robinson.)

Theme music during the competition: "I'm going to use some classic jazz."

Craziest thing a customer has asked you: "A heavy-whipping-cream cappuccino."

Where would you rather get coffee, Starbucks or McDonald's? "I worked for both of them, and I wouldn't go into either."

Greatest coffee experience: "In Idaho Springs, where I went to high school, there was a little coffee roaster, and after lunch we would play chess and drink coffee there all afternoon. When they roasted coffee, you'd smell it all over town."

Signature drink: "I don't want to use the 'wow' factor. I'd rather win with taste. I'm going to specialty grocery stores and looking at spices I could use."

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Justin Hartman and Greg Lefcourt

Job: Owner and manager, respectively, at Ozo Coffee, 5340 Arapahoe Avenue in Boulder. "Though people think we are the same person sometimes," says Hartman.

Background: "Together we have over twenty years of experience in coffee," says Lefcourt.

Training regimen: "We have been focusing on pulling shots every day, working on milk texture and art," says Hartman. "Now we are working on the structure of our routines."

Take on the local coffee scene: "There've been sixty-, seventy-year-old guys running the coffee in this town. It's time for the next generation," says Hartman. "People should be going from one coffee shop to another, like connoisseurs of coffee."

Thoughts about the competition: "My personality helps. I talk to people all day and remember everyone's names and drinks; my muscle memory takes over," says Lefcourt. "But I need to work on trying to remain modest, which is not a word I often use for myself."

If this were the WWE, your names would be: "Professor Picky Pants and Captain Bean Squeezer," says Hartman.

If you were a coffee drink, you'd be: "I'd be a cortado. A double-shot Northern Italian-style roasted espresso with steamed milk, equal proportions," says Lefcourt. "It's short, powerful, sophisticated and sexy."

Theme music during the competition: "Reggae music, man," says Lefcourt. "I can dance and make coffee at the same time."

Craziest thing a customer has asked you: "The funniest name was 'Skinny bald transvestite on a leash,'" says Hartman. "Half-caffeinated skinny latte to go. Flat, with no foam."

Where would you rather get coffee, Starbucks or McDonald's? "Abstinence is best," says Hartman.

Greatest coffee experience: "When you've been drinking so many espressos that you get a tingle up the back of your spine and you start to hallucinate," says Hartman.

Signature drink: "I did well with my Aztec Con Ponna at Joe's Espresso Barista Jam," says Hartman, referring to an unofficial barista competition in Boulder last year at which he tied for second. "It had dark chocolate, chili powder, cinnamon, a little vanilla, a shot of espresso, spices and chocolate whipped cream that was almost the consistency of a mousse."