Spotlight On: Melbourne International Coffee Expo 2012

Our CEO, Effie, at M.I.C.E. 2012.

With its varying exhibitors, the Melbourne International Coffee Expo (‘M.I.C.E.’) was a great success attended by many.  The Expo really had something for everyone interested in coffee, be it café owners or future owners, roasters, coffee specialist or just coffee lovers and enthusiasts.  As you can imagine, for me it was ‘coffee heaven’ (yep, it’s a tough job but someone’s gotta ‘Sit Sip and Savour’!).

One of the many brilliant roasting machines on show at M.I.C.E. 2012

 From roasters, cafes, and other coffee traders and suppliers, the Expo showcased international exhibitors and guests ( such as, World Coffee Events – an American based organisation, SCAA – the Specialty Coffee Association of America, Sandalj Trading Company – a coffee importer based in Trieste, Italy, and the Coffee Board of India).  The exhibitors were, however, mainly a mixture of Australian companies and international businesses with bases here in Oz (from  takeaway coffee cups suppliers – Callisto, BioPak and Detpak, Menumate a – specialist menu cash register system, Iveco vehicles – coffee vans for either deliveries or custom mobile coffee units, roasting machines by Probat, coffee machines by Kees van der Western, coffee traders such as Latorre & Dutch, and well known coffee brands such as Grinders Coffee, Ducale, Genovese Coffee, Axil and Jasper Coffee).  Baristas also dazzled us with their amazing skills in the make-shift auditorium.

Coffee beans from India on display at the Coffee Board of India stand.

Nolan from Proud Mary.

We award the ‘Rock Star’ Exhibitor Award to Proud Mary for their mix of entertainment (cue record player and awesome sounds), coffee tastings, coffeesamplings and giveaways (including their bottled cold coffee) as well as facts and information (postcards describing the various types of coffee).   A well presented hip stand with great products, knowledgeable and amiable staff and general giveaway  information.  (* Thanks Nolan for making such a tremendous contribution and impact on the Melbourne coffee scene, especially in such a short amount of time!).

True to their mantra “We take our coffee seriously…not ourselves” the lads at Ducale were friendly, approachable and welcoming.  Ducale was also a standout exhibitor, giving away as many different tastings of their various coffee beans as you wished (I especially enjoyed the Monsoon coffee bean from India, and was informed by the Ducale representative Ducale was the only Australian company who sold these beans).  The ‘Ducale Dudes’ (as I dubbed them) whilst convivial and gregarious certainly  backed up their amiability with knowledge of their product.  We award them the Most Social Exhibitor.

Best Giveaway Showbag we award to Grinders Coffee who gave away a very generous showbag…free!  It comprised of a 450 ml of bottled water, a 300 g canister of their delicious premium drinking chocolate mixture, a 250g bag of their crema caffe 100% Arabica coffee, a packet of their “How To Prepare” postcards (with instructions on how to prepare various hot drinks), a free music download from Universal Music Group, a free download of FORMULA (a barista and bartender training application) from the Applestore, all in a well presented and durable showbag.

Coffee beans from everywhere at the Jasper Coffee stand.

We award the Best Contribution to the Community to the event Café Smart, a collaboration by the not-for-profit organisation StreetSmart with participating cafes:  For one day, these cafes have pledged to give $1 for each coffee sale towards StreetSmart (an amazing charity that supports the homeless).  This worthwhile charitable event will take place in Melbourne on 10 August 2012.  So, Melbournians, make sure you have loads of coffee on that day at participating cafes to raise lots of money!

We award No Q our Innovative Product Award.  It’s a superb purchasing food and beverage system: You order goods online, from your mobile or iPhone, and by the time you rock up to the retailer you’ve ordered from, your goods are there waiting for you.  Imagine ordering your coffee this way – coffee queues be gone!  Wow!  Perfect for the busy businessperson or mum on the go.

The Gutsiest Exhibitor is awarded to SereniTEA for showcasing their fabulous and wide array of tea, yes you heard right, tea..!  We applaud them on their vision (and guts!) for rocking up to a coffee expo.  (* This exhibit stand was, in actual fact,  very popular and well received by the expo attendees – perhaps  SereniTEA’s gorgeous herbal infusions were a welcomed and calming break from all of the coffee tastings.  For me, a light reprieve indeed!  Also, it didn’t hurt that they also offer superior products – their teas are indeed amazing).

Our Outstanding Achievement Award goes to Grinders Coffee who is celebrating its 50^th year this year.  A landmark milestone and a truly remarkable achievement:  Thank you for making a wonderful contribution to coffee in this country.

M.I.C.E. was a well organised event that had something for everyone.  It was easily accessible by public transport (the number 57 tram from the CBD took me right to the showgrounds).  www.internationalcoffeepreview.com highly recommends all coffee enthusiasts and industry people attend this acclaimed event in 2013 that will also host the esteemed World Barista Championship and the World Brewers Cup.

Effie Gidakos

CEO

International Coffee Review