- HOW IT WORKS
- JUDGING
- THE COFFEES
- ENTER NOW
- CONTACT US
The coffees 2024/25
We have some incredible coffees lined up for you this year...
coffee to play with and enjoy!
Our green coffee partner Sucafina Specialty has pulled out all the stops and provided three amazing coffees for this competition, that are sure to challenge your skills and delight your senses.
Colombia is on show this year!
LOW CAF is the latest trend and we’re leaning in with one of the blending coffees being a Sugarcane Decaf! Challenging preconceived notions of what a decaf coffee can be, we are excited for this unique challenge to roasters.
GET EXCITED!
*Remember that you only submit 500g total coffee (250g cupping+250g blend) for judging, so you have around 23kg left to retail OR you can serve your roasts on bar. Both ways you can make back your entry fee. And what a delicious coffee it is to share with your customers!
Get started with
THE BEANS
In your competition pack you will receive:
30kg Colombia Flor del Desierto Natural
Test your
ROASTING Skills
Roasters are able to experiment with beans in the comfort of their own roastery to achieve the best flavour results. We believe it is important for you to work on your own equipment to achieve the best possible results. Also post roast date plays an important role in bringing out the best in the coffees.
Earn the title of
2024/25 CHAMPION
The third edition of the competition will have 40 slots available for roasters to compete for the title of A Shot in the Dark Middle East Champion 2023 and gain valuable insights into their roasting skills.
OUR Partners
SUCAFINA Specialty Coffee – Official Green Competition Coffee Sponsor
Brewing Gadgets – Official Event Partner
Cimbali Group – Official Espresso Machine & Grinder Partner
Loring – Official Roaster Partner
Bluewater – Official Water Partner
The Coffee Magazine – Official Hosts and Media Partner
What do you receive in your competition kit?
What's included in your entry fee?
-
Competition specialty (87pt) green coffee using new processing method, for both cupping and blending sponsored by Sucafina SpecialtyCupping coffee: 30kgBlending coffee: 5kg x2
- The competition entry bags for submission
- A Shot in the Dark merch
- Limited Edition Tees
- Bluewater Liquid Rock to create competition water in your region
- All the important information on judging
- Feedback on your roasting skills from industry professional judges
- Winners Announcement on Monday 10 February 2025
- Feature on Coffee Magazine website and A Shot in the Dark social media
HOW IT WORKS
There are two challenges in this competition:
Cupping & Blending
All Competitors receive the exact same green coffee to roast. There are 3 coffees in each competition pack – One extremely high quality specialty coffee exclusively for the cupping challenge as well as two additional coffees for the blending challenge. Competitors may roast their competition coffee in their own roaster and on their own coffee roasting equipment. This Green Coffee will be sent out to all competitors at the same time.
All coffee will be blind judged by a team of coffee professionals using the specially formulated A Shot in the Dark scoresheets.
challenge one
CUPPING
Competitors submit 250g of the high quality specialty coffee used for the cupping challenge, roasted to its best potential and then submitted to the judges via courier with their roasting notes.
challenge two
BLENDING
Competitors will also have to roast and blend the additional two supplied coffees in addition to their original competition coffee. This will be roasted and blended for their best espresso recipe.
ENTER NOW
Ready to test your roasting skills and compete for the title of A Shot in the Dark - Middle East Champion 2023?
Every Roaster that wishes to enter A Shot in the Dark, needs to fill out the online Entry Form below and pay the Entry Fee.
The Entry Fee is USD1000* and you can pay via Bank Transfer or PayPal
*Remember that you only submit 500g total coffee for judging, so you have around 23kg left to retail in the beautiful bags supplied OR you can serve your roast on bar. Both ways you can make back your entry fee.
