The United States Barista Championship or USBC, is a competition to decide the most well rounded barista in the United States. Competitors prepare and serve three courses of espresso based beverages consisting of espressos, traditional cappuccinos, and signature drinks. The Competitor must make all three courses of beverages within a fifteen-minute time limit and are judged by seven different judges. The judging team consists of four sensory judges, two technical judges, and one head judge. The role of the sensory judge is to score the competitor solely on the quality of the beverage served and customer service. The technical judges are not served drinks, but score the competitor on items ranging from cleanliness to consistency of shot times. Judges do undergo a certification process before the competition.
There are three rounds of judging at the USBC: the preliminary round, the semi-finals with 25 competitors (regional winners are automatically placed in the semi-finals) and the finals with 6 competitors.
The winner represents the United States in the World Barista Championship.
Past winners
Prior to 2003, the competition was known as the North American Barista Competition. Dismas Smith was the 2002 NABC champion.