Australian’s are some of the most passionate coffee drinkers. Even in a small café on Hunter Street in Newcastle, on the mid-coast of New South Wales, you can be surprised by a freshly poured latte decorated with this amazing swan pattern, thanks to local barista Jordan Duffy.

Runner-up in the inaugural Breville Latte Art Smackdown at The Rocks Aroma Festival on July 27, Jordan has been working with speciality coffee for three years.

“I’ve been a full time barista, working with specialty coffee for only three years now so I'm really still a baby, however I'm extremely passionate about the coffee industry and I'm constantly pushing myself to learn more every day and share my knowledge with customers.

“The Novocastrian coffee scene and appreciation for coffee is growing, but it would be great if there was a stronger interest in alternative brewing methods - I love filter coffee.”

As a participant in the Breville Latte Art Smackdown, Jordan used the Breville Oracle® to battle it out with some of Sydney and Melbourne’s finest baristas, in front of a packed arena and cheering crowd in the Museum of Contemporary Art’s (Foundation Hall).  Members of the audience were asked to spin the ‘Wheel of Death’ to determine the latte art style, which was then attempted by competitors.

“I thought the Breville Smackdown was great. It was only the fourth competition I had ever entered but I believe it had the best format of all the others I have been to. The camera and big screen made a significant difference because it allowed the audience to be more included and it was great to hear their responses on our pouring.

 

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“I was really thrilled on how keen the audience was and although the stage and lights proved daunting to some of the baristas, I felt like it had a really fun vibe about it. I knew the calibre of the baristas would be really high so I entered the competition as a challenge to myself and didn't actually expect to do so well considering I was up against New South Wales and Victorian state champions.

“I was extremely surprised with the Breville Oracle espresso machine. After about five minutes of warming up to it I was really impressed about every factor of the machine. The built in hopper and tamper are amazing because I know how messy coffee can be. I was also really impressed by the dial on the side for the grind size and the shots I was pulling on it looked beautiful, produced great crema and were surprisingly good to pour into. I actually had quite a few audience members ask me about the machine after the competition and I highly recommended it to all of them.”

For budding home baristas who want to perfect their latte art, Jordan says the most important tip is practice, practice, practice – as well as a few other step

“Don't overheat your milk. You want to produce smooth, glossy milk and overheating will cause fine bubbles. Try to only have enough milk in the pitcher to fit into the cup you will be pouring into. If you have too much milk you won't be able to get the right pouring angle for your patterns.

“I highly recommend watching videos! Instagram and YouTube are great to watch and for picking up pouring techniques.”