In 2018, at the World Brewers Cup stage in Brazil, a cute lady with pigtails brought huge surprises to specialty coffee professionals. She boldly used Laurina (a low-caffeine coffee) from Daterra farm in Brazil, which none of the competitors had ever used on the stage. Pairing it with a brand-new brewing vessel - the Gina, she presented a perfect performance and took the crown back home. Since then, her name has been memorized by the world. She is Emi Fukahori, a girl from Japan, who spent her best time in Zurich, Switzerland for over a decade.
Unlike the traditional Japanese girl, Emi had strong self-awareness when she was young. She is outgoing, brave, and open-minded, while also having a strong curiosity about the world. Coming from a tourism background, she stumbled into specialty coffee by accident. Thanks to a flavorful milk beverage with a taste like strawberries, she fell in love with coffee and decided to become the best barista who could also produce delicious drinks. Perhaps competitiveness is inscribed in her genes. Since 2015, when she first represented Switzerland to compete in the WBC in Seattle, she didn't stop her competition journey and kept pushing her boundaries until 2021.
In recent years, her career goal has switched to becoming a coach (a mentor behind the competitors) and spending more time on establishing her brand - MAME, together with her business partner, Mathieu. Transitioning from a competitor to a coach requires a different mindset and skill set. Unlike other autocratic coaches, from Emi's perspective, respecting competitors' ideas and giving them enough freedom and space to play to their strengths is essential. Her role is that of an assistant, offering resources and support when needed. Meanwhile, she is eager to learn from those competitors. If there is a stunning idea that might inspire her or help her think outside the box, it would be another sense of achievement, akin to when she met her coffee mentor, Tetsu Kasuya, a few years ago.
In this episode, Emi openly shared her coffee journey with us, allowing us to gain a more comprehensive understanding of who she is as a person. With champions coming and going every year, Emi stands out as someone unforgettable and deeply memorable.
『Guest Speaker』
Emi Fukahori (Ins: emifukahori/mamespecialtycoffee)
2018 World Brewers Cup Championship Champion
2021 World Barista Championship Finalist
2018 World Barista Championship 3rd - Mathieu Theis(coach: Emi)
2019 World Barista Championship 6th - Mathieu Theis(coach: Emi)
2022 World Barista Championship 4th - Takayuki Ishitani (coach: Emi)
2022 World Brewers Cup Championship 3rd - Elysia Tan (coach: Emi)
2023 World Barista Championship 2nd - Daniele Ricci (coach: Emi)
2024 World Brewers Cup Championship 3rd - Ryan Wibawa (coach: Emi)
Fey(Ins:kinaluga/Red book:feyfey)
SCA German Coffee Education Instructor
Baristas & Brewers Sensory Judge Europe
COE International Sensory Judge
Competition Coffee Selector
2023 WBC Athens Host
2023 WRC Taipei Host
2024 WBrC Chicago Host
2024 WBC Busan Host
