Greek barista Konstantinos Komninakis has taken leading honours at the 9th World Cezve/Ibrik Championship at Gulfood, beating 19 national winners from various nations all over the world.

Komninakis, a first-time rival at international level, wowed judges with his blend of Geisha coffee beans from popular Panamanian agronomist and manufacturer, Graciano Cruz, as well as Kenyan SL28 beans grown in El Salvador.

"It was a remarkable experience belonging to the world champion for the very first time and I still can't think I have won the title. I worked so hard for months to perfect the traditional method of brewing Ibrek coffee utilizing my own signature recipe of blended beans," said Komninakis.

Owned and organised by the Speciality Coffee Association of Europe (SCAE), the Cezve/Ibrik Championship commemorates the traditional centuries-old method of brewing using a little, long-handled pot. The Gulfood Championship-- the first time the event has actually been staged in the Middle East-- was the biggest getaway to date with entrants from throughout Asia, the Middle East and Europe.

"Having the ninth Cezve/Ibrik Championships occur at such a distinguished food and hospitality market mega event as Gulfood has taken the competition to brand-new heights," stated David Veal, Executive Director of SCAE. "This area is an international coffee capital and consumers are really available to originalities and trends in the coffee industry. Staging the Championship in an area where the Ibrik technique of developing came from has actually felt like a real homecoming.".

With Turkey's Hazal Atesoglu finishing second, UAE champion Karthikeyan Ranjedran landed a historic third place-- the first time a UAE-based barista has actually finished in the Championship's medal positions. Other finalists consisted of Ecaterina Szasz from Romania, Jerome Jumawan from the Philippines and Sara Al-Ali from Saudi Arabia.

Throughout the Championship, rivals were tasked with preparing two Ibrik mixtures - a standard cup and their own trademark cup - for a panel of sensory and technical judges. Amongst the judges were three previous Cezve/Ibrik World Champions including ruling champ Davide Berti of Italy, 2014 world champion Stavros Lamprinidis and 2010 world champion Aysina Aydogdu.