Kaldi's on Demun recently hosted a latte art throw down, pitting barista against barista for swag and bragging rights. The coffee shop closed early and cleared out space for groups of baristas and a few spectators to observe the process. It wasn't just an excuse to show off barista skills; it also raised money for Tenth Life, a local cat shelter.

Kaldi’s event was set up with a sudden-elimination bracket format. Each round, two baristas had one chance to pour stellar latte art to submit to the panel. The panel consisted of the general manager of RISE, a barista from Blueprint and a Kaldi’s DeMun regular customer. They took delight shouting approval and pointing out their favorite art.

The energy was great and if you stood in the right place, you could catch all the action. But you had to be in just the right spot, otherwise it was difficult to see the steaming process and final product or to keep track of who won each round (not that the contestants were well known enough to root for a winner, unless you’re a regular Kaldi’s customer or the mom of one of the baristas).

I wish there had been more shops represented as well. Then it would have truly been a display of St. Louis barista talent. Most of the contestants were Kaldi’s baristas with only a couple baristas from other shops in the mix. It seemed like more of a company party to incentivize Kaldi's baristas to practice latte art. But from a customer (and fan girl) perspective, it was still entertaining. The lattes were offered to whomever wanted them, so you at least got a chance to taste the winning latte. If that wasn't enough caffeine for you, they also set out a pot of drip coffee and pastry samples.

Whether you’re a coffee nerd or casual coffee drinker, keep an eye out for latte art throwdowns. It's a nice way to get more familiar with local coffee shops and drink some winning lattes.