Edition I · MMXXVI Munich · 9–11 October 2026 Entries open

Announcement

A new championship is
in town.

12 roasters. One coffee. One title.

The first Alpine Roasting Championship.
Same green coffee, three identical Giesen15-E machines, blind judging.
The only variable left is the curve you build.

Roasteries
12
Machines
03 × GIESEN15-E
Green lot
1 COFFEE
Final
11.10.2026
Cupping line in the Munich roast hall: a row of sample bowls being poured with a gooseneck kettle
The venue · Munich roast hall · three stations

Three identical machines.
No excuses.

Stations
03
Judging
BLIND
Green lot
1 COFFEE
01 · Location
MUNICH 48°08'N 11°34'E

One venue at the centre of the region

Munich sits within a day's drive of every Alpine roasting country. Twelve roasteries, one hall, three stations.

City
MUNICH, DE
Position
48°08'N 11°34'E
Venue
ROAST HALL
Dates
09—11.10.2026
02 · Why enter

Put your name on the first title

Most roasting comparisons are anecdotes. This one removes the machine, the green and the name from the equation, then publishes the data. Twelve roasteries will leave Munich with a number they can stand behind.

Reason 01 / 04

Identical conditions

Same green, same machine, same window. What is compared is your decision-making, not your equipment budget.

Reason 02 / 04

Published data

Every curve and every reading is logged and published. You leave with a full record of your roast.

Reason 03 / 04

Twelve peers

Three days beside eleven other Alpine roasteries, cupping the same coffee under the same jury.

Reason 04 / 04

A title, once a year

Edition One. The first name on the board stays on it.

Line of dark-green roasting machines with hoppers and ducting in the Munich roast hall
Blind cupping: a hand lifts a spoonful of coffee from a sample bowl on a steel table
Competitor at the roaster, reading the log while pulling the sample trier
03 · Route to Munich

From entry to title

Seven steps between sending the form and the sheet being signed. Every date is fixed.

  1. Arrival and get together 08.10.2026 · 16:00 · Roast hall OPEN
  2. Day 01 — Station draw 09.10.2026 · 10:00 · Twelve competitors 10:00
  3. Day 01 — Round 01 · Calibration roast 09.10.2026 · 13:00 · Same green lot 13:00
  4. Day 02 — Cupping the calibration roasts 10.10.2026 · 09:00 · Twelve calibration roasts 09:00
  5. Day 02 — Round 02 · Competition roast 10.10.2026 · 13:00 · Three machines 13:00
  6. Day 03 — Round 03 · Blind cupping 11.10.2026 · 10:00 · Jury of five 10:00
  7. Day 03 — Winner announced 11.10.2026 · 14:00 · Results published 14:00
Competition dates 09‑11 OCT 2026

Competitors arrive the evening before day one. Machine familiarisation, the station draw and the calibration roast all happen on site.

  1. 01 · UNTIL 15.09.2026

    Send the form

    One competitor per roastery. Every entry that arrives before the deadline goes into the draw.

  2. 02 · +5 WORKING DAYS

    Entry received

    We confirm that your entry is in the draw. Nothing is charged at this point.

  3. 03 · AFTER 15.09.2026

    Twelve places drawn

    The twelve places are drawn at random from every entry received. Everyone hears the outcome, and those not drawn go on the waiting list. The twelve receive the entry pack, the rules and the invoice for the 150 € entry fee.

  4. 04 · SEPTEMBER 2026

    Green lot published

    The competition coffee is announced with its full green specification. No samples in advance.

  5. 05 · 08.10.2026

    Arrival and get together

    Machine familiarisation in the Munich roast hall from 16:00. Station draw follows on day one at 10:00.

  6. 06 · 09—10.10.2026

    Two roastdays

    Calibration roast on day one at 13:00. Day two opens at 09:00 with the cupping of all calibration roasts, competition roast at 13:00.

  7. 07 · 11.10.2026

    Winner announced

    Blind cupping by the jury at 10:00, winner announced and all roast data published at 14:00.

04 · The format
First championship on the new Giesen15-E

One coffee. Twelve curves. Judged blind.

Twelve roasteries from the Alpine region send one competitor each. Every competitor receives the same green lot and roasts it on one of three identical Giesen15-E machines. Every roast is logged and every reading is published.

Cupping is blind. Jury sheets are signed at the end of each round. Scores stay provisional until the stage jury signs the sheet.

Three rounds run across three days. Round one is the calibration roast: one batch to read the coffee and set a plan. Round two is the competition roast, one window, 40 minutes. Round three puts all twelve coffees on the cupping table in front of a jury of five who do not know whose bowl is whose.

ARC 2026 is the first championship roasted on the brand-new Giesen15-E. Three machines straight from the factory, identically specified and calibrated daily, in a hall in Munich. For most competitors it will be the first time they build a curve on this machine — and the roast log of every batch is published afterwards.

Twelve roasteries. One coffee. Three days in which the only thing separating them is how they read the roast.

Competitors
12
Rounds
03
Machine
GIESEN15-E
Title decided
11 OCT
The Giesen15-E: a dark grey drum roaster with hopper, cooling tray and trier
05 · Entry

Twelve places. Take one.

Send the form. Every entry that arrives before the deadline goes into the draw for the twelve places. Entering costs nothing; those drawn receive the entry pack, the green lot specification and the invoice.

Places
12
Entries close
15.09.2026
Entry fee
150 € IF DRAWN
Selection
RANDOM DRAW

Eligibility

  • Roastery based in: DE, CH, AT, IT, FR, SLO
  • One nominated competitor per roastery
  • Minimum one year of production roasting
  • Available on site 9—11 October 2026

Application deadline :

15.09.2026

Applications close 23:59 CET · the twelve places are then drawn at random

Entry form 01 / 12
Reply within 5 working days
06 · Partners

Who makes it measurable

Machines, green coffee and logistics are supplied by the partners below. Three days of competition, twelve roasteries, one published data set.

Presenting partner 01 / 02
Presenting partner 02 / 02
Water filtration 01 / 04
Espresso machines 02 / 04
Packaging 03 / 04
Green coffee 04 / 04

Partner packages for Edition One are open. Visibility before, during and after the championship, on site in Munich and in the published results.

Become a partner