Timothy John Sahagun Sabandal of the Philippines bested eight baristas from South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar, India, East Malaysia, Bangladesh and Brunei in the 2019 APAC category in The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf’s recent 13th Asia-Pacific Barista Competition.
There are three categories: 2019 APAC Category, 2019 ME Category and 2018 World Category. Each contestant in each category served espresso shots, cappuccinos and their original signature drinks to a panel of judges within an allocated time.
Timothy Sabandal prepares his winning drink.
Aside from winning in the 2019 APAC Category, Timothy also won the Best Signature Drink alongside Korea.
The Best Signature Drink awards were given out separately to contestants who managed to captivate the judges with the originality, creative presentation and taste of their signature drink.
“My signature drink is named Jasmine Mojito, which uses CBTL’s Jasmine Dragon Phoenix Pearl green tea,” enthused Timothy, who has a degree in Hotel and Restaurant Management. “My experience in cocktail mixing back in college is what helped me conceptualize this beverage.”
CBTL Asia-Pacific contenders Rocky Xavier Costa of Bangladesh; Roselina Mat Kassim of Brunei, Rahul Gupta of India, Salleh bin Arula of East Malaysia; Thet Htar of Myanmar; Timothy John Sabandal of the Philippines; Nurul Farahin Bte Rusian of Singapore; and Changhee Choi of South Korea
According to Timothy, becoming a barista was something he didn’t plan.
“But I’m happy that I gave it a shot. I’ve always strived to be the best in what I do, but I didn’t expect to reach such great heights in my career in such a short amount of time.”
Timothy has been with The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf as a full-time barista for only two years, but he acts like a pro.
“CBTL honed my skills by giving me the best training from seasoned trainers,” says the young champ. “The company also nourished me by constantly giving constructive feedback and providing the necessary tools to help me get where I am today.”
The making of a champion
CBTL Philippines annually holds a Barista Competition in which all baristas in the company have a chance to compete. It starts on the store level and each representative competes inter-district. The contestants are further trimmed down to seven finalists.
The winner represents the Philippines in the regional competition — The CBTL 2019 World Barista Competition Asia Pacific.
“My training ranged from two weeks to two months for every leg of the competition,” shared Timothy. “Aside from perfecting my technical skills in making our core beverages, I was also taught how to improve my communication and presentation skills as this was a crucial aspect in the regional leg.”
With the proper training he got and the full support of his team, Timothy exuded confidence on the day of the competition, yet said he felt humble at the same time “because I was representing CBTL Philippines. I knew that I had my work cut out for me, having to compete with the crème de la crème of baristas in the region.”
Timothy admitted that he is competitive by nature. “But only because I’m very passionate about what I do. I’ve always trained myself to have a mindset of starting strong and finish stronger,” he added.
The winners in the other categories were Sarah Liwag of Qatar (2019 ME Category) and Sally Chen Huangjin of Singapore (2018 World Category).
This year’s APAC and ME champions, along with the American champion, will go head-to-head in next year’s Barista Competition under the World category.
As this year’s APAC champion, Timothy will slug it out in next year’s CBTL World championship.
To those who want to follow Timothy’s footsteps, the young barista shares, “Be passionate and have devotion to your craft. Step out of your comfort zone and don’t be afraid to take risks. There’s nothing you can’t do if you put your mind, effort and heart into it. Constantly keep an open mind and learn from your mistakes. And most importantly, believe in yourself.”