Bogota has landed a first for South America: World of Coffee, the specialty coffee industry's international trade show, will set up in the Colombian capital from September 30 to October 2, 2027 — and it brings two world championships with it.
The World Brewers Cup will pit manual brewing specialists against each other, with competitors preparing filter coffee in front of international judges. It's not just about a tasty cup; contestants are scored on how they control grind size, water temperature and other variables, and on how well they explain their choices. The World Cup Tasters Championship is faster and more nerve-shredding: tasters get trios of cups where two hold the same coffee and one doesn't, and must spot the odd one out quickly and accurately. Both events reward the same underlying skill — recognising what makes a coffee distinctive, from acidity and sweetness to body and aroma.
The timing matters as much as the location. 2027 marks the centenary of the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia, founded in 1927 to represent the country's farmers. Coffee has long been central to Colombia's identity and economy, though the sector currently grapples with rising production costs, weather pressures and the push for better grower incomes. Putting the world's coffee spotlight on Bogota is a chance for Colombian producers to show off the range and quality of their beans on home soil.
For travellers, this is a rare excuse to time a Colombia trip around something genuinely special. The show itself is a trade event, but its presence signals a city buzzing with cuppings, pop-up brews, visiting champion baristas and industry side-events, many of which spill into cafes open to the public. And Bogota is a natural base for exploring Colombia's coffee heartland — the departments of Caldas, Quindio and Risaralda (the 'coffee axis') are a short flight away, with hacienda stays and farm tours that have improved markedly in recent years.
If you're already a specialty coffee enthusiast, early autumn 2027 in Bogota should be on the calendar. If you just like good coffee and interesting cities, the championships will bring world-class baristas to neighbourhood cafes across the capital anyway.
Story via Colombia One.
