Arnon Thitiprasert
Thailand
RISTR8TO
Please tell us a little about yourself:
Founder of Ristr8to and Ristr8to Lab (Chiang Mai, Thailand), Co-founder of Doppio Ristr8to (Chiang Mai, Thailand) , Ristr8to (Singapore). Cocktail drinker, world traveler.
How did you get started in coffee?:
In Australia in 2007, when I started work as an all-rounder in café where the World Latte Art Champion of that year was also working there. After seeing him doing latte art on one of my first mornings working there I just thought, this is damn cool, and this would be a job that I would love to do. Then I asked him for a coffee, which was the first cup of coffee in my life, and I have had passion in the different aspects of coffee since then.
Please list the coffee competitions you have participated in, what year they took place, and your results:
World Latte Art Championship
2011, Maastricht : 6th place
2015, Gothenburg : 5th place
2016, Shanghai : 11th place
2017, Budapest : 1st place
World Latte Art Battle
2017, Seoul : 1st place
Thailand National Coffee in Good Spirits Championship
2019, Bangkok : 1st place
What are you excited to do in Berlin?:
Have fun and do my best in competition, make friends, drink good coffee, enjoy the bar scene, and have a good time hanging out with my staff—we are taking 4 of them with us to do a staff tour after finishing the competition).
What was your first amazing experience with coffee?:
To see the World Latte Art Champion pour in front of your eyes and have cup of coffee from him in 2007. For a 21 year old who could not even speak English, trying to get a job in Australia back then, this is still a clear memory for me these days. I’d also like to mention my second amazing experience with coffee, when I had a coffee cocktail from one of hidden bars in Tokyo in 2012. I was amazed by the texture and flavour, and that made me fell in love with coffee cocktails for the first time.
Besides your own competition drink, do you have a favorite cocktail?:
Americano (as a cocktail, not coffee).
What coffee-producing country interests or excites you most?:
Ethiopia, Brazil, Colombia, Panama, and Thailand. I know the question asks what excites me most, but they are all interesting in different ways.
What are your interests outside of coffee?:
Music, fashion, traveling, adventure, cocktails, party, and night life.
Where do you see yourself in five years?:
I see myself having fun making coffee, cocktails, and running my Ristr8to business, enjoying partying and traveling (maybe a little less than now), have a good balance in my life, and having more time with my family.
Is there anyone you would like to thank or recognize, or who helped you to prepare for the WCIGS?:
My partner in crime Joey Mah, (Malaysia); the Ristr8to team (Chiang Mai, Thailand); and my inspiration, The Underdog team (Greece).
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