Kuching Coffee Week a boon to Sarawak’s tourism, says minister

KUCHING (Aug 12): The Kuching Coffee Week event has assisted in boosting the number of visitors coming to Sarawak, said Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.

The Minister for Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts said event organiser, Borneo Cultures Museum Restaurant, was successful in gathering international experts of the coffee industry to the state for knowledge sharing purposes.

“I’m quite surprised to see that there are a huge number of followers who are interested in the coffee industry. It’s a good sign when the organiser is able to bring in international experts who are knowledgeable in their craft into Sarawak.

“Aside from promoting coffee, the event does help with the state’s tourism industry. Whoever visits Sarawak is an added number to the overall sum of tourists,” he said.

He said this when officiating the event’s closing ceremony at Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus here yesterday.

During the event, a total of 18 participants had the opportunity of learning how to brew filtered coffee, which was led by Australian Brewers Cup champion Tom Hutchins alongside his coach Patrick Dann.

Later in the afternoon, talks were held regarding sustainable practices of cultivating coffee beans, as well as the model of a regenerative coffee farm.

Moreover, the winners of the event’s ‘Mastery Latte Art Showdown’ competition were announced, with Abdul Karim presenting the prizes to the winners.

The first place winner was awarded to Kevin Chung, who brought home RM3,500.

First runner-up Kevin Chew took home RM2,500, while second runner-up Angie Liaw bagged RM1,500.

The event was supported by the Ministry of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts, in collaboration with the Malaysian Specialty Coffee Association, Uchimono and Mono Coffee.