Served with 6 seconds to spare

Carl Sara competes under the watchful gaze of the judges in Seattle yesterday.

SEATTLE - The Kiwis in the crowd looked uneasy. Carl Sara had less than 90 seconds to finish crafting his signature coffee drink when he hit a big snag: the cream was so thick it wouldn't pour from his cocktail shaker.

That never happened during training, when Sara stayed up late for months practicing on a pricey espresso machine he installed at his Christchurch home.

But not everything went to plan on Saturday.

"One minute," said the announcer.

Sara, sweating, was working fast. He whipped the top off the shaker and added more cream, thinning the mixture. He knew a time penalty would kill his chances of making the last six for tonight's final.

"Thirty seconds," said the announcer.

The competition works like this: each barista has 15 minutes to serve an espresso, a cappuccino and a signature drink to four judges - a dozen drinks in all. Judges look for taste, temperature, creativity and technique. Most competitors - Sara included - keep up a verbal patter throughout.

In five previous championships, Scandinavians have dominated, with two Norwegians and two Danes winning. The exception came two years ago when Australian Paul Bassett took the title.

"C'mon boy," shouted a Kiwi in the crowd as the seconds slipped by.

There were at least 30 New Zealanders supporting him. His mum and dad. His business partner at two Muffin Break franchises. Other Muffin Break workers. Even the guy from Albany who roasted the beans. Most wore specially made black shirts with a silver fern and logo: "It is all about the coffee."

Seattleites live and breathe that motto. There are coffee bars, coffee stands and - of course - coffee drive-thrus everywhere. Gazing down from up high is the giant mermaid atop Starbucks' world headquarters.

When Sara arrived in Seattle a few days before the competition, he needed some basics.

He went to a supermarket and bought every kind of milk, testing how each of the American products reacts to a steamer arm. He also tracked down a special type of mandarin, so he could use the zest in his signature drink. Other ingredients in the drink included New Zealand "honey dew" honey, egg whites and cinnamon.

He named it "Insomnia" after all those late nights practising.

So what caused the cream to thicken?

Sara thinks it was probably because the championships were late getting started. Instead of waiting 10 minutes behind the stage, he waited an hour. The freshness of the American cream may also have been a factor.

"No problem with the time," said the announcer as Sara placed his Insomnias in front of the judges and smiled.

He had six seconds to spare.