Giannis Taloumis, with 30 years of experience in the coffee market, has been focusing on high quality coffee for the last 15 years. He has been awarded twice by the Specialty Coffee Association (2011, 2014) and is a member of the International Jury of the Cup of Excellence. He devotes a lot of time to the primary form of coffee, i.e. coffee plantations, through the program he has created at TAF: the Direct Relationship Program.

He provides bespoke services, with the aim of creating a new perception for consumers and professionals of quality coffee. His dedication to quality coffee has managed to inspire and introduce many people to the multidimensional world of specialty coffee.

He has served as the Head Roaster at Kudu Coffee for a decade, where he also trained competitors, leading several to championship titles. As a seasoned Q Grader and Barista Instructor with over 11 years of experience, his achievements include being the 2013 Greek Barista Champion and a World Champion Semifinalist. Additionally, he has consulted for roasteries and coffee chains, specializing in coffee production.

Co-founder of Kross Coffee Roasters in Chania.

He has been dealing with specialty coffee for 20 years and is a certified sensory judge by
the WCC.

He is excited to be a judge at this year's Hellenic AeroPress Championship, and he can’t
wait to share his love and passion for coffee with all the competitors.

Driven by a desire to understand every link in the coffee journey, Alexandros Foukis has traveled to coffee-producing countries to get to know and taste the raw material up close. He has visited Panama, Brazil, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Colombia. During his trip to Kenya in 2016, influenced by the sorting process, he envisioned the company Handpickers, which stands for the highest quality coffee and was founded in 2017.

He holds the title of Q Arabica Grader and has participated in Panhellenic coffee championships such as Barista, Latte Art, and Roasting. In 2013, he represented Greece at the Brewers Cup World Championship in Melbourne.

Born and raised in Verona, she moved to Portugal at 21, driven by a curiosity about coffee. There, she co-founded SO Coffee Roasters with two friends, starting in Porto and expanding to Lisbon. After five years, she relocated to Athens, where she currently brews coffee at Foyer Espresso Bar and manages QC and samples at Cofinet.

She has been competing in the Italian Brewers Cup for four years. What began as curiosity is now an annual passion, allowing her to showcase her love for coffee. The competition provides a chance to explore great coffees, connect with farmers, and intertwine personal experiences with her coffee journey.

She has been working in the coffee industry for over 13 years. She studied at the Economics department of Panteion University, but her passion for high-quality coffee led her to a different path. Currently, she works in the green coffee sector at El Cafe, travels to coffee-producing countries to find top-quality varieties, and serves as a judge in the Cup of Excellence competitions. Additionally, she delivers seminars for the Specialty Coffee Association as a certified trainer for the Coffee Skill Program and the Sustainability Program.

He has been professionally involved in the coffee industry for almost 17 years, was a finalist in the Greek Cup Tasters competition in 2022 and 2023 and has been working in specialty coffee since 2015. After working in various shops in the industry, he joined the Taf team in 2017 as barista trainer and quality control specialist.
Giannis always loved coffee, but when he got into specialty coffee, he realized and appreciated all the hard work that goes into a cup. Since then, he's been working to make sure all that effort shines in the final cup.