Merry Christmas to all my readers old and new! I hope you’re having a great Christmas. As the year winds towards its end, it’s time for the Coffee Spot Awards, now into their SEVENTH year! It seems only yesterday that my friend Andrew Rilstone suggested the first Coffee Spot Awards. If only I’d have known what I was unleashing back then…

2018 has been another busy year, with plenty of travel, including one round-the-world trip, visiting Coffee Spots from Arizona to Thailand. The annual Coffee Spot Awards provides a chance for me to reflect on all the great places I’ve visited and to give them all some more well-deserved time in the limelight. As usual, there are 20 Awards, the shortlists for each being publishing between now and New Year’s Eve, with the winners being announced on New Year’s Day.

Thanks to everyone who’s visited the Coffee Spot, followed me on Twitter, liked my Facebook page, and looked at my pictures on Instagram. While I do this for the love of coffee, it means a lot to me that so many of you take the time to read and comment on my writing. Without you, it really would be pointless.

Before we go on, check out who won what in last year’s Awards in the gallery.

An elite panel of judges (me) gathered in a secret location (my Dad’s house) to spend literally minutes considering the following awards. However, before I introduce the awards themselves, a few statistics for 2018.

I published 207 articles (up from 188 last year) on the Coffee Spot (not including this one!). This included (last year’s numbers in brackets):

This year I published Coffee Spots from various countries, adding Thailand to the list for the first time, as well as making a long-overdue return to Montréal and a first visit to Rome. Closer to home, I also got back to Edinburgh for the first time in three years!

As I write, the Coffee Spot has almost 140,000 views this year, on a par with 2017. This is an average of 385 per day, with nearly 80,000 individual visitors to the Coffee Spot (up from 75,000 last year). These come from 155 countries (up four from 2017!!), with 64% of you coming from the UK (down from 69% in the previous years). And, for the first time ever, more than 15% of my visitors are from the USA.

Anyway, enough of the numbers. Without further ado, let’s see what the award categories are this year. Don’t forget that as the shortlists for each Award are published between now and New Year’s Eve, you will be able to click on the Award title to see who is in the running.

Most Unlikely Place to Find a Coffee Spot (2017 Winner: Lost Sheep Coffee)

Let’s face it, go to big cities such as New York, Edinburgh or Manchester and you expect to find good Coffee Spots. However, good Coffee Spots are everywhere, and some of them are in very unexpected places… This can either be geographically or a result of the Coffee Spot’s setting. Either way, this award recognises them.

Best Takeaway Coffee (2017 Winner: Lever & Bloom)

Takeaway coffee is tricky. Often the elements are against you and the surroundings might not be the nicest, so this award recognises those Coffee Spots who produce outstanding coffee against the odds.

Coffee Spot with the Best Basement (2017 Winner: Laynes Espresso)

Regular readers with know that I have a soft spot for Coffee Spots with great basements, and this award recognises them. A good basement can be a real boon, particularly in the winter months, where there’s nowhere better to wrap up warm and cosy!

Best Neighbourhood Coffee Spot (2017 Winner: The Moon & Sixpence)

A lot of the best Coffee Spots are those that are firmly rooted in their neighbourhoods, places that serve and reflect their local communities. This award is for them.

Coffee Spot with the Best Lighting (2017 Winner: London Grind)

Regular readers will also be aware that I also have a soft spot for coffee shop lighting, so this award ensure that those Coffee Shops with wonderful lighting are properly recognised.

Best Filter Coffee (2017 Winner: Café Integral, Chicago)

Writing the Coffee Spot has revolutionised the way I think of (and drink) filter coffee, introducing me to an amazing, delicate drink and opening my eyes to a whole new world of coffee. This award celebrates those Coffee Spots which have helped me on my journey.

Best Coffee Spot near a Railway Station (2017 Winner: Craft Coffee, King’s Cross)

When you’re desperate for good coffee, stuck in a railway station is rarely the best place to be. But what if there was a great Coffee Spot in the station, or just outside and you didn’t know about it? This award is for you…

Best Saturday Supplement (2017 Winner: Goodbye Ridley Place)

The Saturday Supplement is the place where I write about coffee, coffee kit and events without writing about specific places. This award recognises the best of them (note that Saturday Supplements where it’s just me writing about stuff aren’t included; this award is for the things I am writing about, not me!).

Best Outdoor Seating (2017 Winner: St Martin’s)

This award focuses on those Coffee Spots which provide the best environment for sitting outside. The Coffee Spot itself doesn’t have to be outside; anything with a decent outside seating area qualifies!

Best Espresso (2017 Winner: Federation Coffee)

Espresso is tricky. While my Sage Barista Express means I can now pull a reliable shot at home, I still admire those who can knock out shot after shot of high-quality espresso. This award is for those Coffee Spots which served me the best and most memorable espressos of the year.

Smallest Coffee Spot (2017 Winner: Root & Branch)

I have a special place in my heart for small coffee spots and this year the Coffee Spot continued to be full of them. Note that this is all subjective – I did not get my tape measure out at any point!

Best Cake (2017 Winner: Coffee Lab, Salisbury)

It’s not all about the coffee you know (despite what the tag line says). What would a cup of coffee be without a decent slice of cake to go with it? So, cake plays a major part in the Coffee Spot and this award celebrates the Coffee Spots which excel in the cake department.

Best Roaster/Retailer (2017 Winner: Carvetii Coffee Roasters)

While the Coffee Spot is mostly about places to have coffee, I drink the majority of my coffee at home (well, maybe not with all the travelling I do these days). This award recognises those wonderful who roast and sell me my coffee beans.

Best Overseas Coffee Spot (2017 Winner: Panther Coffee, Wynwood)

So far the Coffee Spot has made it to North America, various European cities and several countries in East and Southeast Asia. This year has been another manic one on the travel front, including first-ever visits to Thailand and Rome. I know it’s not quite the rest of the world (in particular I’ve still not made it south of the equator), but I’m getting there. This award celebrates the best Coffee Spots from outside the UK.

Best Physical Space (2017 Winner: Society Café, Bristol)

For me, a Coffee Spot is as much about atmosphere, layout and overall feel as it is about the coffee. This award celebrates those Coffee Spots which there’s a pure joy in just sitting there, soaking it all in.

Happiest Staff (2017 Winner: Westmoreland Speciality Coffee)

I think that staff are probably the most over-looked part of any Coffee Spot. Good staff can make a place and bad staff, no matter how great the coffee and wonderful the location, can kill a place. Everywhere that features in the Coffee Spot has great staff, but these were exceptional.

Best Breakfast (2017 Winner: Homeground Coffee + Kitchen)

Along with cake, breakfast has a special place in my heart, so-much-so that I started the Saturday Spot so that I could write about Coffee Spots where the coffee wasn’t up to much, but where the breakfasts were to die for! Of course, there are also plenty of places where both the coffee and the breakfasts are to die for!

Most Passionate About Coffee (2017 Winner: Coffee + Beer)

It’s not just about the coffee, it’s also about people who love and care about coffee. In fact, everyone who has been covered in the Coffee Spot is passionate about coffee and one of the great things is how much love there is out there. However, those shortlisted for this award stand out from the crowd.

Brian’s Coffee Spot Special Award (2017 Winner: Forte Espresso Bar)

This is a special award for those Coffee Spots which don’t quite fit into the other categories, but which nonetheless I absolutely love…

Most Popular Coffee Spot (2017 Winner: Made by Knock: Aergrind)

Finally, this is the only award not decided by me. It’s given to the Coffee Spot which received the greatest number of views (according to JetPack) in this calendar year. Since the Awards are meant to recognise what’s happened on the Coffee Spot this year, I’ve decided to exclude Coffee Spots published in previous years.

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And that’s it! All the shortlists have been published. Check back on New Year’s Day to find out who has won which Award!

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