L-R, 4th place Bill Zheng, Runner Up, Olivia Lee, Champion Dennis Hsueh, 3rd place Daniel Woodhouse .
Photo credit: Justin Park
Dennis Hsueh to Represent Aotearoa at the World Latte Art Championship 2026
Dennis Hsueh will be representing Aotearoa New Zealand at the World Latte Art Championship at World of Coffee, San Diego, on April 10–12, 2026.
Held on Saturday, 14 June at The Sapphire Room, Ponsonby Central, Auckland, the Aotearoa Latte Art Championship 2025 brought together seven exceptionally talented competitors, each pouring their hearts out in front of a room full of coffee-loving spectators and expert judges.
The vibe? Electric.
Delicious coffee was flowing, the Knowledge Lab was a crowd favourite, and the room was buzzing with passion and community.
Thanks to our incredible sponsors, the latte art loving crowd was treated to a truly fantastic championship.
And of course, massive thanks to our sponsors, judges, volunteers, spectators, and supporters, without you, this event simply wouldn’t happen. We’re deeply grateful to this community. You are the magic.
Final Rankings & Scores
Champion: Dennis Hsueh – 443
Runner-up: Olivia Lee – 410
Third Place: Daniel Woodhouse – 361
Fourth Place: Bill Zheng – 354
Round One Scores & Rankings
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Bill Zheng – Auckland, Independent – 354
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Dennis Hsueh – Hamilton, Demi Café (supported by Coffee Supreme) – 348
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Daniel Woodhouse – Hamilton, Grey Roasting Co – 347
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Olivia Lee – Hamilton, Independent – 300
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John Huang – Hamilton, Demi Café – 285
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Hitoshi Araya – Wellington, Frank’s Coffee – 256
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Ryan Bird – Wellington, Frank’s Coffee – 254
People’s Choice – Art Bar-ish Champion
A special shoutout to Daniel Woodhouse, crowned Art Bar-ish Champion for the second time. His stunning tiger design, chosen via Instagram vote on @nzspeccoffee, captured hearts and earned him the Art Bar-ish Champion trophy. He took also home a black X54 grinder and additional goodies from AMC Roastery Supply and our amazing sponsors.
The people’s favourite, for good reason.
Latte Art Championship Overview Structure
This competition takes place over a day and consists of two rounds, a preliminary round and a final round. Each competitor competes in the initial round, and then the top four will compete again in the final round to determine the winner. The latte artist with the highest score will become the Aotearoa Latte Art Champion 2025. Please note that this is only a summary description of the event and that the Official Rules and Regulations outline and control the detailed structure and rules for this championship.
Many thanks to our sponsors:
Principal Sponsor: Meadow Fresh
Event Sponsors: La Marzocco, AMC Roastery Supply NZ, Cafetto, Acme CupCo, Atomic Coffee, Oatly
Official photos by Justin Park to follow.