Results – Aotearoa Latte Art Championships 2026

2026 Aotearoa Latte Art Champion:

Daniel Woodhouse, Grey Roasting Co.

Daniel built his routine around Sir Isaac Newton’s line about seeing further by standing on the shoulders of giants. His message was simple: when you study a champion’s work, you end up mastering the techniques behind it, and every artist is shaped by the artists who came before them. Rather than reinventing the wheel, he chose to honour two designs by champions who have paved the way.

Design 1: The Gorilla (by Jacky Chang, Malaysian Latte Art Champion)

• Built on the continuous drag technique
• Six rosettas to shape the head
• Face, eyes, nose and mouth created in one single movement

Design 2: The Raccoon Bala (Shao Sing Lin) from Taiwan, (current World Latte Art Champion)

• Built on the invert technique, focusing on the detail created with the brown crema rather than white milk foam
• Five rosettas in a triangular shape to form the head
• Dragging to create the ears and mask
• Muzzle shaped with wet foam, filled with white while preserving the brown to create the nose and smile
• Extra detail added to the eyes for a more realistic finish

Daniel closed by saying how grateful he is to be a latte artist at a time when knowledge from these giants is so accessible, and that he hopes to inspire the next generation himself one day. Daniel will go to the World Latte Art Champs next year in Lisbon, Portugal, to represent Aotearoa.

Huge congratulations and immense effort from all 12 competitors who stepped onto the stage last Sunday. The quality of work was high, and it was great to have the highest number of competitors in the last couple of years.

Final Round

Preliminary Round