My Journey to Becoming the UAE AeroPress Champion 2024

Sonam Sherpa
Mar 9
3 min read

Updated: Mar 9

Hello, and thank you for taking the time to read this.

Let me introduce myself. I am Sonam Sherpa, a dreamer who makes a living by brewing coffee. I love making coffee taste amazing and sharing great experiences with people.

The moment when I was announced as champion.

It has been six months since I won the UAE AeroPress Championship 2024, and I wanted to write about it. This was my first coffee championship win, and so I want to keep this achievement alive through this article.

So, here I am, sitting in my room on Sunday, March 2nd, at 5:30 PM, sipping a really great Kenyan Natual brewed by our own flow dripper and writing my thoughts down.

Let’s begin with a big smile. 😊

A Competitive Spirit Since Childhood

Before I tell you about the exact moment I won, let me take you back a little.

I grew up in a very competitive environment. When I was in 4th grade, I used to compete with my cousin, Sanjok (if you are reading this, our childhood was awesome, right? 😆) to see who would get the highest marks in school.

It wasn’t just academic; I competed in poetry contests, football matches, and marathons. I always loved the feeling of trying my best and pushing myself.

And this love for competition brought me to the UAE AeroPress Championship.

The Big Day: August 3, 2024

The day was finally here: the UAE AeroPress Championship 2024 Finals.

Just a day before, I had won gold at the Ras Al Khaimah regional round, which gave me the confidence boost I needed.

I always compete with a relaxed mindset. I believe in preparing well, so that when it’s time to perform, I can just enjoy the moment. This time, I had spent weeks perfecting my recipe. On competition day, Puja and I calibrated with the competition coffee to ensure our recipe was as precise and avoid any variables. I was ready.

The rounds were intense. With each stage, the pressure grew. But I told myself, "Sonam, just focus on making clean, sweet, and balanced coffee."

And then it was time for the last final round.

The Championship Announcement Moment

That intense moment is still fresh in my mind. The hall was packed with the coffee community, and the three of us finalists stood in front of the crowd, waiting.

We were each given a color code to identify our cup, and I was blue.

Our three cups sat on the table between us and the crowd, already judged. All that was left was the final announcement, the moment everyone had been waiting for.

The MC started the announcement with really high energy and started mentioning the first runner-up.

“The first runner-up is... Black!”

Now, it was just two of us left—Green and Blue.

The feelings inside me were overwhelming, a mix of excitement, nervousness, and anticipation. To calm myself, I started revisiting my recipe, going over every step I had just completed. However, somewhere deep inside, my gut feeling whispered to me, "You've come this far. You got this."

Within that process of mix thoughts, the moment has arrived.

The MC announced:

“The UAE AeroPress Champion 2024 is... BLUE!”

For a second, I couldn’t believe it, and then I felt pure happiness.

Now, I am The UAE AeroPress Champion 2024.

And my friends started running towards me to celebrate, and together, we celebrate like champions.

Beyond Winning: Learning from Failure

Winning felt amazing, but I also believe losing is important too.

I won the UAE AeroPress Championship after five continuous attempts; it was a journey filled with learning, growth, and persistence.

In 2023, I had a similar moment at the UAE National Barista Championship. I made it to the final lineup but finished in 4th place. That loss taught me a lot about resilience, preparation, and the importance of never giving up, and I'm still on it.

I learned that failure is part of the process. It helps us to improve, create a new mindset, and bounce back stronger.

Life is the same. We win some, we lose some, but we always learn.