Lisbon hosted a new stage of the Open de Cata 2026 circuit on May 2 and 3, over two days focused on sensory evaluation, coffee knowledge, and competitive cupping.

The event at Unity Coffee Roasters brought together coffee professionals from different Profiles, all ready to test their palate through a series of demanding exercises designed to challenge memory, perception and cup consistency.

Qualifiers

The competition began with the qualifying rounds, focused on Sensory Memory tests. Participants had to recognize and match coffees with very similar Flavour profiles, relying fully on their concentration and the accuracy of their sensory analysis.

Round after round, the competitors demonstrated great sensory discipline as they fought for a place in the next phase of the championship.

Final phases

On the second day, the level of difficulty increased with more advanced sensory tests that combined memory exercises and triangulations. Participants had to identify subtle differences between coffees while maintaining speed and accuracy.

The final stages reflected the high level of the specialty Coffee professionals who participated in the Portugal Pre Open, with very close results throughout the competition.

Winner

After two days of competition, Andrei Shelomentsev claimed victory in the Pre Open de Cata Portugal 2026. Violetta Yablovskaya took second place, while Ronald Felipe Morales Palomino completed the podium in third place.

With this result, Andrei Shelomentsev qualifies for the Open de Cata 2026, joining the international list of winners from the different Pre Open events.