After four years of competing in the Barista discipline, coffee professional Nick Spanoudakis made an unexpected switch to Coffee in Good Spirits (CIGS) — and won the national championship in Swiss. Owner of two shops in Zurich under the name Commercial, Nick is no stranger to the pressure of high-level coffee competitions, nor to the intense workload of running a growing business. Just weeks ahead of the World stage, we sat down to talk about cocktails, coffee, and wine from Crete — and why this might be his last year competing.

You’re almost there. Are you ready?

Yes. Ready? Yes. Excited? Also yes. Stressed? Definitely yes. The tricky part is: I also run the shops. That takes time.

Why did you decide to compete in CIGS?

Well, I had been competing in the Barista category for four years in a row. But at the end of 2024, I didn’t want to do that again. Barista competition requires so much preparation, and I had just opened my second shop—two weeks before the Swiss Nationals. I wanted to compete, but not in something that would consume all my time. So, I went for CIGS—just for fun. And I won.

How did you come up with your cocktail?

I had a good presentation. I used my father’s wine together with a great Colombian coffee. Someone told me it was one of the best cocktails they had tasted. I’m not going to use the exact same one for the World stage—I’ll use more local ingredients this time.

Why the switch to more local ingredients?

Because in the bar world, "local" translates to "sustainable." That’s it. If you highlight regional products and still get an amazing result, it scores well. Everyone’s using yuzu these days—we’ve seen it. I’m doing something local.

Tell me more about your father’s wine.

It’s a sweet, sun-dried wine made in small quantities—a very old variety. It’s not a typical dessert wine; it’s more like a sweet cognac. The first time I had it, I was hungover. My dad insisted I try it. I ended up drinking almost the whole bottle—it was so good. It has aromas of coffee, chocolate, berries… My father is a traditional winemaker in Crete, Greece. But this wine takes a lot of grapes, and the yield is tiny. It’s kind of like making wine from raisins—but not fully dried.

Did you know you were going to use that wine for CIGS when you tasted it?

Not at all. That came later. When I decided to do CIGS for fun, I remembered that wine—it had coffee-like aromas. And mixing coffee with alcohol is tricky. You need something that connects the two. A sweet wine, maybe a liqueur… I was hoping this would work—and it did.

What coffee will you use on the world stage?

I’ll be using a coffee from Lohas Beans. It’s floral, herbal, fruity. If I manage to roast it the same way again, it’ll be great. The wine will represent my heritage—Crete, Greece. But because of this specific coffee, I can tie everything together.

You were with us in Colombia. What was your impression of the farms?

It was a dream trip. But I had a lot on my plate—opening the second café, coaching two competitors, supporting someone in Spain. Still, I was incredibly excited to be in Colombia. When I left, I realized just how beautiful the entire experience was. And to be honest, Pitalito and Bruselas were the most special places. Las Flores on the first day in Pitalito—nothing really topped that. 

You’ve got three weeks to go. Are you feeling ready?

It’s all about repetition now. Routines, routines, routines.

Do you have a coach?

No coach. But I do have help. The team from MAME, and Matt, who’s helping with coffee profiling.

You seem calm.

There’s still a lot to do—but I know how to do it. It’s just that… there’s always something else to take care of.

Will you keep competing in the future?

No, I don’t think so. I need a break. This is my fifth year in a row. I’ll still help and coach others. I also want to start my own roasting brand, supply the shops, expand. But with competing, that’s not realistic right now.

You have two shops in Zurich. Will you really be able to rest?

From competition? Yes. I’ll still go to coffee festivals, but I want to step back from the pressure. Don’t get me wrong—I love it. I want to contribute something real. And that’s what I’ll try to do in Geneva. You’ll see. It’s going to be fun.