Photo by Elli McGuire Photography
While the American Southeast may not be the first place that comes to mind when talking about specialty coffee, POUR Coffee Festival in North Carolina is hard at work to change that perception. Founded just last year, the festival is a collaboration between two local Charlotte residents, Diana Mnatsakanyan-Sapp and Matt Dudley.
This year, the festival will take place Sunday, March 10, at Lenny Boy Brewing in Charlotte, North Carolina, from 10 a.m.–3 p.m., allowing triple the venue space compared to the inaugural event. Other big changes this year include: a portion of all ticket proceeds will be donated to the Glitter Cat Barista Bootcamp, complimentary ceramic tasting mugs to reduce waste, and a dedicated education space that will share a series of free lectures. Tickets to the festival are available now, but act fast—last year’s event sold out days ahead of the festival.
Mnatsakanyan-Sapp notes that since it is a consumer-facing event, POUR allows for wide-reaching customer engagement in the region, where interest in specialty coffee has seen a major upswing.
