Elin Karlsson’s first memory about coffee is her family making their special coffee at home in Ljungby, a small town in Sweden: strong filter coffee, milk frothed with an electric whisk, a splash of vanilla syrup. Not exactly a third wave experience, but the instinct was already there. Coffee as a ritual. Coffee as something worth treating with a little extra care. That instinct has never left her.
Elin´s story in coffee includes winning the Swedish AeroPress Championship in 2023 as the first woman ever to do so, competing at the World Aeropress Championship in Melbourne, placing Runner-up at the Swedish Cup Tasters in 2024, and being nominated for Barista of the Year in Sweden in 2025.
The specialty coffee community has a way of holding onto its people, and Elin is exactly the kind of person it holds onto: curious, warm, genuinely in love with the craft, and deeply shaped by the connections she has built along the way. She competes, she learns, she champions decaf, and she believes with complete certainty that coffee is for everyone. We cannot wait to have her back behind a welcoming bar or competition stage since she truly shines there!
Elin, what is your first memory with coffee?
One of my first memories with coffee has to be from when I was younger and we made what we called ´Luxury coffee´ at home. My parents made “strong” filter coffee in the coffee maker, heated up some milk and frothed with an electric IKEA whisk and added a splash of vanilla syrup. Maybe not what I’d classify as luxurious today but it is one of my fondest memories of treating coffee as something special.
What inspired you to pursue a career in the coffee industry, and how did you get started? What did you do before coffee?
I’ve always worked within hospo, starting at a café during High School and later as a waitress at a local pub after graduation. What started my career in coffee was an interview for a barista job at a big coffee chain. At the group interview, they put up a slide showing the career ladder within the company. I saw the title Master Barista and decided then and there, that’s what I want to be. The more I learned about coffee, the more I wanted to know and the interest just kept growing.
Apart from working as a barista, one of the most important parts in me wanting to pursue a career in coffee is actually another barista. Andreas, who runs Bönan & Mustaschen in Växjö. He is one of my biggest inspirations and has truly influenced my way of thinking of coffee. He puts such pride in working with both an amazing product but also such fantastic people! The feeling of togetherness he has created at the coffee bar is unlike any other and is one of the things which has made me believe in myself as a coffee person and barista.
Can you walk us through your career?
I got the job as a barista at the coffee chain and started taking more responsibility for the coffee quality and got enrolled in a few barista training programs within the company. Soon after the pandemic, I applied for the Master Barista training and got a spot! A couple of months after finishing the training, I moved to a town slightly bigger than my home town and started working at a café with the ambition to help improve their coffee. At the same time I ended up as a regular at Bönan & Mustachen and spent most of my free time there. The connections and the community led me to sign up for my first ever coffee competition, SAC 2023. I somehow won the whole thing and went to Australia to compete in the WAC. One of the coolest experiences I’ve ever had!
A couple of weeks after I got home from the trip, I got a job offer at a roastery in Kalmar and moved there soon after. I started working in the roastery, packing coffees, doing barista trainings for our local customers and went to events serving coffees. Later on, I started roasting, learning some basic machine maintenance and doing more events like cuppings and brewing sessions with customers. I also worked as a barista and trained new baristas for a bakery opening as a side project to the roastery. I worked at the roastery until spring 2025.
After the roastery, I had the honour of working with one of my best friends Xandra at Xentas Kaffebar in Borgholm, Öland. Her and her family opened the doors to the coffee bar last summer and I had the privilege of helping out as a barista during their first summer.
What kind of experience did you want your guests to have when they try your coffee?
What I want to experience myself when visiting a cafe is of course an incredible coffee, but more importantly I want to be met with compassion. This is also what I want my guests to experience when I’m behind the bar. I strive to meet each guest´s expectations and have them leave the shop feeling content. If that means guiding someone through our entire selection of beans and gear or help with brewing tips, I’m ready! For others, I simply provide them with that cup of coffee they decided to treat themselves to after a shitty day and add a friendly smile. I want to make sure that for whatever reason they decided to walk through the doors, they leave feeling it was a good decision. I love being a barista and I want it to show!
How do you stay motivated and inspired to keep improving your coffee-making skills?
A lot of my motivation comes from my friends and the coffee community. I am fortunate to have made so many skilled friends through the years who keep me on my toes and inspire me to keep learning and develop my own skills! One in particular is José of La Clara Coffee Roasters who has been one of my biggest inspirations since we first came in contact 3 years ago and is now one of my closest friends.
What are some common misconceptions about our industry that you’ve encountered, and how do you address them?
That specialty coffee is pretentious and just for snobs. It certainly is not! Coffee is for everyone who wants to be a part of it. My way of addressing it is to try and open up the topic for discussion to spark some curiosity and prove the opposite. I want to show that the coffee community is warm and welcoming, made for all people.
To me it’s a ritual, where the brewing part is just as valuable as enjoying the final cup.¨– Elin
What are the current trends in cafes in your region? Are there any trends you promote yourself and would like to see more often in other places?
Decaf! Personally, I drink coffee for the taste and not the caffeine so as long as it’s tasty I’m all for it. The fact that I can have a cup at 8pm and still fall asleep an hour later is just awesome. The decaffeination methods now seem to preserve the profile of the coffee really well so now you don’t have to compromise on the flavour to cut back on the caffeine, which I think plays a huge role. There’s everything from a daily driver to quite exclusive stuff available now too, not just heavy and dark roasted. This is my favourite trend to promote and one which I hope is here to stay!
You have some amazing achievements in championships. Can you tell us more about them?
My first ever competition within coffee was the Swedish Aeropress Championship 2023 where I took first place and got to represent Sweden in the World Championship in Melbourne.
I’ve also competed in Swedish Cup Tasters in 2024 and placed 2nd Apart from that, I competed in Brewers Cup and Cup Tasters in 2025 and then a few latte art throwdowns, if they count! [Editor’s note: Of course they do count!]
What are the next championships you’d like to compete in?
Next one will be the Swedish AeroPress Championship again. I wish to give both Brewers Cup and Cup Tasters another shot in the future too. I’ve been thinking about Latte Art, but just for fun. Latte Art Throwdowns are fun too so I hope to do a few of those, wherever they may pop up!
What, in your opinion, is the most important thing to have in mind when you start to compete in coffee championships?
Do it for yourself! Take it from someone who got the stage fright at her first SCA competition and was totally devastated afterwards thinking I failed everyone around me. What matters is not how you perform on stage but rather that you’re getting up there. That is what’s impressive. Also, competitions are a great way of meeting new people and learning from the best in the game. You won’t regret it!
If there were one piece of knowledge about coffee you’d like everyone to know, what would that be?
How diverse coffee actually is! Not just dark and bitter but rather floral, sweet, juicy and fresh. Drinking coffee can be way more than just an automated routine. To me it’s a ritual, where the brewing part is just as valuable as enjoying the final cup. Also that coffee is a fruit, not a bean. That one surprises quite a few!
What are your passions and hobbies apart from coffee?
Aside from coffee, I like fitness and nutrition. Recently got into running but I also like hitting the gym. Exercise is a great excuse to have another coffee cause then I’ll make use of the excess caffeine hehe! Just relaxing and watching youtube or Friends with my cat probably counts as one of my hobbies too.
Where in your city do you find your best inspiration?
Honestly, at home. It might be a quite boring answer but I love being in the comfort of my own space. If not at home, I would have to say at Bönan & Mustachen in Växjö, a city about 40 minutes from here. Does that count as close enough? [Editor’s note: It does :)]
What coffee challenges are you looking forward to? Any new projects or collaborations?
First challenge would be the AeroPress Championship. Apart from that I might have a few small collaborations with some roasteries but I can’t really say much more than so.
Quick Fire Questions for Elin:
Filter coffee or espresso-based?
Filter coffee (Tough one though!).
How do you make coffee at home?
AeroPress or pour over.
The most underrated coffee drink?
Cortado.
The most underrated coffee brewer?
Chemex. I said what I said!
No.1 café in Europe that every coffee geek should visit?
Nordic Brew Lab for sure!
What’s your favourite city to have a specialty coffee tour outside of your city, and why?
In Sweden it’s Gothenburg where most of our roasteries are based. Internationally it’s Melbourne. Incredibly high overall standard and so many spots to try out!
