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Malaysian barista Tan Shing Win finished second at the 2026 World Barista Championship in Panama City, the best result ever by a Malaysian competitor. It was also his first time at the event. Malay Mail's follow-up on 3 November explains how he got there. (Malay Mail)
The result
The championship ran from 22 to 25 October. Pan Wei of China won, with Tan second and Frederick Ruben of the United Arab Emirates third. (Sprudge) Malaysia's previous best was Jason Loo's fourth place in 2025. (The Rakyat Post)
From a question on a camping trip
The idea behind his routine began outdoors. Tan and his coach, three-time Malaysian Barista Champion Keith Koay, often went camping and noticed that the same beans and recipe could taste different in hot, humid conditions. That curiosity led them to make moisture the centre of his routine, from processing at origin through to the final extraction. (Malay Mail, Malay Mail)
Competitors commonly choose different coffees for each course, but Tan used one washed Geisha throughout. The coffee came from El Pergamino, a Panamanian producer. (The Rakyat Post)
Made in PJ
Koay first met Tan in 2016 as a curious customer at One Half Coffee, his shop in Taman Paramount, Petaling Jaya, and later hired him part-time. Tan had studied finance and economics before moving into coffee, and he won the Malaysia Barista Championship in 2025. (Malay Mail, The Rakyat Post)
Asked about the result, Tan credited those around him, telling Malay Mail: "My coach, mentor and team believed in me."
Why it matters
It has been a good year for Malaysian coffee. In June, Nas Jaafar became the first Malaysian to win the World Brewers Cup. (SAYS) Two podium-level results in one year give home-grown baristas real names to look up to, and they show that careful everyday work behind a Malaysian bar can stand beside the best in the world.
If you want to try the local specialty scene for yourself, start with our specialty coffee listings.
Sources
- Beyond the podium: How Tan Shing Win's World Barista Championship triumph signals a new chapter for Malaysian coffee — Malay Mail, 2026-11-03
- Malaysia makes history as Tan Shing Win claims first-ever podium finish at 2026 World Barista Championship — Malay Mail, 2026-10-26
- Barista Malaysia, Tan Shing Win cipta sejarah berjaya raih podium di World Barista Championship 2026 — The Rakyat Post, 2026-10-27
- Pan Wei of China is the 2026 World Barista Champion — Sprudge, 2026-10-26
- Malaysian barista makes history by winning 2026 World Brewers Cup in Belgium — SAYS, 2026-06-29