Wenbo Yang Wins 2026 US Roasters Championship in Houston
Wenbo Yang of Story Coffee Bellevue took the 2026 US Roasters Championship this weekend in Houston, adding a roasting title to an already stacked collection of competition wins. The three-day event at Roastronix HQ drew 24 competitors through rounds of green coffee evaluation, sample roasting, cupping, roast curving, and audience service — the full gauntlet of skills that separate someone who roasts coffee from someone who roasts it competitively.
A Championship Hat Trick
Yang won the 2023 US Brewers Cup and the 2024 US Latte Art Championship before turning his attention to the roaster’s side of the equation. Winning across three disciplines makes him one of the most diversely accomplished competitors in US coffee history. Brewing, pouring, roasting — he’s now stood on top of all three podiums.
That kind of range doesn’t happen by accident. Yang has spent more than a decade in specialty coffee, working both bar and production sides of the business at Story Coffee in Bellevue, Washington. He’s built a reputation for understanding coffee from multiple angles, whether he’s dialling in extraction parameters, designing latte art patterns, or developing roast profiles.
The Houston Field
The final standings put Peter Shim of Olympia Coffee in second place, with Alex Huang finishing third. Steve Cuevas of Freelance Coffee Project — the 2017 US Cup Tasters Champion — placed fourth, followed by Zachary Steele of Talavera Coffee in fifth and Tony Auger of Goshen Coffee in sixth.
The Roasters Championship format tests competitors across the entire roasting process. Green coffee evaluation requires identifying quality indicators and defects. Sample roasting demands precision and consistency. Cupping assesses whether competitors can taste what they’ve created. Roast curving tests technical knowledge of how heat application shapes flavour development. And audience service evaluates communication skills — explaining what you’re doing and why.
What Comes Next
Yang heads to San Diego in April for the World of Coffee, where he’ll compete in the World Latte Art Championship representing the US. His 2024 national title earned him that spot, and he’s said he hopes to win the world championship for his latte art teachers.
The US Roasters Championship doesn’t send its winner to a corresponding world event, but the title carries significant weight domestically. Competition roasters often go on to lead production at major roasteries, consult on roast development, or start their own operations. For Yang, it validates what he’s already been doing at Story Coffee — roasting specialty coffee at a level that holds up against the best in the country.
Why This Matters
Most competitors specialise. Baristas compete in barista events. Roasters compete in roasting events. Latte artists pour patterns against other latte artists. The skills overlap, but the time investment to reach a competitive level in any single discipline is substantial.
Yang crossing over successfully from brewing to pouring to roasting suggests a coffee professional who approaches the craft holistically. He’s not just an excellent competitor — he’s someone who understands how all the pieces connect, from green selection through roast development to extraction and presentation. In a specialty coffee industry that sometimes silos knowledge by job function, that’s worth celebrating.