Double shots and dreams

DURBAN, South Africa – Latte champion Vincent Majola took his first sip of coffee at the age of 18. At the time, he was cleaning tables at a South African coffee chain, Mugg & Bean and said he knew nothing about coffee.  

But as Majola, now 30, witnessed the baristas making cappuccinos, he was captivated by the artwork created on the drinks.

During one of those shifts in 2016, Majola asked a coworker to show him how to make a cappuccino.

 “Since then, I didn’t turn back,” Majola said. 

Latte art, which became Majola’s specialty, refers to the designs created on the surface of a cup of coffee by pouring steamed milk and microfoam, or finely textured milk, into the drink. Majola learned his craft by watching YouTube videos to learn the basic techniques and how to draw patterns. 

“And then the fear, the love, the passion for latte art came about,” said Majola, who can now turn the top of a latte into an ostrich, eagle, dragon or African lion, to name a few.

‘Hungry for the win’

In early June, Majola competed nationally at the Specialty Coffee Association of South Africa championship after having placed first in the regional competition in April. The top three regional winners go on to the national competition. SCASA is a nonprofit membership organization that was created to foster a community of coffee professionals and enthusiasts throughout South Africa. Majola first started competing in 2018 after being encouraged by a former coworker.  

“I was like, ‘Wow, I’m very keen to start doing competitions’ because I wanted to put my name out there,” Majola said

In 2023, Majola had come in second place at regionals and nationals — a strong finish compared to his 2018 performance when he was disqualified for going over time. Majola was hopeful 2025 would be his moment to take home the gold, but he ended up with the silver again.

“I was very hungry for the win,” Majola said. 

Majola said he will keep trying, with the hope of representing South Africa overseas in an international competition, an opportunity awarded to the national winner. 

That perseverance has been a part of Majola’s journey from the beginning. Most people don’t even drink coffee in the Black township of Ntuzuma where Majola grew up, he said. 

But ever since those early days at Mugg & Bean, Majola has been on a mission. While working in 2020 at African Roots Cafe Restaurant, a coffee shop and restaurant in Durban, he decided he wanted to start his own coffee business.

“I had an awakening,” Majola said.

The coffee at African Roots was unlike anything Majola had ever tasted before. The richness and intensity of the coffee inspired Majola to begin making his own by starting a business. It was the beginning of the covid-19 pandemic, however. Shops were closed, and Majola was struggling financially. He didn’t have the funds to start a business.

From T-shirts to coffee

In July of that year, Majola came up with the idea of creating and selling T-shirts with the slogan “Nodoze,” which means “no sleep.” He got the name from “NoDoz,” a brand of caffeine tablets used for mental alertness and energy boosting, altering the spelling and punctuation to put his own twist on it. It became the name of his business as well.

Eventually, Majola was able to buy a machine and a grinder and began hosting pop-up events. These events helped him earn enough money to buy a food trailer in 2023 and take his business to the next level. Now, Nodoze Cafe is thriving as a mobile cafe on wheels that brings the coffee experience to events, corporate gatherings and weddings. 

“I wanted to share the passion and love for coffee to my community, also to give back to the Black township because they are less privileged,” Majola said. 

Majola’s passion for coffee and desire to give back to the township led to his  idea of starting barista training classes. In early June, the first official class took place at The Bean and Green Coffee Roastery in Bulwer, a Durban suburb just south of the city’s central business district. Majola is planning to hold these classes monthly but eventually hopes to make them weekly.

Currently, Majola is training some of his fellow barista friends in the coffee industry to help him with teaching the classes. 

“Since I’ve worked in different coffee shops, I always pick a few people that I know [ are] strong people in the industry,” Majola said.

Majola said his goal is to build a solid group of people who are passionate about coffee and who can work  together to teach these classes and grow his business.

Peter Winter, founder of The Bean Green Coffee Roastery, has watched South Africa’s coffee grow exponentially since he got involved 17 years ago — and that includes coffee art. While most South Africans still prefer instant coffee, according to Eighty20 market data, the roasted coffee business is booming, driven largely by younger South Africans and the rise of specialty coffee shops where baristas like Majola make their mark.

“They’ve progressed big time, from just a little blob in the middle of a cup of coffee and no art at all,” Winter said. “It’s good for the coffee industry.”

Bean Green barista Jennifer Kuzwayo, who has been working in the coffee industry since 2008, said she has never seen anything like Majola’s latte art. She plans to attend Majola’s barista classes to learn from him.

“I can’t even explain it,” Kuzwayo said. “At his age, he’s such a good latte artist.”

When it comes to teaching, the most important thing Majola wants people to know is that to be a good barista, you have to love coffee.

“I just tell them, you gotta find passion to it because without loving it, you cannot do it,” Majola said. “It is all about love and dedication.”