Groovygear Senior Member Joined: 17 Jan 2005 Posts: 71 Location: Montreal Expertise: I like coffee
Espresso: Elektra Deliziosa Grinder: Mazzer Major, Zassenhaus... Drip: What'd you call me? Roaster: Grain D'Or, Terra, Toi Moi...
Posted Mon May 2, 2005, 7:06am Subject: Re: Best espresso blend in MTL?
To paraphrase a home-roaster friend of mine here in Montreal, this city is a bit of a wasteland when it comes to good coffee. There is a lot of coffee, certainly, and a lot of commercial, small-scale roasters, but nobody doing remarkable Italian style blends.
I also buy the Espresso Italia blend from Cafe Union from time to time - especially since it's ostensibly the one served at Cafe Italia. So far, though, the best beans I've had here come from Toi, Moi, et Cafe. It's on Laurier at Jeanne Mance. Espressone is their most popular, and my favorite.
There are others in town, some enjoy Aux Deux Marie on St Denis, and Cafe Agga is a retail supplier carried in some fine food stores, notably Le Fouvrac. A warning away from fancy Italian imports (you know the brands I mean) - this coffee, even with its layer of preserving gases, is often long out of the roaster, and not worth its high price.
But to put things in perspective, I had a chance to try some Vivace Dolce (shipped green from Seattle and freshly roasted) and it put everything I have tasted from Montreal to shame. So there is still room out there for a great blender and roaster in Montreal.
Posted Mon May 2, 2005, 7:47am Subject: Re: Best espresso blend in MTL?
For some reason I loooooooove Kenya AA Brown. And for me the best place to get that one type is at the Brűlerie St-Denis ... the one downtown. But don't drink anything that they serve there. They put icky chocolate bits on their drinks and the foam is well ... like styrofoam.
richardtempura Senior Member Joined: 21 Apr 2005 Posts: 236 Location: Montreal, Canada Expertise: I live coffee
Espresso: Rancilio Silvia Grinder: Mazzer Major (Rio)
Posted Mon May 2, 2005, 8:13am Subject: Re: Best espresso blend in MTL?
Everytime I get a latte or a capuccino at the brulerie, it's way too hot!!!! Guess they don't know how to steam milk properly.... Before I bought Miss Sylvia, I'd always get my latte @ Starbucks or Café Olympico. I know Starbucks is kinda crappy sometimes, but for a latte, they're good. But now, making my own latte/cappu/espresso at home is SO much nicer! I should get some blends and singles from a few places and taste-test them. What would you get? (10 types...?)
Posted Mon May 2, 2005, 7:55pm Subject: Re: Best espresso blend in MTL?
The Faema store on Jean-Talon also serves a pretty good capuccino but I haven't tested the beans they sell. They don't seem to roast on site and I don't know where they get them.
Exnyerinmontreal Senior Member Joined: 24 Feb 2003 Posts: 61 Location: Montreal Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Andreja Premium Grinder: MACAP M4
Posted Tue May 3, 2005, 1:28pm Subject: Re: Best espresso blend in MTL?
I had been buying the beans they use and sell at Faema (Ludinesse Cafe, in vacuum sealed bags) until I recently upgraded my setup. Since then I've gone through some Black Cat from Intelligentsia, Metropolis Redline, and I've got some Ambrosia coming from Caffe Fresco. In the meantime, I'm using a blend of Espresso Special and Espresso Bar from Union Cafe, which unfortunately does not hold a candle to any of these "imported" blends. It's a much darker, more oily roast than these others and the resulting flavors are a bit too sharp for my tastes.
It's a shame, but I think I'm going to have to keep paying those shipping charges :)
Groovygear Senior Member Joined: 17 Jan 2005 Posts: 71 Location: Montreal Expertise: I like coffee
Espresso: Elektra Deliziosa Grinder: Mazzer Major, Zassenhaus... Drip: What'd you call me? Roaster: Grain D'Or, Terra, Toi Moi...
Posted Wed May 4, 2005, 6:39am Subject: Re: Best espresso blend in MTL?
Yeah, I know what you mean, Mike. Cafe Union, for all its market share, doesn't really make a satisfying, smooth blend, and tends to roast too dark. This makes me suspicious of the actual quality of the beans they sell - perhaps the dark roast is the best way to homogenize a mediocre product.
It is very tempting to start to list off the places not to go, either for beans or for drinks. Suffice it to say that atmosphere seems to be the determining factor for me in terms of the latter. I love Cafe Italia and Club Social, and also adore the Cafe Olympico (Open da Night). The coffee is fresh, made with love, and the scene is endlessly fascinating. On the other hand, the Brulerie St Denis, for all its show, is like a brightly lit Second Cup when it comes to coffee.
RKEM Said:
For some reason I loooooooove Kenya AA Brown. And for me the best place to get that one type is at the Brűlerie St-Denis ... the one downtown. But don't drink anything that they serve there. They put icky chocolate bits on their drinks and the foam is well ... like styrofoam.
This problem is everywhere. Almost nobody does anything but overstretch to stiff dishwater foam, then scald the milk. At Cafe Italia, they do very high volume, use homogenized milk (3.5%), and don't overstretch or overheat, so it still comes out yummy, but it's still not microfoam in the true sense of the word.
The real problem seems to be that most people - baristi and clients alike - don't know that there is any other way to steam milk. Most people seems to think that a big heap of tasteless foam on top of some bitter 'espresso' = cappuccino/latte. That's clearly good enough for the market, so until someone raises the bar, it will remain that way across the board.
Another issue may be more delicate. That is the old-country issue. The people of Italian descent that have come to North America are predominantly from the South of the country. This is traditionally a poorer region, and one that is not currently in vogue for its cuisine.
More desirable to modern gourmets is the cuisine (and coffee) of the North of Italy, a more affluent region that saw much less emigration over the last 150 years. I am talking about Tuscany, Amalfi, and the whole Milan region. This is the source of the lighter roasted espresso blends so prized by North American non-Italian espresso lovers.
The reason I see it as delicate regards the superiority/inferiority complex that characterizes the public relationship between these two parts of the same country. Basically, it is insulting to suggest to someone from one area that something from another area might be preferable (even if it's only a personal opinion). I guess it might be the equivalent of telling a Kentucky barbeque specialist that you prefer Texas brisket, except with centuries more history.
So until someone without these biases gets into the game, we in Montreal anyway will be stuck with what we have - dark oily beans, and indifferent baristi (with some notable exceptions).
Posted Wed May 4, 2005, 2:39pm Subject: Re: Best espresso blend in MTL?
Over the past year and a half I've been purchasing on a weekly basis roasted Espresso Bar beans from Cafe Union. About 3 months ago, I noticed a significant drop in the quality of this blend. I mentionned it to a lady that works their and she suggested I try the Italia blend. So I did. The results were acceptable but not much better. Beans were dark, oily, and lacked the heady aroma freshly ground quality coffee gives out.
On some occasions, I bought espresso beans roasted by Cafe Creme. The espresso shot looks good but the taste is a litttle too acid for me.
A few weeks ago, while attempting to avoid traffic I drove by Terra Cafe www.terracaf.ca. I went in and was amazed by the huge selection of beans. I ordered a double ristretto in order to taste their product. The barista did all the right things (cleaned doser of old coffee, set grinder, ground a fresh batch, filled pf with fresh grounds, level, tamp, etc). The result was outstanding. She explained that they use a house blend called Goccia d'Oro to make espresso drinks. I was sold. I bought some Goccia d'Oro beans and could not wait to get back home to try them out. Since then, family, friends and myself have been very satisfied by the home drinks made using Terra's Goccia d'Oro blend.
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