Is there any cafe that uses a lever espresso machine in Montreal?

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kreyszig
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Joined: 14 years ago

#1: Post by kreyszig »

Is there any cafe that uses a lever espresso machine in Montreal? I would be interested to taste it...

Thanks!

psavoie
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#2: Post by psavoie »

Cafe St-Henri on Emery St, they are beside the quartier latin cinema on St-Denis
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Caf%C3%A9 ... 0326539502
They serve the god shot blend as espresso, quite good.

kreyszig (original poster)
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#3: Post by kreyszig (original poster) replying to psavoie »

Thanks! I just came back from Montreal, but I will stop by the next time I go.

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mariobarba
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#4: Post by mariobarba »

I don't think St-Henri uses a lever machine, but they do have a machine capable of pressure profiling.

Edit: just noticed that St-Henri opened a second location that does in fact have a lever machine. My bad.

As far as I know the only other place in Montreal with an actual lever machine is Cafe Prague. http://cafeprague.ca/english.html

Unfortunately, I cannot comment on their actual coffee as I don't tend to be in the area very often and have yet to try them out.

kreyszig (original poster)
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#5: Post by kreyszig (original poster) »

So I went to Cafe Saint-Henri recently. I tried their God Shot and also some single origin Ethiopian. It tasted great with their San Marco lever machine. I love the Ethiopian in particular. It was so thick and it had a very complex taste. It was fruity, but not too acidic either. It tasted a bit like wine grapes, which is a taste I have never experienced before with coffee. The Barista who works there really knows his stuff and he also really likes talking about coffee and their espresso extraction technique.

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mariobarba
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#6: Post by mariobarba »

Next time try holy cow, it was one of the best shots I have ever had. Fruity (cherries) with almost no acidity. A little long and not as thick as I am used to but memorable just the same.

kreyszig (original poster)
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#7: Post by kreyszig (original poster) replying to mariobarba »

Interesting. I have not tried that one since I was told it is more on the bitter side and meant for lattes. So how bitter do you find it? I like espressos that are quite well balanced, but I do like fruity coffee as long it is not too acidic. It is funny how they call it the "sainte vache" in French :)

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mariobarba
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#8: Post by mariobarba »

I didn't find it bitter at all, as a matter of act I found it very sweet and extremely well balanced. I do not like, bright, acidic coffees at all and really liked this one.

Abnuceals
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#9: Post by Abnuceals »

I was in Montreal thursday for a cupping training at Cafe St-Henri on Notre-Dame st. I tasted their God Shot on their La Marzacco Strada. I began with an espresso and later in the evening, I tried the same God Shot in a cappuccino. It was sincerely one of the best shot of espresso I tasted. But I was not impressed by the cappuccino. It was too sweet for my taste. I should ask for the Holy Cow, the next time.
LMWDP 389

MountRoyal
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#10: Post by MountRoyal »

I'm glad to hear that the Holy Cow blend is tasting great. I brought a couple bags home last year and didn't have a lot of success with it. However I had it in a cappuccino at Caffe in Gamba a few months ago and that was excellent.
I've been a fan of Godshot, good results with it at home, sometimes amazing. However the last batch I had (a few months ago) was very different and didn't taste good for me at home, must have been a one-off "bad" batch. Anyway when I get a bad batch I tend to steer clear of that coffee for a while before coming back to it.
I don't want to diss Cafe St.Henri, I like to support them since they're local and generally I've really liked what they're doing. I've run into a stinker with just about every brand I've tried at some point. I hate spending $16 for 12 oz of coffee and not liking it!

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