I'm looking for recommendations of espresso to try-especially those with a lot of depth, a bit (or alot) chocolate-y, and very low bitterness....any suggestions? Thanks!

Coffee is predominantly bitter, nearly as bitter as unsweetened chocolate

Welcome to the board. My point is that it's easier to find the right espresso when you know what tastes you seek. People look for two things in espresso: the right sort of bitterness, which is a question of taste; and a balanced shot, which is a question of quality.

Most espresso served in run of the mill cafes is unbalanced, and their bitterness is thoroughly unpleasant. Bitterness needs to be balanced with sweetness and optionally, some lively acidity. For poor espresso, adding sugar is absolutely necessary. This is not a disgrace in an Italian cafe serving 80 cent per shot, high percentage Robusta coffees -- they are doing the best within their budget. But it is a disgrace for a cafe that serves specialty coffee; because specialty coffee is naturally sweet enough to balance the bitterness and acidity, and they are screwing that up in the roast or shot preparation. All the roasters and coffees recommended here at HB are superb in this respect.

Once the coffee is balanced, you may still prefer some flavors to others. Lighter roasted espresso has apricot, floral, and citrus tastes on top, backed up by toasty, woody, and honey like flavors underneath. Our favorite roasters typically offer coffees like this as "Single Origin" specials. The medium roasted coffees have some berry flavors on top, with caramel and chocolate flavors underneath. The main blends of our favorite roasters typically fall in this class. A good dark roasted blend has dried fruit flavors and lemon peel twist on top; and spice, dark molasses, and peaty flavors underneath. Oddly enough, nobody here has any great dark blend tips; it seems when people get away from Starbucks, and become coffee connoisseurs, they entirely avoid darker roasts, whether good or bad. A few years back, Dallis Brothers made a blend like this called Five Points, but I don't know if it's still around.

I hope this gets you started.

another_jim wrote:A good dark roasted blend has dried fruit flavors and lemon peel twist on top; and spice, dark molasses, and peaty flavors underneath.

Reminds me of two of my favorite darker roasted coffees: Paradise Roasters Havana Reserve and Counter Culture La Forza. Neither of these are dark in the Peets or Starbucks sense, but they do have distinct roast notes and low acidity. The former is more complex than the latter; for the uninitiated, I recommend La Forza.

green_241 wrote:I'm looking for recommendations of espresso to try-especially those with a lot of depth, a bit (or alot) chocolate-y, and very low bitterness....any suggestions? Thanks!

Might want to try PT's Gizmo.

More generally, I have had great success with blends that have a goodly amount of Ethiopian coffee in them. Again, a huge over generalization, but I have found a number of these Ethiopian coffees to give a nice complex chocolaty cup, with a nice dark chocolate bittersweetness, less the clean cup citrus nerve.

green_241 wrote:I'm looking for recommendations of espresso to try-especially those with a lot of depth, a bit (or alot) chocolate-y, and very low bitterness....any suggestions? Thanks!

As usual, Jim's treatise is interesting and thoughtful.
If I may also suggest, read some of the discussions right here under "Coffees" and at CG.com.
I would recommend Klatch's "Belle Espresso", and Velton Coffee Roaster's "Bonsai" blend...also Toscano, from Counter Culture.
The best price comes from Velton's.
These fit your description, but there are literally dozens of other options, as you will undoubtedly read on this thread.
Don't discount a SO (single origin) like a Brazilian Yellow Cochiera. Jim or others might know where to purchase roasted. I tend to home roast, mainly.

In my experience to date, the majority of people who say that they want a coffee that is not bitter are in fact not talking about true "bitter" as a flavour. Usually, they're describing the mix of astringency, sourness, bitterness, phenolic and harsh (dirty) flavours that you get from the majority of coffee bars in the US.

Before suggesting a possible espresso for you to try - perhaps you could provide some examples of coffees you do like? And perhaps some additional flavour profile information that can give us insight into your like/dislike of true bitterness? Beers you like and dislike is a good starting point in my experience.

Dark roasts I'd recommend: Caffe D'Arte Capri and Taormina.

timo888 wrote:Dark roasts I'd recommend: Caffe D'Arte Capri and Taormina.

Interestingly in that dark vein, I'll suggest CCM's espresso blend. Dark, oily, and surprisingly not bitter.