mwynne wrote:Come out west, 10/10 recommend visiting them.

I've heard good things about their standard Italian blends. Anything specific you recommend if I decide to order?

With the caveat that this is all based on drinks in their cafe and not home use, Miscela Royale (when available), La Futura, Conca d'Oro, and Chubby Rain were my personal favourites.

Reporting in that I've now tried Phil & Sebastian's "The Standard". Very enjoyable with LOTS of sweetness balanced out with nuttiness and some toffee. Now working on a bag of their Jose Martinez. Only a few shots in but I've already had big maraschino cherry and brown sugar. These are very pleasant and smooth.

Next up are a few bags of coffee from Fratello.

Nice. One of my favorite cafe's in St. John's used to use The Standard, and I quite enjoyed it also.

I picked up some Hale on the above emphatic recommendation :p So far, I'm enjoying it more than the Java Blend I got, though TBH, this latest shipment I got from them was disappointing.

I expect the shipping time might be more of a factor for you, but another of the above recommendations, Eleven Speed, also have good prices on 5lb bags ($77, free shipping) so I might try that next.

Like I said, things have changed hands at JB so I would not be surprised if the coffee is different. I've just ordered three bags from Transcend so right now I've got a bit of a queue in the freezer. Three bags of Fratello and one more bag of Phil & Sebastian.

I care less about the cost as I figured about $120 a month for beans right from the start. What I want is something spectacular. The reason I gave up wine is because everything except aged Grand Cru Burgundy's were boring. I fear that's where I'm going with coffee but I also fear I may never get there.

Working my way through the Fratello coffees. Well they aren't kidding about DARK ROAST.

The Midnight is the oiliest, messiest bean I have tried. I got down to a 17g dose at 192F before I started to get anything other than campfire notes out of it. The mouthfeel is out of this world being very full and smooth and rich but I just can't make it have ANY sweetness or even licorice.

The Blackjack is suppose to be a medium roast but it was only a little less dark and oily than the Midnight. Very similar presentation in terms of mouthfeel and that big viscous tongue coating sensation. I was able to get an incredibly smooth shot with a clean finish but nothing in the way of sweetness.

I just opened the "light" roast Godfather and it is in fact much lighter than the other two. I'll start with it tomorrow.

I should also add the mess this makes in the grinder. I've never had a coffee just fly everywhere like these did. Grind retention went WAY up with clumps falling out 3-4 minutes after I grind. Additionally I had to grind MUCH coarser than I've ever had to before.

The pours look beautiful though. Great coffees for YouTube.

You all should really try Gold Star!
It's pretty much the only place I buy beans now
https://goldstarcoffee.ca/t/fresh-roasted-coffee
Try a 6lb variety combo and get 6 different beans. They are all full 1lb bags freshly roasted and great quality. It blows me away that more people do not know (and rave) about them.
The Yauco was my go to espresso roast for a while, but I've been experimenting with others that I usually use for drip (Jamaica Blue Mountain and Hawaiian Kona - the Kona is good as an espresso)
There's usually a 5% off coupon for orders of $100CAD that includes a 0.5lb bag of coffee. This month's coupon code - b50
Free shipping (I am in Waterloo, ON) usually sees the beans show up in 2 or 3 days

I might try some Social again, I used to buy from them and also the Dattera from I Drink Coffee (where I bought my ECM), but their prices went up too high for me. The 5lb bag is a commitment from Social, but it's the only way to make it affordable compared to the sub $15 per lb (shipped incl taxes) for the stuff I get from Gold Star.

Thanks for the suggestion. I've heard of Gold Star but have not tried them yet. I only drink straight espresso shots and don't enjoy light/drip roast for Espresso.

I think you raised a good point that is a factor for a lot of people which is cost. That isn't my primary concern, taste is. I want the best tasting cup every morning. I go through about 6x 340g bags a month. That puts me at $120-$150CAD a month even at the high end of the spectrum, which I'm okay with as long as its an in-the-cup difference. With $5000CAD in gear sitting on the counter (and that's without a Kafatek grinder which I'm aiming for) it would seem odd to me to worry about spending an extra $30 a month for beans. Which is about what the spread between "cheap" and "expensive" costs.

In my experience Social offers both high quality and a low price. Others offer only a higher price and not a better result. This is why I'm buying coffee from so many roasters initially. I have to have first hand experience with everything decent available to me before I can really start to zero in on what I like best. So far I've liked Social, 49th, Phil and Sebastian and Manic (which is Social). I just received an order from Transcend.

I picked up a bag of Monogram (Calgary) yesterday. I'll try to report back on how it is! https://monogramcoffee.com/collections/ ... 8753312821

PIXIllate wrote:Thanks for the suggestion. I've heard of Gold Star but have not tried them yet. I only drink straight espresso shots and don't enjoy light/drip roast for Espresso.

I think you raised a good point that is a factor for a lot of people which is cost. That isn't my primary concern, taste is. I want the best tasting cup every morning. I go through about 6x 340g bags a month. That puts me at $120-$150CAD a month even at the high end of the spectrum, which I'm okay with as long as its an in-the-cup difference. With $5000CAD in gear sitting on the counter (and that's without a Kafatek grinder which I'm aiming for) it would seem odd to me to worry about spending an extra $30 a month for beans. Which is about what the spread between "cheap" and "expensive" costs.

I agree with you. I am in for similar dollars with my Synchronika and Niche Zero, so not looking to cut corners on the beans. I guess what I mean about Gold Star is, I cannot find better coffee that costs more AND justifies that additional cost.
And I get to buy a 1lb at a time, so get more variety of beans (instead of bulk buying one bean type for 5lb to get a decent price). I go through ~6lbs of coffee a month between drip and espresso. That's basically $100 a month at Gold Star. They have a lot of variety. I am usually drinking milk based espresso drinks though...

PIXIllate wrote: In my experience Social offers both high quality and a low price. Others offer only a higher price and not a better result. This is why I'm buying coffee from so many roasters initially. I have to have first hand experience with everything decent available to me before I can really start to zero in on what I like best. So far I've liked Social, 49th, Phil and Sebastian and Manic (which is Social). I just received an order from Transcend.

Recommend your current fave roaster and the specific bean to get and I'll give them a try.