Espresso Reviews

Evaluated as espresso. Both Ken (93) and his co-taster (91) enjoyed this crisp and rather cleanly wine- and brandy-toned dried-in-the-fruit profile, though Ken enjoyed it two rating points more. The co-taster read “berries, pineapple and dried fruits” in the small cup; Ken’s associations ran to parallel descriptors of grape, orange, apricot and fresh-cut cedar. Both admired the shot in three parts milk, citing a deep, balanced sweetness that for Ken was pleasantly viscous and “banana-like.”

Evaluated as espresso. Both Ken (91) and his co-taster (90) admired a gently bright, citrus-and-berry character in the small cup; Ken found distinct floral suggestions as well. A dark chocolate note emerged clearly and perhaps surprisingly in the finish. Citrus, chocolate and (for Ken) flowers all carried with grace into three parts milk.

Evaluated as espresso. Ken (93) and his co-taster (88) went rather different ways on this deep, sweet, brandyish, lightly herby dried-in-the-fruit profile. Ken enjoyed the overripe, fermenty fruit notes in aroma and cup; his co-taster was not greatly impressed. Both had good things to say about the mouthfeel (co-taster: “huge and enveloping”); on the other hand, neither were impressed by the rather astringent finish. Ken admired the impact in three parts milk (“juicy and rich”) more than did his co-taster, who found it pleasantly berryish but a bit too tart.

Evaluated as espresso. Ken (91) and his co-taster (91) recorded identical scores and very similar readings for this lively, balanced espresso: in aroma and flavor sweetly tart fruit (orange, lemon, kiwi) rounded by flowers for Ken and “sweet pea” for the co-taster; smooth, lightly syrupy mouthfeel; most impressively a very sweet finish with chocolate and cinnamon suggestions. Delicately chocolaty in three parts milk (“pure milk chocolate” according to the co-taster).

Evaluated as espresso. Ken rated this softly bright espresso three points higher at 92 than the co-taster did at 89. Ken simply seems to have found more going on and liked what he found better: a fuller mouthfeel, a slightly more complex set of aromatics (for Ken citrus, honey, flowers, chocolate; for his co-taster taster citrus, praline, pear), a longer finish and a more complex, persistent flavor in milk.

Evaluated as espresso. Ken (92) showed considerably more enthusiasm for this intense dried-in-the-fruit profile than his only mildly respectful co-taster (89). The co-taster associated the usual fermented fruit notes with wine and spiced cider, Ken with bourbon whisky (which he likes). The co-taster found the fermented fruit notes complicated by “sweet hay and malt,” Ken by a more decisive “fresh-cut cedar.” Ken rated the lightly syrupy, perhaps buttery mouthfeel a bit higher than did his co-taster. Both found the shot pleasantly chocolaty in three parts milk, additionally nuanced by malt for the co-taster, by cedar for Ken.

Evaluated as espresso. This delicate, gently bright espresso attracted gently expressed support from both Ken (91) and his co-taster (90). Crisp, hazelnut-toned aroma; light but lively, effervescent mouthfeel. Ripe lemon and caramel in flavor and finish, where the co-taster also found a tickle of sweet black pepper. Maintained presence nicely in three parts milk, where the co-taster found it “immensely sweet and clean with lemon character.”

Evaluated as espresso. Deep, resonantly complex. Orange, jasmine, dark chocolate, hints of anise and fresh-cut cedar. Velvety, rich mouthfeel; flavor consolidates but persists in a long, gently drying finish. Full, substantial presence in three parts milk; orange, chocolate and jasmine notes in particular persist.

Evaluated as espresso. Crisp, finely structured, quietly distinctive. Dark chocolate and a shifty, anise-toned fruit (orange, blackberry, grape) dominate in aroma and small cup, with backgrounded complications of cedar and butter. Creamy, full yet buoyant mouthfeel. Berry and chocolate in particular persist in a rich, deep finish. Round, quietly balanced in three parts milk.

Evaluated as espresso. In the straight shot a banana-like sweetness is balanced by bitterish orange zest and walnut with a rich dark chocolate hovering somewhere between. Very full, rather heavy mouthfeel; sweet, resonant though rather drying finish. Sustains complexity in three parts milk: cedar, raisin, banana, dark chocolate.

Evaluated as espresso. Bright but juicy. Orange, cedar, green grape, vanilla-toned caramel in aroma and small cup. Creamy, effervescent mouthfeel; sweet, long, citrusy finish. Maintains chocolate and orangy citrus character in three parts milk.

Evaluated as espresso. Big, deep, complex. Dark chocolate, lush night-blooming flowers, walnut, tangerine in aroma and small cup. Full, dense mouthfeel; chocolate and flowers dominate in a sweet, richly drying finish. Chocolate fudge, walnut and flowers in three parts milk.

Evaluated as espresso. Spicy and quite complex. Vanilla, fresh peppercorn, cedar, baker’s chocolate, mango, a hint of flowers in aroma and small cup. Lightly syrupy mouthfeel; lively, quietly flavor-saturated finish. Simplifies in three parts milk, though the dry chocolate note fattens and sweetens and the spice and mango suggestions survive.

Evaluated as espresso. Rich, tartly sweet. Wisteria, ripe passion-fruit, dark chocolate, a hint of fresh turmeric in aroma and small cup. Lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Long, flavor-saturated, gently drying finish. In two- to four-parts milk, continuing suggestions of chocolate and crisp passion-fruit balance a cooling hint of mint or tumeric.

Evaluated as espresso. Intricate and lush; tartly sweet. Caramel, hibiscus and rose, candied ginger, honeydew melon in aroma and small cup. Lean though smooth mouthfeel. Floral notes in particular carry into a remarkably long, complex finish. Flavor carries intact into two parts milk, where a hint of grapefruity acidity is juxtaposed with the milky sweetness.

Evaluated as espresso. Round, crisply sweet, balanced. Dark chocolate, hazelnut, fresh-cut cedar, bourbon-whisky-like hint in aroma and small cup. Full, syrupy mouthfeel. Dark chocolate dominates in a buttery, richly drying finish. Tartly chocolaty with an almost floral vanilla complication in two parts milk.

Evaluated as espresso. Complex flowers and citrus, high-toned but smooth. Flowers, butter, grapefruity citrus, roasted cocoa nib in aroma and small cup. Smooth, lightly syrupy mouthfeel; rich, long, chocolate-saturated finish. Superb in two parts milk, sweetly and richly chocolate-toned with a gently tart fruit that resonates with particular distinction in a long finish.

Evaluated as espresso. Richly and rather tartly bright in aroma and small cup: fresh-cut fir and tangerine-like citrus are rounded by a honey- and chocolate-toned sweetness. Impressively full, syrupy mouthfeel. The finish is tartly bright but smooth. Retains character in two- to four-parts milk with a dry chocolate dominating.

Evaluated as espresso. Deep, rich, chocolate- and cedar-toned. Gently scorched cedar, plum, chocolate, and a hint of anise in aroma and small cup. Syrupy mouthfeel. Chocolate and cedar carry into a sweet but drying finish. Dominates two parts milk, but the fruit-toned chocolate rounds and softens in four parts.

Evaluated as espresso. Pungent, deep, richly tart. Dark chocolate, apricot, roasted nut, orangy cedar in aroma and small cup. Full, syrupy mouthfeel. Flavor consolidates in a resonant finish. Dominates two parts milk; perhaps shows best in four parts or taller milk, which rounds the tart pungency and better develops the sweetness in the chocolate.