LATEST REVIEWS

A consensus pick. "Cherry- and red-wine-toned fruit; big, rich, full, round, resonant," according to Ken (rating 89). Kevin (rating 91) writes: "Tarrazu-style winy fruit, with floral and caramel notes on the break. Complex and balanced, with nuances of butter caramel, maple and cocoa powder. Great length, resonant, artfully roasted."

Bright and crisp but delicately sweet. An unusual but quite appealing combination of chocolate and grapefruit tones makes its invigorating, seductive presence felt from nose to finish.

An exquisitely delicate coffee. Meltingly sweet and cocoa-toned in the nose, in the cup gently acidy and crisply fruity with cocoa and pear notes. The finish is pleasingly chocolate-toned, but slightly astringent.

A delightfully sweet, balanced, deeply dimensioned coffee complicated by clean cocoa tones in the nose and floral and fruit notes in the cup.

Sweet and complex with grapefruit, lemon and cocoa in the nose. The grapefruit notes dominate and harden a bit in the pleasingly rich cup, turning slightly astringent in the finish.

Slight fermented, musty tones pleasingly complicate this sweet, rich, round-bodied Brazil, reading as leather and spice in the nose, and spice, fruit and chocolate in the cup. Just enough acidity to keep the cup lively.

Delicately acidy but slightly bitter cup displays a subtle but impressive array of aromatic and flavor notes: vanilla and fresh leather in the nose, dry chocolate, flowers, and lemon in the cup.

Very soft, round, gentle cup with luxurious chocolate notes and a pleasant hint of sweet fermented fruit.

Pleasantly low-key, sweet, rather light-bodied, roasty without bitterness, modestly complicated by hints of cocoa or dry chocolate.

The roast dominates an agreeably light-bodied, buoyant, juicily fruit- and floral-toned coffee, turning the pleasantly delicate acidity a touch bitter in the finish.

Sweet, low-key, gentle. Displays muted musty/mildew tones that, combined with the essential sweetness of the coffee, read agreeably as malt or dry spice.

A simple, solid, rather dense-hearted dark roast with pleasing balance of sweet and bitter tones but without much nuance: slight, cocoa-toned fruit in the cup and a hint of lemon in the rather astringent finish.

Heavy, rich, a touch sharp, but balanced in the small cup, complicated nicely by dry fruit and cocoa. Maintains balance and authority in small milk, where the cocoa sweetens toward a voluptuous hazelnut-toned chocolate. Fades a bit in big milk, though still round and chocolaty. (89 straight espresso, 90 w/milk)

Citrus and floral notes float atop pungent fermented fruit tones in the small cup; nut and chocolate notes complicate the finish. Maintains its leathery, spicy complexity in milk, adding a rounder and softer chocolate finish. 88 straight espresso, 89 w/milk)

Splendid in the small cup, sweet, round, balanced, utterly free of sharpness or flaw. Its relative lack of nuance -- mere hints of chocolate and nut -- only emphasize the clarity and completeness of its classic gesture. Disappointing in milk, however: heavy and bitter in small milk, blunt and flat in large. (89 straight espresso, 84 w/milk)

An exceptional versatile espresso that maintains complexity and intrigue from small cup to big milk. Nuance ranges from chocolate and walnut to fermented fruit and malty/musty tones. The musty notes are sharp in the finish of the small cup but turn splendidly round and rich in milk. (87 straight espresso, 93 w/milk)

An appealing combination of orange, chocolate, and floral notes shimmer in the small cup, though shadowed by a roasty sharpness. Milk rounds the cup nicely, however, turning the citrus and floral notes into a crisp, toasty chocolate. Fades slightly in big milk. (87 straight espresso, 89 w/milk)

In the small cup intense and rather lean-bodied but richly sweet, complicated by dry fruit notes and shimmers of flowers and chocolate. In milk smooth, sweet and toasty with a lushly chocolate-toned finish. (87 straight espresso, 88 w/milk)

Smooth, medium-to-full bodied and richly balanced in the small cup, discreetly complicated by crisp leather and dry chocolate notes. Slightly astringent in the finish. Milk amplifies the dry chocolate tones, which turn hearty and bittersweet in short milk drinks and voluptuously sweet in taller. (87 straight espresso, 88 w/milk)

In the small cup full and buttery in body, in flavor grainy, sharply malty/musty, with dry, pleasing cherry-like fruit notes. Cappuccino-quantities of milk sweeten the profile, accentuating the fruit and turning the grainy tones pleasantly nut-like. At its best in big milk, where it its fat, buttery body masters the dairy with pure weight and character rather than with bitterness. (86 straight espresso, 90 w/milk)