The World's Leading Coffee Guide
The coffees and espressos that appear below demonstrate exceptional value relative to other coffees of similar quality and distinctiveness as reflected in their overall score. These best value coffees often sell out quickly and may no longer be available. Older reviews may no longer accurately reflect current versions of the same coffee.
Evaluated as espresso. Richly tart yet profoundly sweet. Raspberry-toned dark chocolate, orange or tangerine marmalade, crisp cedar, a hint of flowers in aroma and small cup. Full, buttery mouthfeel. Flavor rounds without losing its complexity or sweetly tart authority in two- to four-parts milk.
Deep, rich, resonantly low-toned. Minty chocolate, agave syrup, dried fig, a hint of rose-like flowers in aroma and cup. Round, quiet acidity; syrupy mouthfeel. Chocolate and fig in particular carry into a long finish.
Intricate, richly pungent: chocolate fudge, spicy oak, wild berry, faint mango-like fruit and night-blooming flowers in aroma and cup. Soft, sweetly tart acidity; full velvety mouthfeel. The finish is berry-toned, with a rounded chocolaty sweetness.
Complex but harmonious. Honey and a very sweet citrus suggesting candied lemon dominate in aroma and cup, with complications of almond, fresh-cut fir and a soft caramel. Smoothly and sweetly tart acidity; syrupy mouthfeel. Deep, flavor-saturated finish.
Evaluated as espresso. Deep, sweet-toned aroma: dark chocolate, butter, leather, a hint of pineapple. In the small cup the pineapply fruit note moves forward and dry anise and cedar notes complicate the sweet chocolate. The buttery smoothness of the aroma reasserts itself in a very persistent, complex finish. Rather light, lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Very fine in three parts milk: buttery chocolate, pineapply fruit, richly balance.
Amazingly and giddily sweet. Honey, lush night-blooming flowers and ripe orange in aroma and cup. Juicy, lyric acidity; syrupy mouthfeel. Flavor consolidates more than fades in a remarkably rich, honey-toned finish.
Comfortable, inviting cup combines a cedary black-currant pungency, dark chocolate sweetness and a vanilla-like floral freshness. Delicate, crisply balanced acidity; lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Quietly sweet-toned, resonant finish.
Heavily scorched wood dominates in aroma and cup, with hints of faded chocolate, clove and molasses. Acidity is folded inside the scorched pungency of the roast; mouthfeel is light and leanish. The finish is bittersweet and drying.
Sweet, delicately crisp. Dark chocolate, brown sugar, hints of plum and fresh-cut cedar in aroma and cup. Tartly juicy acidity; the mouthfeel is light, hinting at silkiness. Chocolate carries into a gently drying finish.
Delicate, fresh, balanced. Nut-toned caramel, orange, fir, a hint of flowers in aroma and cup. Gently bright, lemony acidity; smoothly silky mouthfeel. The simple but pleasing aromatics carry straight through to a long, sweet, slightly pungent finish.
Intense aromatic complex carries in layered richness from aroma to finish. Cocoa, moist earth and leather, plum, sweetly pungent grapefruit; but you will doubtless find more. Crisp, integrated acidity; buttery mouthfeel. Long, sweet-toned, flavor-saturated finish.
Deep, sweet-toned aroma: dark chocolate, rich cedar, apricot-like fruit, lily-like flowers. Rich though slightly rough acidity; impressively full, syrupy mouthfeel. The complex aromatics simplify a bit in the cup, but retain depth and resonance. Long though rather dry and piney finish.
Crisp, bittersweet: lemon, bergamot, dark chocolate, a hint of flowers. Brisk, dry acidity; silky mouthfeel. Flavors linger in the long, dry finish.
oft notes of nut and baking spice with a suggestion of dusk flowers in the aroma, deepening and complicating in the cup. Quiet but rich acidity, lightly syrupy mouthfeel. In the finish flavor fades rather quickly toward a mild astringency.
Notes of pipe tobacco, cherry and pungent aromatic wood in the aroma. Simplifies slightly in the cup, with continued aromatic wood and hints of baker's chocolate and nut. Pungent, roast-toned, softly astringent finish.
Evaluated as espresso. In the small cup impressively deep and complex. Co-taster Andy Newbom (92) cited the range and balance of sensation ("intense yet nuanced"; "awesome"); Ken (92) was more specific in his praise of a pungent, slightly savory fruit: "black currant, blackberry, aromatic wood, licorice." Maintains complexity in four parts milk: "chocolaty... completely malty" (Andy), "crisp, butterscotch and caramel" (Ken).
In the aroma orangy citrus, molasses, nut, black currant. In the cup richly tart acidity, lightly syrupy body, and shifting, complex flavor: pungent aromatic wood, black currant, blackberry, ripe citrus, molasses. All saturate the long, resonant finish with an exquisite dematerialized essence of flavor.
