Murrays, Hill Rd, Clevedon

 

Jim's Americano

Served in a lovely cup and saucer and just the right volume of water.  You can probably see from the photo it is probably only 3 times larger than the espresso cup and I like this.  The coffee on arrival had an appearance that filled me with anticipation.  The whole thing; coffee, cup and all were 10/10 for presentation.  The coffee flavour was very good indeed.  A nice strong taste that didn't linger for too long and gave just enough edge without crossing the line to bitterness.  I want to give an extra half mark to this coffee for the presentation, but I don't do half marks.... so there.

Nigel’s Espresso

A good espresso this one, rich, smooth and well balanced. Without excess bitterness or sourness. The coffee used here is the Mokaflor Blu, a blend of 50% Arabica and 50% Robusta, from these Italian roasters http://www.mokaflor-italian-coffee.com/caffe-mokaflor/mokaflor-line/mokaflor-blend-linea-blu-50-arabica-50-robusta.html

Rated

Nigel’s Espresso 8/10
Jim's Americano 8/10

Coffee #1, Station Rd, Clevedon

Starting top left, clockwise: Flat White, Black Americano, Single Espresso

Starting with the name of this coffee shop, it is making a statement about its coffee! The website goes further with the http://www.coffee1.co.uk/about/our-coffee/ section. It talks about how much they love coffee and are “super passionate” and “a bit geeky”. So, after the promise, how does it taste?

Our dedicated team headed down to the Clevedon town centre this lunchtime on a mission. We each had a different style of coffee and reviewed our own. The results are surprising for the different responses from the same source espresso.

M's Flat White 

The coffee was very pleasant, the milk was textured nicely and at a good temperature but I prefer a more full bodied coffee flavour. 

 

Jim's Americano

A sunny day is a nice excuse for a wander to go and find some coffee in Clevedon.  A group excursion to Coffee #1 allowed me to sample my usual black Americano.  Service was slow, ok, nothing to do with coffee taste but it was only a small queue and took quite a while to order.  Anyhow, it’s the drink that counts.  First mistake, don’t give me an Americano in a tall mug.  Nowhere else does and there is a reason for that…. It’s wrong.  The appearance of the coffee was ok, nothing exciting.  The crema was a little grainy and more worryingly on a quick stir, disappeared completely leaving me with what looked like instant coffee.  First taste impressions were decidedly average.  A rather weak tasting coffee with no complexity of flavour (a bit like an instant you could say).  The most disappointing aspect of the coffee, though, was it actually got worse as I drank it.  Halfway down was enough for me.  It wasn’t that the coffee was undrinkable….. certainly no grounds to return it, but it wasn’t actually enjoyable.  It was a functional caffeine hit that lacked any grace or pleasure.  So in summary, poor flavour and boring. 

 

Nigel's Espresso

First, before we get to the coffee itself, Coffee #1 provide water jugs and cups for customers to server themselves and I like this. Espresso and a glass of water has become a standard for me. As well as making the drink thirst quenching it also extends the experience. Especially useful if like today I am with friends.

The espresso was mellow, easy and pleasant. It had an after taste that went on and on. It’s no adventure however and the flavour didn’t develop or change. Safe ground, probably designed for the lattes and cappuccinos.

Ratings

M's Flat White 7/10
Jim’s Americano 4/10

Nigel's Espresso 6/10

Coffee Subscription

Coffee at home #1

This is the first post in a few I am planning about the coffee I drink at home. When I have a coffee in a cafe in some ways I am always comparing it to the coffee I drink at home. Is it as good? The primary thing which makes the biggest difference to my appreciation of coffee is the freshness. That means firstly how long ago was the coffee roasted?

I get coffee freshly roasted from two sources. One of which I'll talk about today, a coffee subscription. There are plenty of sources for this kind of service from quality coffee roasters available online. If you are lucky enough to live near an outlet for a local roaster you can pick up your coffee yourself. For me it's most convenient to have it delivered. My current subscription is with Has Bean Coffee. 
Check out their website, they've got an excellent offering and include reviews, descriptions of their coffees, blogs and brew guides among other things. They build direct relationships with the growers and can talk about who the people are that are growing the coffee. They offer a weekly subscription and monthly one. The monthly one suits me as I don't drink enough coffee to use it within a week and it also allows me to use my other source of freshly roasted coffee - more on that in a future post. 
The system works well for me, it is always a single estate coffee, roasted on a Friday, posted immediately and arrives with me on Saturday. I get an email on Friday telling me which coffee I'm getting and telling me about it.
The coffees  have all been different and have had flavours that I have never tasted before in coffee, such as sherbert lemon, hazelnut, leather and tobacco!

Recommended.

Free coffee at Waitrose

It's not in Clevedon and this is the first time we've got a review of a coffee that isn't. I expect it won't be the last time!

What's the reason for including this? It's interesting from the point of view that this coffee is free. As part of the myWaitrose scheme, members can get a free tea or coffee daily and it's free to join.

I was away with work for a couple of days, working in Horley, South of London. I didn't find a promising coffee shop first thing in the morning so popped into Waitrose each morning and had a free single espresso.

Things seem to be different depending on which Waitrose you go to. At this one I could only have a single espresso, not a double, which was fine with me. They used an automatic, push the button and get the coffee, machine rather than a proper espresso machine.

The coffee was acceptable, a rounded flavour, nothing distinctive but good enough for a morning stop. This wouldn't be a memorable coffee moment, nor a characterful coffee. For me it's a useful and pleasant pause on the day without costing a penny.

Rated 6/10

Arnett's Cosy Kitchen - Espresso for Jim

I went back to Arnett's this week and went for a double espresso just to make a change from my usual Americano.  No sugar this time in order to get the un-tarnished flavour.  It's true that we know the owner, but this is clearly the best coffee in the area.  It tastes so fresh and has bags of flavour.  I get a whole mixture of fruitiness, chocolate, bitterness and richness all in perfect harmony.  If you want a coffee in Clevedon, I urge you to try this place.

Jim's Double Espresso - 9/10

Hill Rd Market, Clevedon

Today’s post is a review of a takeaway espresso from the coffee shop in the Hill Road Market.  They serve coffee from Martin Cowardine roasters based in Somerset and were happy to tell me it is the “Luxury” espresso blend.

Enjoyed back at my desk this coffee has a rich and mellow flavour with well balanced acidity and bitterness. I expect this is an excellent base for Americanos and lattes and would probably be a great place to go if that’s what you enjoy. As an espresso it’s definitely satisfying and drinkable. I personally enjoy a more fruit flavour in the mix and that’s the only thing that I would ask for.

Rated 7/10. Recommended.

Tiffin Espresso

After the previous experience of the filter coffee at Tiffin (see Tiffin) I had set in my mind to go back and try the espresso, confident that I would have a better experience.

Today was that day, sun shining, wandering down the Clevedon seafront with no fixed agenda and the opportunity for a takeaway espresso was clear. Tiffin was very busy, clearly a popular place, and the staff rushed. This didn't stop them giving me a good service.

So to the coffee. Initial observations, rich aroma, thin crema, looked and smelled good. First taste, bright and acidic. On the second and third sips the acidity developed into something similar to grapefruit juice and finally became more sour and vinegar like. I didn't finish it.

Has anyone reading this visited there and how did you find the coffee? Are there any venues in the area you recommend?

Rated 4/10