Coffee Labs Roasters : Circus Dog Espresso

Another one found at Wholefoods, Coffee Labs Roasters is a small mom and pop coffee shop based in Tarrytown New York. Reviews on Yelp mentioned good things about their iced coffee, chai, and single origin drip coffee, but being an espresso guy, I picked up their Circus Dog Espresso blend.
The beans were a blend of Indian and South American, roasted medium brown. I found the coffee to be lacking any distinctive characteristic. The aroma, acidity, taste were all somewhat normal. Maybe I will have better luck with their single origin beans.

Starbucks Christmas Espresso Blend

I was given a $5 Starbucks coupon and wanted to try their seasonal espresso blend. How lucky of me that on the day we went to the store, all of their beans were on sale, so we managed to get this for only $5. The beans are a mix of Asia/Pacific, Latin American, and Sumatran coffees, roasted very dark. The beans were not oily and roasted fresh, maybe due to the fact that the store that I went to seemed to roast their own batches of beans. The aroma of the coffee was fantastic, a smell that could make the fox turn around just like on the bag. The taste was not as deep or full-bodied as some other blends, and the level of acidity was also low. If you want espresso with a great scent for the holiday season, this is the one to get.

Trader Joe's Organic Five Country Espresso Blend

After my experience with the espresso from Target, I was cautious on trying coffee beans produced by chain grocery stores. This blend blew away any of the misgivings I had.
The blend is a mix of beans from El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru and Sumatra. The beans were oily and roasted dark. The espresso was very bitter with little acidity, and came with a good smokey aroma, characteristics that I like personally. This blend can be best described as reliable, consistant coffee with a taste somewhat like Starbucks and good value for money.

Crop to cup : Juju espresso

One of the reasons I went to the Brooklyn Flea recently was to get a hold of this bag of beans. Crop to Cup is a Brooklyn based broker and wholesaler of coffee beans. Their coffee shop is located at 541 3rd Avenue, Brooklyn, and they sell their coffee through several retailers in Chicago and NYC.
I went to the Flea pretty late and was lucky enough to grab the last bag left. It was not stated what the origins of the beans used in the espresso blend were, but my guess is they use Uganda and/or Burundi coffee as these are the only countries mentioned in their website.

Now on to the espresso. The beans were medium roast, but some beans were much lighter in color than others. Whether this was intentional I do not know. The coffee is full-bodied but not bitter, and smooth with average acidity. It was something that could appeal to everyone, but on the flip side did not have a distinctive characteristic.

Brooklyn Flea was great fun with a wide variety of vendors, so why not check out Crop to Cup while you are there!

Gorilla Coffee : Espresso-a-go-go

This Brooklyn based micro-roastery and coffee shop(at 97 Fifth Avenue, Brooklyn) has been getting a lot of attention recently and I was looking forward to trying their espresso blend.
They have an impressive website and their red and black packaging is unique design-wise.
I finally managed to grab a bag of their espresso beans the third time I went to Whole Foods.
They also sell a variety of single origin beans so I can't say for the rest of their product offerings but their espresso was very smooth and seemed to lack that special kick that I usually find in an espresso. I was not able to find out what beans they used in their espresso blend. I wasn't particularly impressed but if you are someone that prefers smooth coffee, definitely give this blend a try.

New York's coffee shops

A well documented list of NYC coffee shops/roasters from the New York Times. Many of these places also sell their own beans.

The article

The interactive map

Irving Farms : Flying Donkey Espresso

Irving Farms is a local(Millerton NY) coffee company with roasting facilities on their farm. They only have one coffee shop in Manhattan near Union Square. I stumbled upon their beans at Whole Foods. All their beans were on sale at the time, and honestly my expectations were not so high. But when I tried their Flying Donkey Espresso, I was soaring through the air squealing donkey sounds. Full-bodied and medium roasted with a complex mixture of flavors, this along with Joe's, has become one of my favorite blends. The blend is a combination of Brazilian, Guatemala, Sulawesi, and Yrgacheffe beans.

Oren's daily roast : Beowulf Espresso Blend

This place had rave reviews at Yelp, especially for their lattes and iced-coffees, and was conveniently located near Columbia University(112th and Broadway). I bought their Beowulf Espresso Blend, which was a mix of French Roasted Kenya & Viennese Roasted Colombia beans. Maybe their specialty lies in drip coffees, but this blend of beans, while having a smokey aroma, was light-bodied in taste and relatively plain compared to some others I have tried. The price was also relatively high.

Joe the art of coffee : Espresso

My friend at the business school and a fellow espresso addict Rodolfo Chiari recommended Joe's coffee, so I visited their Columbia University shop. Their beans are roasted by Ecco Caffe, a Californian institution, but nevertheless Joe's espresso blend has become one of my favorites. The coffee is full-bodied and full of flavor(hints of chocolate) and has exactly the right amount of acidity. I had to wait in a long line to get the beans but the wait was worth it. They have shops in seven different locations in NYC.

Fairway : Italian Roast

Since it is within walking distance from where I live, I go to Fairway now and then to stock up on groceries. This supermarket chain roasts their own coffee and I tried their Italian Roast beans. The bitter taste overpowered any other flavor and left me disappointed. I hope I will have better luck with some of their espresso blends.

Dallis Bros Coffee : New York Espresso Blend

One of the New York coffee brands I found at Whole Foods. The beans took me by surprise. Strong and full-bodied with no acidic taste some coffees have, the roast was medium and not a dark Italian roast. Definitely one of the better beans I have tried in New York.

Breville Barista Express Espresso Machine

The Breville Barista Express semi-automatic espresso machine with a built-in grinder has been by far the most used appliance in my household. While some people prefer to have separate grinders, the lack of space in my kitchen left me little choice. Why I became addicted to espresso is a story I will save for another time. After two months of use, the machine started to malfunction and produce huge quantities of espresso shots but I was promptly sent a replacement. The machine is a good value for money and I have been thoroughly enjoying the freshly brewed espresso from the machine.

Intro

I have decided to come out and admit that I am an Espresso addict.
I will be using this blog to ramble about my search for the quintessential blend of Espresso.
My posts about Tech and Entrepreneurship can be found at http://joonseokoh.tumblr.com/