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.