Society Cafe (Bath)

Ally and I found the Society Cafe while we were visiting Bath, and sat down for a break with a book before we traveled back to Bristol. Keeping up with the relatively high prices, a latte here cost £2.60, but we've started to accept that this is just the way it is.. Inside the cafe looked really nice, and you can see some of the pictures on their website which I've attached a link to.

The coffee looked great, well exceeding my ability to present a latte. Overall, it was very pleasant and well textured. From the taste, I imagine it was made with a lighter roast than BTP (previous post) which would suit some drinkers more than me (my old man for example). Relatively speaking, the coffee didn't stand out above the milk as much as a darker roast; which I personally prefer. I'd give this latte a 4/5 - very decent indeed!

http://www.society-cafe.com/

Boston Tea Party (Bristol)

The next entry from Bristol is Boston Tea Party. Initially, we saw BTP in the South West Independent Coffee Guide that we read in Bristol Coffee House. The cost here was noticeably better, at £2.50 for a 12oz cup. While the barrister was at work, he passionately informed Ally of the origin and production method of the filter coffee she had ordered, coming from Ethiopia. Apparently it had a very strong strawberry tang (he wasn't wrong!). His passion towards the beans genuinely excited us, and we definitely weren't disappointed. He passed over a great looking latte with an impressive piece of art that I unfortunately didn't get a photo of because it was in a takeaway cup.

The coffee was outstanding! Throughout the entire cup, the coffee stood out and wasn't lost in a sea of milk. The milk was spot on, with a delightfully creamy foam topping. The temperature was also just right,I truly enjoyed every mouthful, and am now a bit concerned that it can only be downhill from here...

Overall I'd give this coffee a 4.5/5. I have to allow some wriggle room for the huge number of coffees I have left to experience for the rest of this trip. This will definitely take some topping.

Bristol Coffee House (Bristol)

The first entry on the list: Bristol Coffee House. On our second day in Bristol, I insisted to Ally that we had to stop in a cafe that looked the goods. Bristol Coffee House caught our attention straight away, despite it being one of the first cafes we passed. Just inside the door we noticed three girls enjoying a cuppa and the attractive appearance (of the coffees of course...) convinced us to give it a crack.

The price was very steep... £2.90 for a regular latte, but we went ahead anyway. While we were waiting, we noticed a little red and white book, the "South West Independent Coffee Guide", and had a flick through. Understandably, Bristol Coffee House was in the book and this gave us high hopes of the coffees we were about the receive, but also helped pinpoint some cafes we could try while staying in Bristol and surrounds.

The coffee was generally quite good; a cheeky grin appeared when I took my first sip and tasted the dense foam. As I got further through, the coffee seemed to retreat into the milk. Which was a bit of a shame. The texture was good all the way through, and the barrister finished off with a nice fern pattern. A for effort. The milk also seemed to not quite be the correct temperature, perhaps a tiny bit underdone; but overall a solid latte.

Overall I'd give the Bristol Coffee House a  3.5/5, but for the price, there are definitely better options around.

Links:

South West Independent Coffee Guide: http://www.food-mag.co.uk/south-west-independent-coffee-guide/

Introduction

One of the most exciting aspects of my trip to Europe was sampling what I expected to be fantastic coffee, particularly in countries like France and Italy. Over my last couple of years at university in particular I have developed into a grandiose coffee snob; perhaps without truly understanding what elements make a perfect latte. All I have to form my opinion is my tastebuds, nose and eyes! I have decided to maintain a blog of my experiences through Europe, primarily as an approach to remember some highlights in the years to come. Based on my experiences thus far in the UK I must first and foremost emphasise how satisfied I am with the quality of coffee that is available from independent sources in Tasmania and am looking forward to returning with some great caffeine filled memories.

Unfortunately, my experience did not get off to a favourable start. I expected London to be filled with a dominant independent café scene, where pleasure was taken in roasting beans on-site and perfecting signature latte art; similar to what I have experienced in Hobart. What I in fact discovered was a city overridden with chain cafes! Costa, Caffe Nero, and Pret a Manger were seemingly abundant on every street. Being my first time in the UK, I did not realise that these were chain companies and I can recall one of the first coffees I purchased was from Costa on New Year’s Day, on the corner of Edgware Rd and George St. I can’t remember having a latte so hot, and the milk looked as though it had exploded. Need I say more..? Caffe Nero did not provide much of an improvement. They attempted to make their “premium Italian” latte by pouring a shot of coffee in on top of a flask of heated milk – what is that!? I quickly moved on from the disasters I experienced at the chains in an attempt to find some independent brilliance.

After some time getting to grips with the UK, I managed to source some great, quality coffee and hope to find much more here and on the continent. I am intending to briefly highlight where I have found some great brews, accompanied with a star rating system and some snaps, so I can definitively find…

The best latte in Europe.