Allpress Espresso Blend
Welcome to the Espresso Idiot's review of Allpress Espresso's inhouse blend. Allpress is a coffee house of some wide reknown in both Australia and New Zealand, mostly providing espresso blends enmasse for on sale to cafes. This review was undertaken at the Alexandria premises of Allpress Espresso. There is a glass wall separating the cafe from the raosting room, however it was easy to spot from the massive foil sealed Allpress Espresso bean bag sticking out of the grinder that this wasn't really the top level of espresso in Sydney. The cafe had a feel to it that suggested this was really going to be like any other cafe you might go into, with the exception of there being a roasting machine that you could look at through a glass or plastic wall. The place was packed, and the one barista manning the La Marzocco machine had his work cut out for him that day. It is popular, and they do have several blends for sale but you are only able to purchase the ready to drink house blend. The espresso shot cost $2.50 making it comparable with the going rate in Sydney.
"This blend is your stock standard try and please everyone blend. There is nothing remarkable about it, nothing good and nothing bad either. It has no soul. This is about as close to drinking Gloria Jeans, Starbucks, or the Coffee Club as I will ever get"
Espresso Idiot, 22 October 2006.
Summary Information
Overall Score: For a gourmet espresso blend this was too thin, and lacked any substance. It is below average at best. 5 out of 10.
Presentation: Espresso appeared rushed. The shot had spilled from the machine onto the sides of the cup. Not wiped, and no tissue was provided. 4 out of 10.
Bean Type: 100% arabica, apparently. Roasted freshly on premises, however difficult to determine at source. 5 out of 10.
Crema: Thin, unevenly spread on the shot. Variation in colour of the crema. Very average. 5 out of 10.
Aroma: Very faint aroma, very difficult to detect. Indicative of taste to come in that it was not notable. 5 out of 10.
Taste: Initial sharpness, watery in terms of consistency, acid taste very strong at the rear and sides of the tongue. Nothing remarkable. 5 out of 10.
Review
Allpress Espresso is very well known on the New Zealand and Australian espresso scene. They are wholesalers, as well as having a few cafes of their own in both countries. They are an coffee roasting house that attempts to appeal to all, and as such provide a product that will appeal to as many palates as possible. There is nothing challenging about the product. Having said that, there is nothing especially bad about it either, it is just espresso that has no character because it does not challenge in any way. It is simply is espresso for the everyman, and Allpress wholesale to a large number of cafes and you can find it pretty much everywhere. Good enough if you need a hit, but not something that you would seek out specifically.
The presentation of the esrpesso was fairly standard. To be fair the cafe was very busy when visited, however there really isn't much excuse for having espresso dribbling on to the cup and getting on the hands of the consumer. This wouldn't be so bad if the place provided toweletts to wipe up the mess, however that was apparently expecting a bit too much. But this site is about espresso, not about the ambience, or the service necessarily. However, it is important that when ordering your shot, it comes to you properly.
The shot had an ueven colour across the crema, alternating between dark and light brown. The crema ws thin and uneven across the surface of the shot and a fair portion of it had ended up on the side of the cup. Mediocre crema, to poor really.
The armoa of this espresso blend was poor. It was barely noticeable early on, and even a sustained snort in the cup did yield tangible results. There was a smell, but it wasn't much, and delivered little in terms of indicating what the taste of the product to follow would be like. Unfortunately the little aroma that there was had little to describe about it. It just smelt of coffee, and that was about it.
On taking the espresso into your mouth, you are immediately hit by a sharp taste on the tip of the tongue. The consistency of the shot is watery, there is none of the viscosity of some of the more full bodied blends out there. There is an acid taste that comes onto the palate and this hangs on to the tongue for a short while before vanishing and taking the last of the taste with it. The aftertaste that then comes on is smooth and rolls onto the palate for a short time. There is nothing remarkable about this espresso, although there is a slight hint of caramel about the aftertaste.
During the course of sampling the shot, I formed the view that as this blend was created for the mass market, it was unlikely to be intended to be consumed as an espresso shot. After tasting this shot, I then ordered a flat white to test this theory and was surprised at the result. The espresso was very tame when blended with milk, however you did get a very smooth taste of espresso throughout the consumption of each motuhful. The smooth aspect of the coffee was enhanced by the textured milk, and as a flat white it was enjoyable, although there was again an absence of body to the espresso. Definitely selected and blended to be consumed in conjunction with dairy products.
The Espresso Idiot's overall view of the Allpress Espresso Blend is that it is an everyman espresso that fails to deliver any character that a gourmet would be looking for from their espresso. It is an espresso, so it will do the job when required, however this mass produced product, blended for the palate of the widest section of the public possible will not generate enough interest for the espresso aficionado. This is about as close to a Starbucks espresso as you can get without actually being there. Not reccomended.