Final Step – South Yarra. 1st Review

1C Murphy St, South Yarra VIC 3141
0414 503 248
Google map link
Date: Saturday 18 September 2010
Time: 0945
Coffee Brand: 7 Seeds

Sitting on the edge of an area saturated with cafes, Final Step, after only one visit is a place worth seeking out. There is friendly warmth, a simple and small interior, milk crates for outside tables with footstools as seat. You have to love the unpretentious rustic simplicity. A single blend plus single origin was on offer both by 7 Seeds.

Coffee: Doppio Ristretto Costa Rican Sin Limites Honey Processed
Reviewed by: SimonL
Score: 19/20

How do you put something so exquisite into words? All sorts of metaphors, adjectives and analogies are swirling around in my head. Perhaps the best way is to put it simply. This was a coffee highlight of the year for me, a ristretto of majesty. First of all it was the first time I (and Sam) had come across a honey processed coffee, of which I had only read about. This was perfectly roasted and I suspect and the peak of its resting period. The extraction was nigh on perfect with pure crema. It was sweet, delicate with a full mouth feel and power, decadent oily richness, tangy citrus acidity woven through the coffee, smooth body and…………….lingering finish. The class of 7 Seeds as roasters and the skill of this Final Step barista are clearly evident here. A dynamite coffee.

Honey processed coffee. 7 Seeds link http://brotherbababudan.com.au/coffee/costa-rican-sin-limites-honey

and also this great article on Different Processing Methods

Coffee: Espresso Costa Rican Sin Limites Honey Processed
Reviewed by: SamW
Score: 17.5/20

As an espresso the Costa Rican Sin Limites offered the same amount of sweetness with a rich lemon-like tang. The bitterness was more pronounced but still a very well-crafted coffee.

Coffee: Cafe Latte 7 Seeds Blend
Reviewed by: SimonL
Score: 15/20

Call me old fashioned, and I can hear the industry grumblings before I even type this, but I do prefer cafe lattes with more obvious espresso character. For the punter who does like their cafe latte a little more toned down this would be perfect.

7 Seeds is a supreme roaster and their black coffees are brilliant. What is undoubted is the barista skill here and the quality of the coffee itself. Full marks for the presentation and true to style. This coffee was enjoyable, the milk texture was fantastic but the espresso component a little lost. While understanding that a cafe latte is essentially awash with milk some more prominent espresso part for me without falling into the strong category is preferable.

Coffee: Short Macchiato Costa Rican Sin Limites Honey Processed
Reviewed by: SamW
Score: 17/20

This was quite a sweet single origin that hung wonderfully in the tiny dollop of milk that the barista gave. The creaminess extended beyond milky characteristics and finished off with a cleansing bitterness.

Service 4/5

Ambiance 3/5

Busy 2/5

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Dukes Coffee Roasters – Windsor. Follow-up Review.

169 Chapel St Windsor, 3181
(03) 9521 4884
Google map link
April 2010
Coffee Brand: In-House Roasters

Guest Review By Espressoism

The first round of follow up reviews has begun with Dukes Coffee Roasters. We invited Andreas of Espressoism to review this place instead of us in an effort to maintain an objective outlook. The coffee scores adhere to our (Backseat Baristas) scoring system and the individual scores are added to the previous ones for an updated overall score.

The following text is from Andreas, unedited.

I had only ever been to Dukes once when it first opened and I had no intention of going back any time soon, I just expected so much more from a cafe that roasts on site and has such amazing machinery.

That’s why I was in two minds whether to accept Sam and Simon’s invitation to review Dukes, I must now say however I’m glad I did.

Over 6 visits in the last few months I’ve had some memorable coffees at Dukes, but also some that haven’t lived up to my expectations.
When it’s good, Dukes serves one of the best coffees in Melbourne but its consistency is an issue and I believe I’m not the only one to feel this way.
Surprisingly when busy on a weekend the standard has been high and it has been on a quieter weekday morning that I’ve been letdown.
The service was excellent, on my first visit I felt like a regular getting special treatment and this was also the case on most subsequent visits.

The house blend is a great, crowd pleasing blend and works extremely well with milk – one of the better milk based coffees in Melbourne at the moment.
Overall my experiences at Dukes reflect the rating given by Backseat Baristas, a worthy highly recommended cafe in Melbourne and a must visit for any specialty coffee drinker.

(scores given from 2 visits in April)

Coffee: Cafe Latte Tanzania Blackburn
Score: 14/20

Thin but balanced, muted notes berry and stone fruit were fighting to come through the milk.
An interesting choice to use for a milk drink, not quite the norm but not necessarily a bad thing as it’s not always about cutting through milk, rather I believe a coffees flavours should compliment and combine with the milk well.
Had the drink been served in a smaller volume (or had I ordered it strong)  it may have been a much higher scoring drink.

Coffee: Short Macchiato House Blend
Score: 17/20

Medium acidity, notes of hazelnuts leading to a long lasting marzipan finish, medium body with a great buttery mouthfeel, slight bitterness.

Coffee: Espresso Ethiopian Yirgacheffe
Score: 19/20

Great hit of acidity, round, balanced, sweet, juicy espresso that leaves you wanting more.
One of the best I’ve had this year.

Coffee: Ristretto Brazil Serra de Rola Moca, Cup of Excellence (CoE) #20 2008)
Score: 16/20

Medium to high fruity acidity, peaches leading to toffee with a lingering salty, almost savoury finish. Crema was unstable, presumably the coffee was too fresh.

Service N/A

Ambiance N/A

Busy N/A

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Crue Coffee Lounge – South Yarra. Overall Score 15.63

194 Toorak Rd, South Yarra VIC 3141
(03) 9827 5058
Google map link
Coffee Brand: Padre

Is Crue Coffee Lounge a true specialty coffee venue offering the type of coffee experience that it brings? Or is a standard “cafe” that just happens to serve specialty coffee?

We have experienced the poor, mediocre and good in this place which screams inconsistency. The coffee quality and presentation has been up and down, but when it is on song the coffee has been great. Apart from our first visit the staff seem friendly enough and the service ok. It is again one of those places where it is unclear whether table service is offered or not. It is not open on weekends and as pointed out in earlier visits this seems bizarre considering its location.

Our first impressions is that Crue is a just a pure coffee place, the full width of the shop frontage opened revealing the coffee machine and counter immediately behind. On further investigation one realises that there is a lot more behind the scenes. Upstairs to the left is a full-sized kitchen and reasonably large room with tables. So another question begs – is Crue trying to be a pure coffee bar or a fully functioning cafe? We are still unsure, the place seems in two minds. However, our impression is that Crue is focusing on coffee first to be fashionably part of the burgeoning specialty coffee scene. Padre coffee, their brand of choice, uses beans meticulously selected and roasted and forever experimented with. So a venue like this needs to be able to showcase the brand to the uptmost all the time, not some of the time. This place gets our Recommended rating but it comes with a provision.

Score Summary.

Cafe Latte: 13, 16, 17

Macchiato: 13, 14, 15

Espresso: 18, 14.5, 18

Ristretto: 17, 16, 16

Overall Mean Score: 15.63. Recommended.

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Crue Coffee Lounge – South Yarra. 3rd Review.

194 Toorak Rd, South Yarra VIC 3141

8 April 2010 @ 8.15am. Coffee Brand Padre

Coffee – Doppio Espresso. East Timorese

Score 18/20

By SimonL

We were informed that this origin coffee had been rested for 20 days. The norm for roasted beans to be used once roasted is anywhere between 8 – 12 days. I think the idea is to obtain darker deeper flavours with less fresh citrus character. This appeared in front of me looking like decadent melted, dark chocolate, the type that puts fat on thighs at 30 yards. The intensity and depth was profound as was the strength. Certainly there was still some acidity but it reared its head briefly before being swallowed by rich, sweet and strong espresso flavour. The flavour lingered for ages. For someone looking for some strength, intensity and complexity this is worth hunting down and trying before it becomes unavailable, which could be now.

Coffee – Short Macchiato. House Blend

Score 15/20

By SamW

When it comes to a macchiato, size truly does matter. Quite often macchiati in Melbourne are made too long, but rarely too short. In Crue’s case, they make their macchiati very, very short. This has been one of the only consistent factors that Crue have demonstrated.

The coffee itself tasted very good; Padre’s house blend is going from strength to strength in my opinion. The acidity was high, but was tempered by the milk. However, points were deducted because, as noted earlier, the macchiato was too small (Le Petite Mac).

Coffee – Cafe Latte. House Blend

Score 17/20

By SimonL

Bucking the trend of Padre roasts that refuse to meld well with milk this cafe stood proud and tall. No separation of flavours this integrated and well rounded cafe latte was smooth, rich and highly pleasing. Like a couple completely at ease with each other the sweet creamy milk was at peace with the espresso. Undertones of chocolate and earth finishing slightly dry.

Coffee - Ristretto. East Timorese

Score 16/20

By SamW

In our first review, we said that Crue’s strength is in their short game. This ristretto was certainly a strong coffee. The East Timorese single origin was immaculate as a punchy, bold and acidic coffee. There was a slight sourness to end the palette, which followed the strong fruit acidity.

If any criticism is possible, it is that the ristretto was too short for a ristretto. The coffee coated the cup as I tilted it towards my mouth, and only a few mills trickled onto my tongue. The extraction was wonderful, just too brief.

Service 2/5

Ambiance 2/5

Busy 2/5

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Crue Coffee Lounge – South Yarra. 2nd Review

194 Toorak Rd, South Yarra VIC 3141

5 March 2010 @ 11am. Coffee Brand Padre

This was a completely different experience to the last visit. The house blend was available and the guys seemed to know what they were on about. The coffees too, overall, were of a good standard. However there is nothing startling going on here.

This place, funnily enough feels like a coffee lounge, with its dark and warm wood tones, bench seating outside, a couple of comfy couches upstairs at the back, all helping to create an inviting ambiance.

Coffee - Espresso

Score 14.5/20

By SamW

Confusion arose when my espresso was presented with Simon’s ristretto and they appeared similar in size. A couple of mils separated the two, the waiter knew which was which…how I do not know.

The profile bore strong acidity, full forest fruits & tropical banana leaves. Perhaps I was dreaming of Bali instead of tasting the coffee. My only disappointment lay in the presentation and true to style, both of which were lacking.

Coffee – Short Macchiato,

Score 14/20

By SamW

Enter stage left: Le Petite Macchiato! The smallest coffee the world has seen! Even the teaspoon was tiny. The glass was cool to touch, a bit dirty, and it seemed to be too large for such a small coffee. This was due to a very short extraction that had same amount of milk as espresso. If less is more, then this coffee was next to nothing.

The Padre House Blend was so balanced that it did a victory lap around my palette. It produced deep and rich cocoa flavour, which was, overall, well rounded.

Coffee – Cafe Latte, House Blend

Score 16/20

By SimonL

Padre coffee, like 7 Seeds, errs on the delicate side but produce wonderfully fragrant and intense coffees. This can leave milky coffees a bit lacking. However, on this occasion the House Blend had nice balance being robust enough to sit on top of the milk instead of under it without overpowering. The milk texture was excellent, the flavour a nice creamy rich chocolate/caramel with faint woody nuances, and a dry tea-tannin finish.

Coffee – Ristretto

Score 16/20

By SimonL

This presented well the pour spot on and it slipped down easily. The flavours were of a chocolate base topped by fruity hints. It was straight forward, as ristrettos should be, oily and smooth finishing strong but slightly astringent. Enjoyable.

Service 3/5

Ambiance 4/5

Busy 2/5

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