I haven't been impressed with their offerings for brewed. I've had a similar response as to others here on CG regarding Allegro: not terrible, not great. I'd also tried their Espresso Sierra and thought it was just mediocre.
But I grabbed enough of this for two shots today at Whole Foods (air roast). Tagged "northern Italian" at the store. Roast color reflects this is correct. Looks like utter threshold of 2C.
I pulled two rounds of Bel Canto (three days off roast), and I must say, it was surprisingly good. It reminded me of Red Bird. Nutty, caramel-ly, verging on the Snickers thing.
I pulled a tight "single" (between ristretto and true single) on my Caravel. This basket is between the more common single and double sizes--11 grams--@~202, shot volume about 3/4 ounce, steady hard pull (longer time than usual).
Nice mottling, velvety texture, balanced mouthfeel. Creamy, but not mousse creamy. Nice balance of velvetiness and semi-thick creaminess. Really good balance in terms of flavor: above flavors with light milk chocolate. No spicy sharpness.
From Allegro's Organic Espresso Bel Canto webpage: "first we create a base layer of low hues, which are heavy and nutty beans from the Americas, onto which we splash bursts of vibrant color which are the fruit kissed coffees of Ethiopia."
Part of that profile may have been due to macchina and mano. I'll spin it different ways and see what comes out. : )
Intrepid510 Senior Member Joined: 30 Dec 2010 Posts: 308 Location: California Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Sun May 29, 2011, 7:35am Subject: Re: Allegro's organic Bel Canto--nice
I picked up some of this the other day, the first shot I took it was obvious that the coffee was too fresh as it just kinda blew up.
This morning I pulled a shot, still I think a little too fresh. However, I got a nice shot from it (ie rich color and about 25ish seconds) a real chocolate liquor taste to it that really over powered anything else that might be there. Tomorrow it should be good to go.
Done a few more shots of this over the past few days, it's pretty good. I keep getting that liquor taste in the shot with some nuts in the background. I got a weird rum raisin shot from it yesterday when I made a cappa out of it. Anyway, I've found it more interesting than enjoyable.
I wish I could get some of this that was not over-roasted. The local Whole Foods seems in favor of charring everything they touch, with the exception of Breakfast Blend. When I lived in RI I used to purchase the Bel Canto occasionally for brewed coffee and enjoyed the flavor profile. That was before I was really into espresso.
I wish I could get some of this that was not over-roasted. The local Whole Foods seems in favor of charring everything they touch, with the exception of Breakfast Blend. When I lived in RI I used to purchase the Bel Canto occasionally for brewed coffee and enjoyed the flavor profile. That was before I was really into espresso.
My previous Whole Foods that I lived near dark roasted everything, and I think they roasted the entire quarters supplied of beans in one day. Where as this one actually does do light and medium roasts and does so about every 4 days. I have been pretty impressed by what I have been getting and a welcomed surprise.
My previous Whole Foods that I lived near dark roasted everything, and I think they roasted the entire quarters supplied of beans in one day. Where as this one actually does do light and medium roasts and does so about every 4 days. I have been pretty impressed by what I have been getting and a welcomed surprise.
It boils down to local management. Many Whole foods stores roast daily. Unfortunately that's no guarantee that they roast correctly. I'm glad your local store is on the ball.
Posted Sun Nov 27, 2011, 2:01pm Subject: Re: Allegro's organic Bel Canto--nice
Ridiculous shot of Bel Canto (6 days off roast) just now. Mouthfeel combined with flavor was like eating whipped cream that tasted like chocolate-covered cherries.
The Whole Foods in my area have no idea what they are doing. I checked 8 or so beans that had 3 days since roast day and none of them had an aroma. I am used to buying from a roaster in town who does it for a living and his beans are intoxicating on the 3rd day. Needless to say, I am not buying beans from Whole Foods.
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