Espresso Blends

Creating the perfect espresso blend is a mixture of art, science (and a lot of tasting). Coffees from different regions of the world have remarkably different taste profiles, and even within a growing region there can be much variation from one estate to another; depending on altitude, soil conditions and many other factors. Our philosophy is to develop blends that are more complex and balanced than coffee from a single origin.

The 2 commercial coffee species Coffea Arabica and Coffea Robusta also bring very different characteristics to a coffee blend. Arabica is generally the more sought after, with better flavour and aroma attributes. However Robusta coffee has a higher caffeine content and also develops better crema in espresso coffee. In Italy it is common practice to add a small proportion of Robusta coffee to an espresso blend in order to give more kick, a practice that also works very well with New Zealand's most popular espresso coffee: the flat white.

We have several blends that have been engineered specifically for the cafe espresso experience. These include both Italian style espresso blends (containing a little Coffee Robusta) as well as the smoother 100% Arabica blends. Also included in the range is our 100% Fairtrade Organic coffee blend Pascolo - with bean sourced directly from Trade Aid. In 2009 our Milano blend was awarded the bronze medal in the flat white category at the national NZ Coffee Awards.

For a list of our cafe espresso blends & wholesale prices, please email jonathan@chiasso.co.nz.