Café Review: Jimmy’s Coffee
Posted by Coffeestork on 27 Jul 2010 | Tagged as: Café Review
Café: Jimmy’s Coffee
Location: 107 Portland Street, Toronto, ON
Review:
Jimmy’s Coffee is located in an area of town that is trendy, as well it has former baristas from Hanks after the ownership changes. I really had no expectations when I walked in, just curious to find out more.
I went with my healthy compromising friend, and we walked in and I asked for an espresso. My pronunciation must have been off since I was corrected that it’s not “ex”, but “es”. Indeed I will be more careful.
I asked what type of beans were available. The answer was “Miscela Classica from Classic Gourmet Coffee in Concord. Are you familiar with them?” Sort of. I have no doubt come across Toronto’s largest roaster, but I’m not too familiar with them, nor do I have a strong opinion. The blend was described as a classic blend with strong chocolate and caramel notes that is smoother than their Super Bar.
After we drank the shots, I had an opportunity look at the coffee beans brought back memories of more classic Italian-style darker roasts. The roast itself was a medium dark brown, sometimes referred to as Full City where the oily drops are just beginning to surface. For coffee roasted to this point, most of natural coffee flavours are muted and are dominated by the roast flavours of bitter sweet chocolate and lots of caramel. The acidity becomes quite muted.
We were asked about size. I asked for a double, and my healthy compromiser friend asked for a single. More to come later on this.
The equipment was 2-group Nuovo Simonelli Aurelia paired with some Malkonig K30′s. No doubt, something you can pull good shots with. Timers were set up on top of the machine and used during the shot which was carefully ground, tamped, and poured while being carefully watched as they poured into classic tulip-shaped glasses.
For the single, there was hesitation, questioning if we were sure for a single, and then the shot was pulled with a single basket.
The Shots
The nose of my espresso was dominated by toasty and chocolaty flavours. The taste starts with an intense bittersweet chocolate that quickly fades into a mellow smooth toasty, chocolaty finish with a some caramel, and sweet bitterness. The finish is long, but very mellow, and the coffee has good body and low acidity.
My friend offers me a sip of his. It ends up being somewhat more acidic and having a bit of a grassy flavour. Barista indicates that this is because it is hard to pull singles.
Conclusions: In a Pinch (Ratings Guide)
This was one of the best smooth, classic, easy to drink chocolate caramel espressos that I’ve had recently with a slight bit of bitterness at the end instead of sweetness.
Everything about was nice, and it was well pulled, but there was no wow factor. I think my preferences seemed to seek more layers of flavours from the coffee, and a bit more intrigue.
As for the single. I refuse to serve singles at home because I can’t pull them well. I tell people not to drink the whole cup if they only want a single. I would expect coffee shops not to sell singles if they can’t pull them well and consistently, or just give a double when a single is ordered.
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1 Comment »
Hey, love the site, I’ve been following your reviews, very helpful thanks!
It’s funny, It seems no one can pull good single shots. I keep reading it’s very difficult. I’ve used my single basket for a single and it seems ok, comparible to my doubles, but then again I’m new at this and I’m using a (possibly broken) Saeco via Veneto machine. I’ve never been able to get good Crema, I usually do cappucinos with milk and sugar so it still tastes good!
But I would like to work on perfecting my espresso (hopefully without having to upgrade to a Gaggia machine or A Silvia, although I’m considering it).
It seems my machines max temp is around 180f, and it doesn’t stay there very long, luckilly (or unluckilly?) shots seem to come out pretty fast and I kill it when the water starts looking too light (dirty water coloured I guess) it maybe lasts 15 secs max.
I do tamp hard, I tried a few coffess/grinds so far including fresh epic espresso, grinded at Crema (although my tamp was a bit small, got a good one today, haven’t tried it yet but I doubt it will make a difference).
Due to the low temperature I believe, epic turned out really bright / acidic and herbally tasting which wasn’t at all how I had it at Crema cafe (it was actually reallly good there).
Well, just felt like sharing I guess, if you have any tips you’d like to share let me know, or recommendations for a good dependable machine, preferably with something besides an alluminum boiler (alluminum is bad for peoples health, also I hear they get mineral deposits quicker and may cause issues for some reason).
Thanks,
Ben