Rating: Standard, solid mid-level Roman coffee
The Brunacci Bar Caffè felt very much like a man’s bar- very macho, very full of guys with puffy chests joking and being rough and tough guys. When I walked in there where only guys in there, all in their 30s to 40s and seemed to be having a blast of a time. The barista had a tough look to him and simply stared me down as I walked to the bar. A coffee? Yes. That was the interaction. The interior of the place is pretty chill, it is casual, has a big tv on one corner blasting out sports events, and the bar itself, ends in a mountain of things that are sold- you can barely spy the cashier, also a tough looking dude, sitting and counting is damned pennies. It was a fun experience, especially after having stopped in the dandy Picasso bistrot….
This is what I got placed before me:
Presentation: Yup, another Circi coffee. OK, I got ready for a strong kick in the mouth. No problem. Water? Nope, that’s for wimps or idiot tourists … this is all macho and if you can’t take it, get out. That was my impression at least. The cup was clean, the espresso was milked as a ‘double’ for another client that walked after me. Too bad… the spoon to measure. Superfluous stuff the barista might say.
Temperature of Cup: No wimps here, the cup was at perfect temperature! Where’s the Romanista macho ??
Quantity: It was short, concise, loved it.
Temperature: Also perfect, not scalding, nothing out of order.
Volume/Consistency: Silky, oily, syrupy. Like opening your mouth to a cup full of Aunt Jemima corn-fructose syrup… not a bad thing.
Crema: Very dark on one corner, almost white on the other side. Over extracted, crap… it dissipated quite quickly as I drank it, but it did definitely add to the experience of drinking it.
Odor: Yup, charred deep beans. Macho all the way.
Taste: Ahh… the test. Yup, a kick in the teeth bitterness at first. Heavy, quite a mouthful, but no rancidness here. It was controlled. After this pungent kick you get the flat flavor of oily coffee without any tinges of frivolous fruits, nuts or whatnot…
Overall: It was decent, it stood on its own, and was solid mid-range Roman coffee, no complaints. I can do this again.
The setup: They had a beautiful Royal Espresso machine, very Spartan. But man, look at those two grinders, boxy, square, tough, and rip a hole in any damned charcoal bean you stick in it. Dual Anfim grinders that were kicking out the grind. The espresso, yes, Classico Caffè Circi- a Roman based roaster, with deeply strong and bitter coffee. With the amount of cafes serving this ll probably grow to love this roast….
Brunacci Bar Caffè
Melis Pierluigi
Via Brunacci 7
00146 Roma
Tel. 06 8968 2158