A & E BAR CAFFÈ, VIA SILVESTRO GHERARDI 75, 00146 ROMA

Rating: Standard, normal mid-range Roman coffee

I was still in the north-end of the Poartunese area, below Trastevere and on the East side of the Viale G. Marconi. I got out of the Elite Bar Caffè and was unfortunately disappointed, so I thought I’d give a last try at another bar. I can’t do more than two or three espresso at a time as I get a stomach ache, and then really lose sight of how each place tastes. I only found out the name of hte A & E Bar Caffè after I paid and got my receipt. On the outside one can only see a small vintage neon sign that reads ‘Bar Caffè’. What else do you need to know? The locale sits on a corner and is quite long. Inside I found about 8 retired people sitting all along the right hand side of the bar, chatting and just generally existing. On the left hand side was the very long bar. There was the barista kicking out espressi at 100 miles per hour. He was a young guy in his early 20s and very well educated and professional.

This is what he gave me:

Presentation: Nice clean cup. I had had one of these years ago when I came to Rome, nice to come in contact with it again. No water was offered but he did give me a cup when I asked. I like the general design of the cup, straight edged fluted out, and small - to the point. The logo on it is very nice, the woman’s hair tied up in a ‘coffee bean’ is really inventive, if not sexist in a way that only Italians know how to be. Why is it that Italian men (half of the population) like to drink their coffee with an effigy of a woman? And of course they have to be ‘exotic’? Well that’s food for some unsuspecting undergraduate wanting to have useless PhD thesis topic!

Temperature of Cup: It wasn’t boiling hot. It was borderline but still OK. All good here!

Quantity: Very short shot, I’m a very happy customer so far.

Temperature: It was good, warm, borderline also, brewed surely at 94-96 Celcius range, but still manageable. I’m still a happy camper.

Volume/Consistency: It was thin, not very full and a bit watery. I was taken aback by this as the shot was concise and small. I guess it lacked an oil profile in its body.

Crema: It was good, grainy, thick and persistent, yet it didn’t seem to contribute to the perception of volume in the cup.

Odor: Very dark roasted coffee smell, à la French Roast I’d say.

Taste: It was a mildly bitter opening. It opened to a flat plateau of bitterness that wasn’t complex at all, and it had a finish that was watery and simple. Almost transparent in it’s taste profile.

Overall: Nothing complex, nothing rich, and very light and watery espresso. Nothing to complain about as it could have been a rancid cup of tar, which it surely wasn’t, but I was hoping a bit more. I felt it had the potential to be a whole lot more.

The setup: The machine creating the squirt was a Faema, the grinder was a black-clad Astoria / Mazzer, and the coffee being served is a West-Rome based (a bit West of Aurelio neighborhood) Coparica Caffè it is a ‘torrefazione’ (coffee roaster) with no apparent web-portal but you can see a list of their offerings here. I’m very curious to taste other coffee of theirs!