Review – 7 Coffee Roasters

I love trying new cafe/roasteries – shops that not only serve espresso but roast their own. Seattle seems to have a lot of these – not necessarily all are good, but its fun to visit new places.  I randomly came across an article about a relatively new micro-roaster in Seattle (as of Jan 2007) in Greenwood, so I thought I would give it a try.

7 Coffee Roasters – (http://www.7roasters.com/)

7 Coffee roasters is located on the corners of 78th and Greenwood Ave in the Greenwood district of Seattle. I haven’t really ventured to this part of Seattle, well, ever, so its new to me. The cafe/roastery is located in an old brick building – and the store itself isn’t upscale or even much to look at. It feels like a larger version of Blue Bottle Coffee’s Hayes Valley kiosk in SF, with some seating. But they roast their beans at the site – so its fresh.

Espresso: Espresso Huli

Bean Origin: Brazil, Sumatra, Guatemala, and Ethopia

Straight Shot: Bright, sweet, and light crema. The body had chocolate and berry notes, with good complexity. While it had a good finish, it left a little to be desired in overall body and intensity. There was a long line and only one person working, and she didn’t really get a chance to dial into her grinder, so this could have been part of the problem. Given another try, I think the blend might have a little more to give. Overall, pretty good shot.

In Milk: Chocolate flavors persist, with considerable persistence of intensity. Does very well.

Overall, my 7 Coffee Roasters experience was very good. The espresso was good – not quite at the level of Victrola/Vita/Vivace/etc., but much better than Cafe Ladro or Uptown Espresso, and closely approaching Caffe Fiore. Thats a pretty good accomplishment for a place that opened up 8 months ago. If you are in Greenwood, or just like coffee, make sure to give 7 Coffee Roasters a try.