Café Opulence Coffee
Anju Road Rating: ★★★★★
Just a few streets down from Byward Market is a no-nonsense coffee roastery, specializing in fresh beans and a select few drinks, masterfully prepared.
From the moment you walk in, you are greeted with the amazing aroma of roasted-as-we-speak coffee; The dark caramel notes, the slight burnt chocolate smell, a small twinge of acidity. Coffee lovers dream of this stuff, and it's very rare to be treated to these smells, especially in Ottawa. So my surprise was genuine when all you see is a small counter laden with embedded pennies, a POS, and a legendary Victoria Arduino White Eagle Espresso machine. If you know anything about espresso machines, Victoria Arduino is about as timeless as it gets. But a fancy machine means nothing if the barista doesn't know how to wield it. Thankfully, I was in the clear as the day I was there, the owner himself was working the bar.
After a quick chat about how Opulence came to be, I ordered my first drink to taste: The Double Espresso. My go-to when visiting a new coffee shop is typically a Cortado (an espresso beverage with 1:1 espresso and steamed milk) which allows me to assess the quality of an espresso without immediately subjecting myself to a painful extraction. However, when standing in nothing but an open concrete shop with a giant roaster in the back, I would be a fool to not taste the raw output as intended. When the owner asked me the magic question, "Short or Long?" I knew we were in winners territory. I ordered a short espresso and quickly received a beautiful crema-adorned tall espresso cup on a plate.
The Espresso
Right out of the gate I'm calling it: Best espresso I've had this year.
Although I don't have a picture of the first shot I tasted, as I was chatting with the owner, I remember stopping what I was doing, looking down into the golden crema and just taking a deep breath. I was truly blown away. Along with a deep bodied roast there was a subtle sweetness that paired beautifully with a the minerality of the beans. Lurking behind it all was a hinting floral note that skirted the last flavour notes along the palate, before leaving you with a slightly acidic tanginess that makes your mouth water. The acidity was incredibly well controlled and never veered into sour or bitter as many people describe a typical espresso shot. This guy knows what he's doing. The only negative point I could say, and this is more subjective note, is that the espresso was a little on the thinner side, taking one point away for mouth-feel but that really comes down to personal preference. Whether the roast I tried had a little more Arabica and less Robusta I am not sure, but I typically enjoy a thicker mouth feel when drinking espresso straight. Maybe that just comes from the Southern Italian Espresso I learned to love while living in Toronto.
I remember turning back to the owner, and just saying, "Wow". We had a good chat about the flavours I was tasting but one thing became odd to me when I asked for more details about the type of blend they were using, he simply referred to it as their 'Secret Blend'. While I appreciate the mystery I pressed further as my curiosity grew to maybe get a hint if my Guatemalan or South American guesses were close, but I got stone-walled on we will not share any details. It felt a little silly to cut off the conversation there but I respected it and moved on. When looking back at their website, I see the Signature Espresso Blend is a mix of Colombian Medium, Honduras Medium and Peruvian Dark roasts, but I was not told if this was the Signature Roast, but simply their 'Secret Blend', so your mileage may vary.
I decided that the next drink to try should be milk-based and asked what he recommended. He quickly answered with a Cappuccino and jumped behind the machine to make it.
The Cappucino
I often steer clear of cappuccinos only because I've been let down so many times with the worst textured milk or some ridiculous blob of foam on top of my cup. I am happy to report I was pleasantly surprised. With a fresh grated stick of cinnamon to decorate the foam, what I drank next was a beautiful balance silk and espresso.
The texture was fantastic; the milk was beautifully incorporated into the coffee and the microfoam was airy and silky, floating on top. Even looking at the picture, this isn't a dry, foamy mess, this is a properly emulsified, velvety masterpiece executed by someone with a deep passion for excellent coffee. The freshly grated cinnamon adds a wisp of cinnamon on the nose, rather than a mouthful of powder you get the joy of inhaling on the last few gulps.
To find something to pick at is a challenge here, so my only point is that by him using the same 'Secret Blend' as the espresso I tasted earlier, the brightness and acidity of that flavour profile are muted by the milk and cinnamon. This is essentially unavoidable when incorporating milk into a drink, but there is nothing that this roast takes away from the cappuccino experience here, which is not always the case.
Final Verdict
I am very happy to hear that Ottawa finally has a high-quality roastery that serves its own coffee with such mastery. Although I only tried two drinks while I was there, I was incredibly impressed by the execution of the drinks, and the passion that the owner has for bringing delicious beans from around the world and roasting them fresh, and in-house multiple times a week. I will be back again soon to see what else this unassuming little roastery has to offer.
Café Opulence Coffee
261 Dalhousie St, Ottawa, ON K1N 7E4
Total Visits: 1
Anju Road Rating: ★★★★★