Black Pearl Coffee - Beans — Restaurant in Winnipeg

Location and Exterior: Exciting the car, instantly you smell a distinct smell of roasting coffee. the neighborhood seems a touch odd and maybe unsavoury to some, the building is well maintained, and very fitting in appearance. I felt comfortable going here. There was plenty of parking when I stopped here, and the was clearly marked reserved store parking. I was here on a Saturday.

Interior: Smells of coffee. While small, it was organized very nicely. Lots of the product was behind the counter, which was fine. You can't really see much more than that. I was hoping to maybe catch a glimpse of some roasting equipment, but you can't see any of that from the front store. That's ok though.

The staff: upon entering the store, I was instantly offered coffee. Very nice! The staff were great, and the one I was speaking with was able to make suggestions. Being new to the specialty coffee market, that's all I need right now. She was very polite, and the other fellow working seemed equally the same. I was there with my son, whom they made up a small sample of steamed milk for him. He was happy they didn't ignore him.

The product: Before leaving, I purchased a latte. The price was reasonable. The latte was something I never tasted before. I'm not sure if there was any thing added to it, but it had a very unique flavor.

I also had purchased some chocolate covered beans, which to my suprise tasted excellent, and very addicting. If you buy any, check your teeth after before going into public, you do end up looking like you drank a cup of coffee grounds.

The coffee, I purchased a bag of the house blend, and a bag of an Ethiopian variety after doing some sort research on the internet prior to visiting. I have used the house blend in my Moka pot at home, which was very nice with milk. I have also used the Ethiopian coffee in my French press which I'm drinking as I type this review. Its also very good. The first thing I notice about the coffee is how much it blooms when I introduced water. I understand that's what you want to see, as it indicates the freshness of the roast.

The negatives: there's no information on the bags that would really tell you when the coffee was roasted. This would be nice to know. I can only assume it was fresh.

The physical location, within the Winnipeg, is not in an area of the city where you would commonly travel. Not a huge deal, I can understand this and accommodate when I'm in Winnipeg.

Overall: really enjoyed it. Great place to go if you enjoy coffee. The experience alone is with it. I'm adding this as a place I...

Location: A bit out of the way, but once you know this coffee, it's not even a factor.

Staff: The owner is an extremely friendly, down to earth, easy to talk to, person who really makes coming in feel like this is a place that "everyone knows your name". A great experience. other staff could use a lesson on the products you're selling and on greeting your customers.

Product: Ahh, the coffee. Once you taste the coffee that this company roasts, you'll wonder why you ever thought that Tim Hortons was great coffee (because people, it's really, really not). Starbucks / Second Cup make great espresso, but for the coffee you wake up with each morning, take to work, take to the lake on the weekends or sip on and cling to at your kid's early Saturday or Sunday morning hockey games, THIS is the coffee you need in your life. Like your iPhone or Galaxy is an extension of your life, so is this coffee. It's second to nothing... And best, it's reasonably priced too.

Notable ( Medium Roast) Coffees: Ethiopian Yirgacheffe / Tanzania Peaberry (look up "Peaberry" and you'll understand why this coffee is amazing) / Mara Tatu

Notable (Dark Roast) Coffees: "the Black Pearl" House Blend / Bolivia Colonial Carnivali / Mexican Oaxaca

Overall: 4.8 / 5.0...

Awesome product.

Had a great time going in and asking to be handed 3 pounds of coffee. A light, medium and dark.

Only tried the Rwandan so far, and it's great.

Thanks very much.

Aeropress with Able fine filter, and Stag EKG pro to 96.5°C. 14 grams through a Porlex grinder (burrlock to 4 clicks back off). 28g water, 45s bloom. Fill aeropress, stir again, cap, purge air. Wait till 2m30, invert on mug, wait 30 more seconds. Press over 30s to hit 3m30 total.

Comes out great!

And Black Pearl, considering my persona...Captain Jack Sparrow's vessel he captains. All...