ILLY

I have been wanting to review this one for a very long time now, but illy is expensive in belgium, where i live. A 250grams tin will easily set you back more than 7 euro, my local supermarket sells them at 7,45, not really cheap huh
I got it a week ago, when shopping in Maastricht, Netherlands, at 5,85 in the Albert Heyn shops, I immediately got a tin, being oh so lucky with this relatively good price.
Truth be told, I had already tried illy before, many times even, one of my favourite bars in my hometown serves this coffee, but there is a downside to them, they use fresh milk for the caffe au lait they serve.
Let me tell you this, fresh milk... awesome (pretend this word is being sung out loud)
It really is that good, it adds so much more flavour to the coffee, I wish i could have the luxury to have fresh milk on a daily base, but I still havent found any reliable suppliers that can keep providing the high quality i am looking for.

Back to the actual review and let us keep the ranting for another blog post, I should do one about the choice of milk, could be a very interesting one to experiment with various milk types on purpose.

So I got the tin, opened it up, pulled the tab and out came the odor of this bean.

First impression, it is a medium roasted bean, again I would estimate this one as a level 3 roast, but it does smell more powerfull than most other coffees. A very clear more intense aroma. I was a little worried, most coffees this lightly roasted do not smell this intense, it made me expect a strong espresso, a very strong one even.

Second impression, to my surprise, when i smelled the freshly made cup of espresso, I wasnt liking the smell. I cant explain it even, it just didnt smell right.

Third impression, my all time favourite, the drinking.
Now to be honest, I divided this test in 3 parts, because I had just bought some new cane sugar too, I wanted to experience that too.
Test A, half n half milk, cane sugar... Medium flavoured coffee, a thick body, a very nice crema layer. I didnt really seem to enjoy this one, could it be the cane sugar?
Test B, half n half milk again, this time with regular sugar. While the sweetness experience changed a little, the coffee didnt seem to improve a lot. I will give it due credit, this one would be getting a mere 6,2 / 10, based mostly on past experiences, when I drink it at the coffeeshop, it is just so much better.

Then finally, Test C, whole milk, my favourite Joyvalle brand, regular sugar.
The flavour really changed, the soft nutty flavour I know, came back immediately. Medium to Strong flavoured, I wouldnt call it mild or strong, something nicely in between. I like this one much more, thanks to the milk.

Final thoughts, this coffee is good, but expensive. Makes a great cappuccino or caffe latte, needs whole milk to be really good. I suggest everyone gives it a try, but do try it in a Illy shop, their baristas really know their coffee and should not disappoint.

Rating: 8,7 / 10
Purchased: can buy it almost everywhere
Price: 5,85