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Sensory Lab at Grace

Mary O'Brien

‘WE HAVE clothing and coffee — two of the best things that Melbourne has to offer,’’ says enthusiastic barista Oscar Crosara at the Grace boutique-Sensory Lab collaboration in Hawksburn Village.

This is the second Sensory Lab, an offshoot of the St Ali coffee trendsetters. Their space-age flagship, the Sensory Lab outlet at David Jones in the city, has coffee beans from all over the world and various weird and wonderful brewing methods. The aim is to spread the news about Third Wave coffee, to source top-grade speciality coffee directly from farmers and educate coffee drinkers.

‘‘What sets us apart is open communication with the customers,’’ Crosara says. ‘‘If you are going to spend thousands of dollars on something over 10 years, you should know more about what you are drinking.’’

Open only four weeks and hidden at the back of a smart boutique, the Grace Sensory Lab is a modest affair, occupying a small space with a bench and a few stools serving as tables. There are plans to create a cafe in the courtyard and have tables in front of the boutique but for the moment, the emphasis is all on the coffee, with a few cakes and sandwiches from Caffe Veloce. Customers can also buy coffee beans to take home.
Crosara compares coffee with wine — they both come from fruit  but wine has about 120 flavour profiles, whereas coffee has 800.

Dominating the Sensory Lab corner is a beautifully restored 1961 Italian Faema coffee machine. This is a move to bring coffee-making back to basics and the barista says it’s almost impossible to pull a bad shot from the Faema.

He says the secret of good coffee is a fresh blend, ground to order, milk that’s not overheated and — wait for it — a clean machine.

The house blend, which is constantly being tweaked, is creamy and nutty, with earthy  flavours.

Aficionados may want to try the coffee syphon. Though still relatively rare in Melbourne, the syphon has had quite a bit of attention.

It has been around since the 19th century and is a bit similar to the filter method. The idea is to extract more subtle flavours from the coffee, which is drunk as it cools, without milk or sugar. The result is a lighter, sweeter, more mellow coffee, which is quite different from a caffe latte made with the same beans.

Crosara says syphon coffee appeals to the coffee cognoscenti and, surprisingly, to tea drinkers.

Melbourne is a leader in speciality coffee, says the barista who started his coffee training in London and then moved to Byron Bay.  He spends three days a week in Hawksburn and two at the David Jones outlet.

It’s still early days for  Sensory Lab at Grace and while  most customers are female shoppers, about 40 per cent are males, bravely striding past the racks of clothing in search of a caffeine hit.

Found a hot new coffee spot? Email epicure@theage.com.au

SOURCE: Epicure

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