Silver Fox Flores Coffee Beans
A world-class bean from Toronto’s leading boutique beanery.
INTRODUCTION
Silver Fox coffee is the sister brand to Coffee Bouquets in Toronto’s Bloor West Village. Some web sites list the name as Coffee Boutique, so evidently there was a name change at some point. Silver Fox is run by a man named Viktor Mihal who is a self-professed coffee fanatic and it certainly shows! My friend introduced me to the spot because she knows I’m a coffee nut and it turns out Viktor and I are the same kind of nut.
When you walk into the shop the silence is notable. Don’t be scared, Viktor is actually a really nice guy. He greeted us with a stern “Oh, look who it is!,” recognizing my friend. Like a border service agent in Eastern Europe, Viktor is a guy who doesn’t fuck around. I since learned he is originally from Ukraine. Again, don’t be scared. Viktor is going to be your friend… if you don’t get lippie. After a short and embarrassing introduction by my friend about my “selective” tastes, Viktor cut to the chase. “Tell me what you like.”
I proceeded to describe my favorite Los Rosales bean - Columbian, medium-dark roast, huge bouquet and rolling big round flavour with absolutely no bitterness. He said “Let’s go to the wall.”
The wall is his selection of Silver Fox branded, hand curated and roasted beans. This is like going to the diamond merchant. “Let me show you the gems.” He proceeded to go through 3 beans describing exactly the differences of each and saying “You’ll like all these.” I felt confident. Then I pointed to another bag and asked “how about this one?” “That one’s not for you.” Like ducking a Klitschko left hook, I summoned the courage to ask “why’s that?” and he went in detail about the difference in bouquet, acidity, and tasting tones.
The confidence he inspires is absolute and as an ex-speciality retail provider I knew immediately that this gruffness was not from arrogance, but from complete mastery. I said “ok, give me the three”. After a very good European style cappuccino (including lesson on the proper method vs. New Zealand style), I returned home and broke open the three bags:
Enter the cupping. After trying 100 beans I decided to cut to the chase and cup every new bean just like the pros. There are simply too many variables in production, time of day or even mood to isolate a coffee’s taste using any consumer brewing method. If someone wants to throw a donation (thank you!) my way, I will invest in some pro cups.
Since I have 3 coffees, I’ll compare each of these together to give you a sense of contrast and allow you to understand better why I prefer the Flores.
PAPUA NEW GUINEA WEGHI BLUE MOUNTAIN
The beans have a distinct smell of plum, and it bears out somewhat in the taste. More strongly however, is a kind of nuttiness. Viktor describes it as oak which I can see, but it reminds me more of the inner shell of an Almond. It’s not the almond itself, just the inner shell. The taste of this coffee is very strong and perhaps it has extra extraction per gram than the others, but it is certainly not light and thin. It also has the most bitterness of the three coffees on review, but lacks the rich mid-bodiedness that I like. In audio terms, this is high on bass and treble, but recessed in mids.
For lovers of espresso, this may be a very good choice. To me it was interesting and has pronounced character, but those are not my personal flavour preferences. Still wildly better than mass market coffees, in my absolute rating it gets a 7.8/10.
ETHIOPIA GESHA
To this point I’ve found the vast majority of Ethiopian coffees, regardless of bean variety to be highly acidic, bitter and overpowering on flower or fruit notes. This is one of only two that tastes nothing like that. The fragrance is superior to the Papua New Guinea with both more strength and more balance. The first impression is of light brown sugar (not overpowering) and then at the end a slightly acidic fruitiness as in cranberry or, as Viktor describes, black currant. It’s subtle and interesting. The taste follows the smell quite closely (many coffees do not) with more brightness and acidity than the Papua New Guinea yielding generally more interesting flavour. To again use the audio analogy, the bass and mids are balanced, with a slightly emphasis on the high notes. There is some undesired bitterness here which many will like. It’s a zing to keep you interested. To me, I would probably adjust grind size and brew time to tone this down slightly. Overall a very good coffee. 8/10.
FLORES
The Flores has the biggest bouquet of all three. I’m generally predisposed to pick highly fragrant coffees because to me, that is the “come hither” flirtation to drink them. I gifted a bag of these beans to my friend and as soon as they took them out of the gift bag the smell hit and his face lit up. It’s an immediate sense-pleaser. That is a certainly a good thing. Compared to my benchmark Los Rosales, Flores has 95% as intense smell, but it is slightly more nuanced and fruity than Rosales. This bears out in the taste too.
Full-body is the main tag on the bag and it is true. This has the rounded big flavour I like. Not as heavy as the Papua, but with firm underpinnings, it is more like a really good chocolate cake in the mouth. With almost no bitterness, it could be too smooth for some tastes if not for the slight acidity and blackberry note on the top. To finish the audio analogy this is a reference response with equal bass, mids and highs and lots of nuance in the mids to provide character and expressivity.
This is a coffee that responds very well to slight changes in brewing variables. A little less time and coarser grinds yields a lighter and brighter but still smooth and easy brew. More time and finer grind yields a perfect base for adding milk. Deep strength and just enough fruit overtone and acid to hold up against a whole milk. It’s the perfect partner for my drinks and I think for anyone who wants to dial it in. 9/10.
CONCLUSION
The search for the Los Rosales replacement continues and thankfully has brought me to Viktor, the Silver Fox, and Coffee Bouquets. He is a true connoisseur. Allow him to express his knowledge, act like a good and honest student and you will be rewarded. In my first visit he quickly and accurately learned my taste and provided a perfect range of 3 coffees to further refine my pleasure centre. Having run a shop myself, I can tell you there are but a handful of proprietors in Toronto who can provide this level of accurate service. As for the Flores, like all very special things, it too is a microlot, and you better get it while you can.
PRICE
$20.00 USD
AVAILABILITY
Coffee Bouquets
2285 Bloor St W, Toronto, ON M6S 1P1
THE RATING
9/10 Absolute
10/10 Relative
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