Coffee Rating:
3 out of 5 coffee cups

Blanell Coffee, Inc.
La Braziliana Marfisa Italian Espresso Coffee Dark Roast
Price: $33.99 Sale Price: $29.99 35.2 oz. (2.2 lbs)
100% Arabica Beans

Blanell Coffee was kind enough to send us five free coffees to sample from their fine line of Italian espresso coffees. Blanell Coffee was inspired by the the company’s two founders during their visits to Italy. They were enthralled by the fine coffees of Italy and wanted to share their love of Italian coffees with Americans, founding Blanell Coffee in 2010 to provide the freshest Italian coffee on the market. Blanell Coffee sells whole bean Italian Espresso coffees, equipment and coffee accessories, including Barista tools and espresso coffee makers.

The Blanell espresso samples all contained whole bean coffee. The La Braziliana Marfisa Italian Espresso coffee was brewed with a home Espresso machine and also with a French Press and it was tasted with and without half and half. As most coffee drinkers know the espresso machine produces a much stronger, flavorful cup of coffee using ground espresso beans than with the French Press. For those of you who do not have a home espresso machine but love espresso, increase the amount of beans ground to produce a stronger coffee when using a French Press. Be sure to grind the beans to a fine consistency for brewing, being careful to slowly move the plunger since fine grinds can be messy when used with a French Press.

The La Braziliana Marfisa Italian Espresso coffee according to the website is a blend of coffees from Central America. The coffee beans smelled of a strong roast when opening the bag of dark beans. The La Braziliana Marfisa espresso when brewed had a roasted smell with a nutty aroma. When brewed the La Braziliana Marfisa coffee presented as very strong, intense and thick tasting espresso. I found the coffee flavor to be smoky with a strong bitterness, in fact the bitterness was a little harsh. This espresso was not quite as smooth as the other espressos from Blanell. I found the addition of cream and sugar helped ease the bitter tones of the coffee. If you prefer a very strong tasting, intense espresso you will enjoy La Braziliana Marfisa coffee.