Recent Coffee Breakfast Blend Review

Here’s my review of the Breakfast Blend from Recent Coffee, tailored to brewing it on my espresso machine (I used my Sage machine, fancy I know).

First Impressions (smellpressions).

I opted for the Garden Street Breakfast Blend because the flavour notes looked right up my street: 100% Arabica from Brazil & Colombia. The roasters describes it as “a bold chocolate body with a hint of toffee to finish” and a “sweet caramel acidity and silky mouth feel”.

Right away I liked that it’s billed as a “Breakfast Blend” but not in the sense of “hard-punch wake-up coffee”. It promised something more approachable, which appealed given I’m using a Sage espresso machine rather than an all singing all dancing commercial set-up.

Setting Up the Machine for this coffee

Using the Sage meant I had full control of grind size, dose, and temperature. I went for the following:

Whole beans ground fresh just before brewing.
Dose: approx 18 g in the portafilter (my standard)
Grind: fine as expected for espresso on the Sage (slightly coarser than super-dense dark roast)
Machine temperature: about 93°C (as per the machine default)
Pre-infusion / extraction: 6 – 8 seconds pre-infusion, then full shot to about 35 ml in ~30 seconds.

Taste & Texture (Espresso Version)

Aroma: As soon as the shot started, there was a warm chocolate scent, leaning slightly caramel-sweet. The pre-infusion bloom gave a waft of toffee-sugar rather than burnt caramel.
Body: Medium-bodied in the cup. On the Sage machine the crema was decent (given home equipment) and the texture was smooth, silkier than typical “cheap espresso” beans.
Flavour:

The initial sip registers as milk-chocolate rather than dark-chocolate, which I find very welcome for daily drinking.
Sweetness is present but not overwhelming, the caramel-toffee note comes in subtly, giving a gentle sweetness rather than a sugar high.
Acidity is soft and clean. It doesn’t zing, which for my machine means fewer errant sour pops. It stays smooth.
Finish is clean: the toffee hint lingers, there's a soft cocoa shadow, and then it gently fades. No harsh bitterness creeping in.

From other reviews:

“10/10 … Fave coffee. Wouldn’t buy from anywhere else”
“A lovely cup of coffee for any time of day … I find this Breakfast Blend slightly lighter … perfect for drinking later in the day.”

My experience lined up nicely with those comments.

How It Performed With Milk

Because I also tried a flat white style on the Sage (18 g in, 35 ml out, then 150 ml steamed milk), bearing in mind I’m a novice barista…

The chocolate-toffee profile held up well when milk was introduced. The milk softened the edges further and made the caramel note more obvious in the background.
The body remained pleasant, the beans didn’t lose their shit when milk added, which is good news for those who drink lattes/flat whites more often than straight espresso.

Final Verdict from a substantial home barista

If I was handing it out a score: I’d give Garden Street a solid 8.5 out of 10 for my home espresso use with the Sage. It ticks all the boxes for me. I’d happily make this “go-to” bean in my kitchen, and to be honest, I probably will!

Would I recommend it? Yes, especially if you’re using a home espresso machine like mine and you want something dependable but not overly high-maintenance. It’s also a good pick if you switch between straight espresso and milk-based drinks.

If I were offering a tip, I’d say: go with the espresso setup as I did, and if you enjoy the results, maybe try it as a filter/pour-over too to see how the flavour evolves (because the roaster says it works for all methods). Enjoy!

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