As an ex Starbucks employee from many years ago it was great to receive training that taught me how coffee is grown, cultivated and processed and why that effects what you ultimately get in your cup.
This education has stuck with me over the years and with limited options during COVID-19 to visit cafe’s that were open, I decided to seek out and find some places that may offer pickup or delivery of whole bean coffee.

I stumbled upon Pallet Coffee Roasters when an ad came up in my Instagram feed so I took the chance. Boy was a I glad I did.
Pallet has been in operation since 2014, with six Cafe’s and their headquarters and roastery in East Vancouver as well as a Commissary kitchen.
The Coffee
I chose Benchmark Espresso purely on a whim and proceeded to put it to the test by trying it in my Bialetti Stove Top Espresso, French Press and Cone Filter drip machine over a three week period.
Pallet says this coffee has a “Smooth milk chocolate with a tropical sweetness and soft acidity” flavour profile to it.
I got that immediately as well as a caramel like sweetness and taste that left pleasant notes of brown sugar on my tongue. Perhaps that’s where the tropical comes from. An almost pineapple like taste of tropical could linger there.
The Coffee Dictionary
I always use The Coffee Dictionary as a resource when trying a new coffee. The Coffee Dictionary is written by Maxwell Colonna-Dashwood. I looked up some of the terms described in Benchmarks flavour profile.
The first one was acidity and as the Dictionary describes it as something that is an essential component of a coffee but not necessarily something that is good or bad. A coffee isn’t bright nor is it sour as one would think and coffee itself is only a mildly acidic beverage.
The coffee’s Terroir from the French word terre meaning land or earth and the many environmental factors that are part of a crop’s growing conditions are said to have a greater effect on the acidity of a coffee than anything else. That would make more sense.

The coffee used in Benchmark Espresso is of two varieties.
50% Brazil Fazenda Alta Vista, Honey
50% Colombia Narino Buesaco, Washed
I remember from my Starbucks days a Colombia Narino coffee that I did not like because of what I perceived as a strong acidity or nuttiness. I can confidently say that I do not dislike these coffees anymore.
Brazil Fazenda Alta Vista, Honey is not a coffee type or bean that I have tried or don’t think I have tried unless it was part of a blend that I bought. I’ll have to try a single origin Brazilian in the future.
Latin American Coffee Flavour Profile
Latin American coffees themselves have certain characteristics which include a light to medium body with a balanced and clean mouthfeel. They also exhibit a slight sweetness that is accented by a sparkling, crisp, and lively acidity that may be also be spicy.
For more information on the flavour profile of American coffees please visit the Espresso Coffee Guide.
All in all I would give the Benchmark Espresso a solid 8/10 as a coffee to buy and drink. It’s versatile, has great taste and works well in multiple brewing systems and as a hot or iced beverage.