Coffee Tasting at Laneway & Co

If you fancy a coffee in Newcastle, where do you turn?  There are tonnes of Starbucks, Costas, Prets and other mainstream chains, which are great when you want something filling on the fly.  But how close to real coffee do they actually taste?  Let’s face it, a whole load of Starbees drinks are milk, sugar, cream and flavourings with a side of coffee.  And sure, sometimes you need a sugar injection, but sometimes you also need a serious caffeine fix.  I always associated a strong coffee with a bitter taste, at least until I tried the coffee at Laneway & Co on High Bridge Street.  And let’s just say, not all coffees are created equal.

The Best Beans

The knowledgeable guys serving behind the bar know a thing or too about coffee.  They learnt their trade in Australia, where coffee chains are not welcome and it’s all about the independent roasteries and coffee shops.  The emphasis at Laneway & Co is less about local suppliers and more about the best they can get.  The team here source the best and most flavoursome coffee beans around and prepare them in a variety of ways fresh on site.  The four coffees I tried come from roasteries in Leeds and London, with beans from Africa and South America.

Subtle Flavours

Before I tried coffee at Laneway & Co, I never knew it could be so subtle and nuanced in its flavour.  We started off with a really light roast that was quite sweet, before moving onto a sweeter, flowery tasting brew (my absolute favourite).  The colour was amber instead of dark black and the taste was really delicate for coffee.

We moved on to darker roasts that I didn’t really like the taste of, but we finished with a beautifully deep coffee that tasted like a fine red wine!  I have no idea how coffee can taste like berries, but it did and it was delicious.  I would definitely have that one again (even though I can’t remember what it was called!).

Sweet Treats

Also on offer at Laneway & Co is some lovely looking scran – delicious looking cakes and sweet treats, melty toasties and even some tasty baked eggs for breakfast.

So if you’re looking for a proper coffee in the Toon, make sure you head to Laneway & Co.  And if you think you don’t know anything about coffee then don’t worry, the staff there are on hand to talk you through exactly what you might like and they’re really friendly.

Have you been to Laneway & Co?  Let me know whether you’re planning on making a trip!

♥ JH

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