Coffee shops survey
- In our latest coffee taste test our expert praised coffee from Caffè Nero for its depth of taste.
- Our expert drank a cup of black Americano and a cappuccino from five of the major high street chains – Caffè Nero, Costa, the M&S Café, Pret A Manger and Starbucks.
- Caffè Nero’s Americano was singled out as being the only coffee where the origin of the bean could be identified. Costa’s Americano was also rated for its “smoothness and body”. Costa’s Americano is 10p cheaper than Nero’s but with the Nero Americano you get two shots of espresso as standard.
- Caffè Nero’s cappuccino was also highly rated, alongside the cappuccino from the M&S Café which was described as “a pleasure to drink”.
A Which? spokesperson said:
“Our expert tried a cup of Americano and a cappuccino at five of the major high street chains that sell millions of these coffees to UK consumers. Although this can be down to personal taste or barista skill, he found some big differences and in particular praised Caffè Nero’s coffee for its depth of taste.”
Notes to editors
Results of the Americano taste test:
|
CAFE |
VERDICT |
PRICE (what we paid in London coffee shops in June 2013) | RATING (out of 10) |
| Caffè Nero | Highly rated by our expert who loved its “body and density” and praised the depth of taste |
£2.05 |
9 |
| Costa | Our expert liked the “smoothness and body” but felt it lacked the depth of the Caffe Nero coffee |
£1.95 |
7 |
| M&S Café | Described as “reasonable and safe” – a decent coffee but won’t set your taste buds alive |
£1.95 |
6 |
| Starbucks | This coffee had a good crema and aroma but was a little water and single-dimensional |
£1.90 |
5 |
| Pret A Manger | It’s the cheapest but Pret’s tasted “plain, thin, with too much water” and smelt of burnt charcoal |
£1.70 |
3 |
Results of the Cappuccino taste test:
|
CAFE |
VERDICT |
PRICE |
RATING (out of 10) |
| Caffè Nero | The taste of the coffee really comes through but ask for one shot if you don’t like yours strong – Caffè Nero serves two espresso shots as standard |
£2.35 |
8 |
| M&S Café | This was creamy, with a good density of foam. Described by our expert as “a pleasure to drink” |
£2.15 |
7 |
| Starbucks | Starbuck’s was a nice milky drink but low on coffee flavour so not for cappuccino connoisseurs |
£2.15 |
6 |
| Costa | Our expert found this too bitter with too much foam and not enough milk to soften the taste |
£2.15 |
5 |
| Pret A Manger | This was served with too much milk, which was over-heated by the steamer – this makes the milk taste caramelised |
£2.10 |
4 |
Press Release: Consumer