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Vancouver ’ s vibrant coffee culture is percolating — with no signs of cooling off . Here are our favourite ways to indulge in the city ’ s buzziest trend by jill von sprecken

Caffeine fix

Vancouver ’ s vibrant coffee culture is percolating — with no signs of cooling off . Here are our favourite ways to indulge in the city ’ s buzziest trend by jill von sprecken
A temple to those who worship the humble coffee bean , Revolver [ pictured ] is decked out in beautiful brick and wood , and offers a revolving roster of top-notch roasts from the best small-scale roasters in North America . Tasting flights are the cafe ’ s stand-out offerings : order three coffees brewed the same way , or a single coffee brewed three different ways — options include pour-over , syphon , AeroPress or French press — to really home in on your perfect cuppa . Matchstick Coffee roasts its single-origin beans in house , just 11 pounds ( 5 kilograms ) at a time . There are espresso beverages to be had , but these airy venues are the perfect place to embrace the slow-coffee movement with a brewed-toorder pour-over and a slice of rustic house-made bread . Milano bucks the single-origin trend with meticulously blended coffees that have racked up seven gold medals at international tasting competitions . Complex roasts like La
Futura and Lucky 13 harmonize up to 13 different beans , a process that can take over three years and 20,000 tastes of 1,500 combinations to perfect . Try them all in a flight at the espresso tasting bar , where eight different blends are “ on tap .” At Bel Café , celebrated local roaster 49th Parallel is in the cup . The custom Hawksworth Epic Espresso roast is the elegant cafe ’ s signature blend , and changes subtly with the seasons . What ’ s on the plate is just as enticing : delicious pastries and light bites by Chef David Hawksworth and his team . Chambar serves its 49th Parallel espresso with a flourish . The charming Belgian restaurant is famed for fragrant and floral lavender lattes ( as is former-sister-restaurant Medina Cafe ), the perfect accompaniment to the popular Liège waffles . For something with a little extra kick , try the caffeinated Corretto cocktail , with its mix of espresso , vodka , Tia Maria , cinnamon and lavender syrup .
Caffeinated Keepsake
Coffee lovers , save suitcase space for the most unique caffeinated souvenir : Wild Civet coffee , by local roaster Doi Chaang . The civet , a catlike animal from Southeast Asia , is particularly fond of coffee cherries , which pass through its digestive tract , et voilà — you have the world ’ s rarest , most exotic ( and expensive ) cuppa joe . Find it online at doichaangcoffee . com , or pick it up at the head office in Railtown .
Photo : courtesy revolver
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