BRISBANE – This week Merlo Coffee marks another major milestone in what is already a history indelibly intertwined in Queensland’s culinary coming of age.
The family who introduced Queensland to its first espresso machine will welcome their newest arrivals – a brand new Brambati Roaster direct from Italy, and a custom-designed Cupping Room.
At Merlo’s Bowen Hills Torrefazione (roasting house), the huge, gleaming blue and white Brambati Roaster now sits behind the new Cupping Room a carefully designed, fully glassed-in room which will seat 12 at a long table, dedicated to sampling single-origin beans. One of the only of its types in the city and a room designed to appreciate coffee.
At 6pm on Wednesday, Merlo Coffee’s Parish Priest in Father Leo Coote will officially welcome the Roaster, and the Cupping Room, by way of a very traditional Italian Christening!
About the journey: last year, Merlo roasters traveled to the tiny Italian town of Codevilla in the Lombardy region. Home to only 955 people, and often overshadowed by the much more famous Milan close by, Codevilla is famous for making the best coffee roaster in the world – the Brambati.
Their Roasters spent time with the Brambati Roasters learning their secrets, in true Italian style. On the flight to Australia, the Brambati Roaster was carefully wrapped and packed and accompanied by several Italian men from Codevilla to ensure its safe journey.
They stayed with Merlo for several weeks to ensure the Brambati roasted beans to the famous Merlo flavour profile.
Dean Merlo said the new roaster would ensure the fine turning of flavours, for which Merlo is famous, continues with increased capacity; while the Cupping Room would bring the origins and science of coffee even closer for customers.
Coffee is in the Merlo family DNA. Grandfather Luigi Merlo operated a trattoria next to a bocce court in his home town of Tirano in Italy.
His son Gino was a budding adventurer and when he migrated to Australia in the 1950s, he bought with him Queensland’s first Italian espresso machine – in doing so he started Queensland’s coffee revolution.
Dean propelled that revolution. Today Merlo Coffee has six Torrefaziones, eight BarMerlos and can be found in over 1000 distinguished cafes and restaurants across Australia.
Source: Press Release – Merlo Coffee Brisbane
