For the Fourth Coffee of Christmas my barista made for me…

I also added today’s review on Yelp: Peet’s Coffee @ Yelp

The Coffee: Eggnog Latte

The Shop: Peet’s Coffee located at 350 University Avenue, San Diego, CA 921043

The Espresso shots: I watched expectantly as the espresso rat-tailed it’s way from the machine, one of the indicators of a good shot. The barista gave me a double so she didn’t have to toss the other and I wasn’t about to complain. I’d never had a straight shot from Peet’s before and I’m now chagrined about that. These were the first perfect shots I’ve received on this journey. The depth and firmness of the crema was absolutely divine … a slight blow on the surface barely made the crema budge. The flavor made me imagine that I was savoring a dark chocolate bon-bon filled with caramel sauce with a balanced bit of tartness in the finish. If I hadn’t been sitting with great company on this review, then I don’t think I could have stopped myself from licking the demitasse clean … yes, it was really that good.

Peet’s are such masters of the Holiday Specials marketing season that they had their specials pre-printed on their menu boards. The only thing listed that I haven’t already reviewed in this series was their Eggnog Latte. I am not an eggnog fan folks, but I sacrificed my taste buds for you and ordered it anyway. I’m really glad I did as it turns out. Perhaps I’ve just never had a perfectly made eggnog latte before now (they did cut it with non-fat milk I was told later). The eggnog didn’t get in the way of the subtle play of complexities of the espresso and it was at the perfect temperature and capped with the correct amount of a very lite layer of foam.

I found myself actually enjoying an eggnog latte in all my years of being in the coffee industry, but I must admit that I never really gave them much of a chance after the first few times of trying them … but I now realize it was because they were made with straight up eggnog and not cut with milk … the eggnog had always been to thick and overwhelming.

I don’t even think there was an aftertaste from this latte, or if there was, it was gone so quick as to slip my memory.

Have you had an Eggnog Latte from Peet’s Coffee? How would you rate yours?

My personal palette does tend to lean towards smooth and mellow, yet earthy with a hint of smoky … meaning I usually love Indonesian coffee, Sumatra in particular and so that should be taken into account when reading my reviews.

MCP Ratings:

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