Coffee in the rainy city - the Manchester blog

Senior Barista Sophie was up in Manchester last week - here's her story​

Sophie on Manchester:

On a recent visit to the Rainy City to see a friend (which incidentally can no longer claim that nickname), I thought what better opportunity than to check out their thriving coffee scene. 

Straight off the coach and in desperate need of caffeine, I headed to Ancoats Coffee, unsurprisingly in the area of Ancoats; voted the 13th coolest neighbourhood in the world(!) by Time Out and known for its food and drink scene.

​The cafe is housed in a former cotton mill - all exposed bricks and piping while still maintaining a warm and welcoming feel. 
Ancoats serves its own coffee and the roastery is onsite; it is always interesting to watch the process happening while you are enjoying your drink. 

The cafe is housed in a former cotton mill - all exposed bricks and piping while still maintaining a warm and welcoming feel. 
Ancoats serves its own coffee and the roastery is onsite; it is always interesting to watch the process happening while you are enjoying your drink. 

They had two single origin coffees on offer and I decided to compare and contrast (I really needed caffeine!) First I went for a flat white with Colombian beans - the flavour was smooth and nutty and the milk was silky and not too hot. A good start. Next up was a white Americano with the Ethiopian beans; I had this fruity offering alongside my totally delicious and affordable brunch of homemade choc chip banana bread loaded with mascarpone and berries. For £5 I was more than happy.

​I wanted to bring some beans for filter coffee back with me and cafe manager Alex helped me to choose something weird and wonderful, a macerated coffee from a female producer in Honduras. Ancoats retail coffees are packaged beautifully in specially designed boxes in collaboration with Manchester-based design studio DR.ME, adding to the “must collect them all” feel for coffee aficionados.

I really enjoyed my visit to Ancoats and would highly recommend it for both quality and style.

Sophie visited:
Ancoats, ​Royal Mill, 9, 17 Redhill St, Manchester M4 5BA