Coffee in Porto Alegre

I've mentioned before that people are often disappointed that I don't live up to a lot of the Australian stereotypes. I'm not a tall blond surfer, I would never drink Foster's lager and I can't play cricket to save myself.

One stereotype – particularly relating to my home city of Melbourne – certainly does fit though. Yes, I am a coffee snob.

One of the things I love about Melbourne is that you can be anywhere in the city and still only be minutes away from a genuinely great coffee. The Southern European immigrants of the 50s and 60s brought a lot of great things with them to Australia, but nothing is better than their love of great coffee.

Good coffee can be found in Porto Alegre

Melbourne has developed a reputation for being one of the best places in the world for coffee, which is something to be proud of – but it does present some problems when we go abroad. In 12 years of travel I've found some great coffee around the world, but more often than not I'm left buying something I wouldn't take for free in Melbourne. As I said, I'm a coffee snob.

In Porto Alegre it has been a case of hit and miss. The cultural differences here mean that Gaúchos generally prefer their caffeine in the form of Chimarrão, something I've also developed a taste for. Having said that, nothing will ever replace coffee entirely for me.

Aside from being fans of a different beverage, those that do drink coffee have different habits in Brazil. Many restaurants serve cafezinho after meals, but quite often it isn't great. Others serve a kind of personal drip filter coffee which is ok (and looks great) but again the coffee quality tends to be lacking.  

An old style coffee filter

Even when it comes to cafes specifically serving espresso coffee, things can be very different. Peak service time for cafes in Australia is 7am to midday, as people file through to get their morning fix in a take away cup before work or on a morning tea break.

By contrast, in Porto Alegre many cafes open later and quite often don't have take away options. Cafes here seem to do their best business in late afternoon or even early evening. Some don't open until lunch time and others aren’t open on weekends, or at very least far fewer hours. In Australia that would be almost unheard of.

Despite all of this, there are good places to get coffee in Porto Alegre. Thanks to a very patient wife (who's not even a big coffee fan) I've been able to sample drinks at a bunch of different cafes all over town and I have some definite favourites.

An "Australian Style" coffee from Valkiria Cafe

There are some cafe chains around such as Z Café and Bella Gula which have locations all over the city, but as usual it is the smaller independent cafes that deliver the best coffee and best experiences.

I previously wrote about Valkiria Cafe, whose owner was inspired by Australian style cafes after living there for sometime. They do some good coffee - and strong too - for those who need that morning kick. 

On Rua da República in Cidade Baixa, Café República was one of the first places I tried that had genuinely good coffee. The Espresso Latte could easily be something bought in any corner café in Melbourne and has been a go to for me when I am in the area. Another good choice in Cidade Baixa is Agridoce Café (Rua Sarmento Leite) which feels as hipster as an inner north Melbourne café. It has to be said, one thing hipsters do well is coffee.

Café do Duque (Rua Duque de Caixas) is the best I have found in the downtown area and also has some tasty snacks. Meanwhile, also in the downtown area, Café e Confeitaria Matheus (Av. Borgias de Medeiros) has the closest offering I've found to an “Australian style” Iced coffee with their Coffee Milkshake. With Porto Alegre so often being so oppressively hot, it is a welcome relief. 

Latte art competition

While these places are all very good, my favourite café in Porto Alegre so far has been Baden Cafes Especiais (Avenida Jerônimo de Ornelas). In addition to serving the best coffee in Porto Alegre, they also sell their various blends by the bag, grinding up their specially roasted beans so you can enjoy it every day at home. They also often serve different beans, meaning you have a chance to sample different flavours without ever sacrificing quality.

Even my wife likes the coffee there.

Baden also does a good job of spreading the love for the coffee culture within the city, offering work shops and events for people wanting to learn more about coffee. Just this past weekend Baden hosted a “Latte Art” competition where baristas from many of the above cafes coming together for a friendly competition and appreciation of the of coffee and culture of serving it. They also recently served a special blend made from beans that had passed through the Jacu Bird, showing they're more than willing to experiment. 

While Porto Alegre is still a long way from Melbourne's cafe culture, it seems to be coming along and for me it's good to know I have some options for good coffee!