Monday 19 December 2016

Product Review - Ovenbird Coffee, The Watchman's Dream


If you follow my blog you know that I have become a huge fan of Ovenbird coffee, I will admit I'm not the biggest fan of coffee in general but I do drink it regularly. So I'm not a coffee connoisseur, nor am I trying to be, I just want to share my experience of coming across a really nice coffee. At the start of the year I went to Gusto & Relish in Shawlands for brunch and not only did I find one of the nicest places for brunch I also came across Ovenbird Coffee. When I drink coffee I always feel that its harsh (I can't put it into words properly but the word harsh just comes to mind) however when I had this coffee in Gusto & Relish it was just so soft and silky, it was probably the first really enjoyable cup of coffee that I have ever had. So on the way out of Gusto & Relish I had to ask about the coffee and was informed that it was called Ovenbird and that it was roasted in Glasgow. I was also subsequently informed that they had the actual beans for sale in the cafe. So that was it I walked out of Gusto & Relish with some Dead Poets Society coffee and after that, whenever I was in the Shawlands area I would pop into Gusto & Relish to restock. You can check out my review of Gusto & Relish by clicking HERE.

Who are Ovenbird?

Ovenbird Coffee is based in Glasgow, in Castlemilk to be precise and is sold in a few outlets throughout Scotland. You can get it in Gusto & Relish and Nic's NYC Deli in Glasgow. However, if you are not near anywhere that sells Ovenbird Coffee you can also get your fix online. So what are Ovenbird coffee all about? Well as it says on the website "they try their best not to be sucked into the spiral of the bad coffee world" and this, they certainly do and do it very well. Ovenbird are about old fashioned roasting. The coffee is sourced from old generation farmers and mill workers mainly from East Africa and some from Central South America. Ovenbird is concerned with forging relationships with the people behind the coffee which ensures the quality of life for the producers and high quality coffee for the roastery in Glasgow.


The product: Watchman's Dream

Watchman's Dream is aged raw, single origin Malawian/Rwandan beans for 5/8 weeks in Scottish Whisky barrels. Throughout the ageing process the barrels are rolled to ensure maximum exposures of all the beans to the aromatic sides. After the ageing process they are roasted to a medium roast - which Ovenbird believes brings out the perfect balance of whisky and coffee flavour. The first time I tasted Watchman's Dream was out in Ovenbird's HQ. I wasn't told what I was getting but I did notice that oat milk was being used so I was intrigued. I was handed this cup of coffee and as I was bringing the cup towards my mouth I got this subtle smell of whisky and strangely enough it was a lovely whisky smell. I'm not a whisky drinker (yes I know I've let you down, I'm not the sterotypical Irish gal) and normally even the smell of it puts me off but this smell was so unusual, I was definitely able to smell whisky, but with the coffee the aroma was just a soft and subtle smell of whisky.



To the taste there were subtle hints of chocolate, tobacco and of course whisky. It is very aromatic and really smooth and silky. The coffee tasted perfect to me and was a real treat (I actually had to have another one before I left as I thought it was just amazing). I was told that oat milk worked best with it, so I thought who I am to argue with that. However, over the last few months I have had many a cup of Watchman's Dream and I've had it with regular milk. And I've decided that maybe I should believe the coffee expert in future, as I do agree, oat milk does work better with it as it adds a whole other dimension to the coffee. However, in saying that, when I run out of oat milk I have no problem taking it with regular milk, it is still pretty awesome. In the photo below I have two cups of coffee, both of them are just regular Watchman's Dream but one has oat milk and the other is regular milk. The cup that looks so much darker is the oat milk - if you are an oat or nut milk driner you will be used to the darker look of it in your tea or coffee, to those of you who don't drink it, the darker look is normal.


How do you get your hands on this coffee?

If you want to try this coffee out for yourself all you need to do is head to the shop section of the Ovenbird website and buy yourself some Watchman's Dream, I do believe there is only a limited amount of the Watchman's Dream available so get in quickly to avoid disappointment. Or browse through the other blends and try one of them out. Click HERE to shop for coffee. I would love to hear what you think of Ovenbird so please get in touch if you try it out.


Contact Details

You can view Ovenbird's website by clicking HERE. Our visit them on their social media accounts by clicking on the following links:- FACEBOOKTWITTER & INSTAGRAM.

Don't forget if you want to keep up to date with all my foodie news follow me on my social media accounts by clicking on the following links:- TWITTER, INSTAGRAM and FACEBOOK.


Thanks a mil for reading. 

Emma mai xx


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