Tried & Tested: Full of beans

The takeaway cappuccino varies enormously in quality. Our panellists swig their way through a selection

The news that Britain has ceased to be a nation of tea drinkers may come as a surprise to some, but for coffee aficionados - whose favourite beverage now accounts for the largest share of the hot drinks market - the burning issue is: where can you get a decent cup if you don't make it yourself?

The Test

We concentrated on so-called gourmet coffee chains with at least three outlets in London and expansion plans. Readers outside the capital will probably notice outlets of most chains mentioned here in towns such as Oxford, Cambridge, Birmingham and Edinburgh within the next year, if not already.

We restricted the test to the most popular takeaway coffee - cappuccino. Unfortunately, lack of understanding of the cappuccino's traditional content (one third espresso coffee, one third steamed milk, one third foamed milk) means sub-standard versions are all too common. We looked for flavour, texture, availability of variations such as skimmed milk or decaffeinated coffee, as well as pleasant service.

The Panel

The expert on our panel James Hors-field, whose career in the sophisticated Australian coffee takeaway business credits him with having made more than 150,000 cups of coffee over two years, reported feeling "depressed" by the general standard with just one or two notable exceptions. Other tasters included keen coffee drinkers Nick Raffin, Philippa Yeoman, Shelley Grobler, myself and 10 other friends and colleagues, many of whom said they were fed up with the coffee they bought near their offices and were glad to be shaken out of their routine to try somewhere new.

**Canadian Muffin Company

60p for regular (8oz), 10 outlets nationwide

Best known for their American-style muffins, the Canadian Muffin Com- pany was damned with faint praise by Mary Jellicoe, who said, "It's worth going in for the frozen yoghurt." Testers found the atmosphere "messy", and the service "friendly, if a tad gormless". This corresponded with tales of inconsistencies ranging from "so much froth, when the assistant put the lid-with- nipple on, it spurted out all over me" (Nick Raffin) to "so little froth, it looked like a regular coffee" (Philippa Yeo-man). James Horsfield praised the blend (San Marco) and said "it was just a pity there was almost no foamed milk".

***Patisserie Valerie

pounds 1 for regular (8oz), 5 outlets in London

These French-style cafes major on gorgeous cakes and croissants, with most customers sitting down for a luxurious shopping break, so perhaps it was not surprising that Shelley Grobler noted that she "didn't feel comfortable walking in and asking for just a takeaway cappuccino." Other testers appreciated the view of cream confections while they waited, but described the atmosphere as "frenzied", and were mostly unimpressed by the coffee. A third of the testers found the cappuccino "too weak", while the others said it was "strong at least", but "the cup was half full". Made with Costa Italian Mocha blend, it comes in a cup with a domed lid which didn't prevent "such a stingy serving of froth that it dissolved" before Philippa Yeoman got it back to her office. Although not the favourite of the panel Patisserie Valerie serves what could be described as genuine Italian coffee - possibly too harsh for the British palate?

****Costa Coffee

pounds 1 for regular (8oz), 55 outlets nationwide

Instantly recognisable by their cartwheel-style tables full of coffee beans under glass, Costa Coffee Boutiques can be found in most mainline train stations and airports as well as the high street, and all the panellists had bought coffee there in the past. Their assessments placed Costa firmly in the middle band, with generous understanding shown for "10 minute queues in the rush hour" (Janine Duwitzky). "OK, but nothing to shout about," said James Horsfield. Nick Raffin claimed the longest use of Costa Coffee even though he claimed "the coffee is simply too weak for my taste, and the quality suffers during busy periods." At other times the coffee was agreed to be very genuine and enjoyable.

*****Coffee Republic

pounds 1.20 for short (8oz), 3 outlets in London

For once, there was no dissension among the panel about which retailer should be the winner of our test. Coffee Republic has only three outlets (more are planned) but testers who walked 15 minutes to find one said "it was worth it - delicious" (Shelley Grobler). Based on the New York- style espresso bar, Coffee Republic outlets are "soothing, light and airy" (Nick Raffin) with wooden floors, hand picked snacks, classical music and more variations of coffee than you could shake a milk jug at. Here, as at Seattle Coffee Company outlets there is the possibility of flavoured cordials such as almond, caramel, hazelnut. The assistants, like our expert James Horsfield, are fully trained baristas - like cocktail barmen for coffee - and he praised their "sympathetic manner and earnest desire to give the customer what he wants." Philippa Yeoman took "half the office there and they absolutely loved it". Superlatives followed from other testers, commending the freshness, types of coffee. Also popular both here and at the Seattle Coffee Company was the incentive scheme whereby loyalty is rewared by a free coffee after every ten cups.

**Pret A Manger

99p for regular (10oz), 51 outlets nationwide

Seen as "innovative in the Eighties but now pretty much middle of the road, and I'm sick of all that stainless steel on the floor and walls - it's like walking into a washing machine drum" (Janine Duwitzky), the Pret chain was liked for its quick service, positioning "on just about every street corner" and, irrelevantly, "variety of sandwiches, snacks and drinks". "The one thing that could improve is their coffee," wrote Nick Raffin. "The foam has the texture of congealed marine water on the beach," complained Shelley Grobler. James Horsfield diagnosed the problem as being one of automation, "Wherever you go, all Pret coffee looks and tastes the same. This is because the staff press a button and out comes your coffee. It feels as if it has come from an office vending machine." I was impressed by the boldness with which Pret's MD, Julian Metcalf publishes his phone number on every bag. I phoned him up; unsurprisingly, he wasn't there, but a conciliatory woman took note of my comments. With so much feedback, they're bound to get it right in the end.

****Seattle Coffee Company

pounds 1.25 for short (8oz), 18 outlets in London

Based on Seattle-style coffee bars typified in America by the Starbucks chain, the Seattle Coffee Company was the second favourite of testers, who appreciated not only the "excellent flavour" but also the "daunting array" of coffee styles, sizes, milk varieties and the serving method which gives customers the chance to shake on as much chocolate/ cinnamon/nutmeg as they wanted. The general feeling concurred with Nick Raffin's assessment that "these people obviously take their coffee more seriously than most." It's a very drinkable coffee, but not one an Italian would necessary recommend. The female testers all commented on the "massive amount of froth" which Philippa Yeoman said "made it look like a 99 cone", while the men felt more liquid was in order. James Horsfield commented, "The cappuccino was prepared correctly, but as the proportions were the opposite of the textbook drink - two-thirds foamed milk, there was almost a third of a cup of foam left in the bottom which I couldn't drink." Still, Seattle Coffee Company is predominately a coffee rather than snack shop so is probably doing the most to raise levels of discernment.

**Caffe Nero

pounds 1.10 for large (8oz), 5 outlets in London

Distinguished by their chic black awnings and Nineties design, Caffe Nero claims to specialise in traditional Italian-style coffee made with a full Arabic blend, and the brand was well thought of by most panel members who had hurried past the cafes prior to the trial. First acquaintance, however, proved a nasty surprise, with the inconsistencies of other chains here topped by universally sub-standard coffee, described by testers as "weak and bitter" (James Horsfield), "disgusting - very thin, no smoothness, very bitter" (Philippa Yeoman) and "lacking in flavour, with particularly poor milk quotient" (Nick Raffin). The so-called large size corresponds to the regular size at other chains. Testers expanded their insults at great length: "It just goes to show you location is everything," said Raffia. Jane MacArthur's comment that the service was "slow and uncaring" was confirmed by my casual enquiry to an assistant about what sort of coffee was used - answer: "Beans." !