Knockbox Coffee Company – An education

A budding little area in Sheung Wan is becoming home to galleries, shops, creative studios and more so cafes.

Waking down the back alleys late one night I saw a new sign hanging off the side and venturing off the main path we went to explore further. We found a lovely couple, Francis and Patrick bustling about with equipment and sorting things out. Feeling welcomed into their humble abode, they told us more about their coffee space and their plans for the place. The white walls, with a mustard yellow corner, their space is shared with local fashion designer ceris yip, with her creations and designs covering a dark work bench on the other side.  In fact, it was their grand opening the following night and they enthusiastically extended an invitation to us.

Given that they were closed we departed wishing them well and later found them on Facebook and kept in touch. A few weeks later I managed to enjoy an evening with them in their coffee lab learning about all the different methods of coffee making, sampling flavours and roasts from various beans and countries and having them all explained in thorough detail. A coffee education! The wooden counter has a plethora of gadgets and containers, and Patrick set about going through each one and sharing his favourite method. There is no mistaking their passion and knowledge of coffee and the whole process from choosing the beans, roasting styles, origins and methods of extracting and brewing to enjoy the best flavours.

They roast beans on site as well as work closely with a local roaster providing a range of different beans. They encourage people to learn and sample roasting styles from different countries as each have their own unique roasting styles and flavours. If you would like to order beans just let them know before hand and they can prepare it for you.  The current espresso roast is an Ethiopian sidamo, I do like.

What a delightful little place and this being my third visit, I feel so at home here. The place draws an eclectic clientele of coffee lovers and as you sit here you meet people from all walks of life and backgrounds, and through cups of coffee you can find out some interesting connections, e.g. meeting someone and find out you know their sister, and that you had already meet them via email a few years back! Currently a discussion is taking place between a French guy and another kiwi lady about cafes and rugby (pre-world cup finals). There are wooden seating outside and around the corner, in addition to the high chairs by the bench providing ample seating.

I’ve always wondered and had been contested about the difference between an americano and long black, I raised this question to Patrick and he went on to explain… they are basically the same drink, but prepared differently as the long black is an espresso added to hot water retaining the crema at the top, while the americano adds the water after. The story behind this, is that during the second world war, the American soliders upon arrival in Europe found the espresso too strong, and so added hot water to make it suit their palatable tastes.

Oh the things one can learn over a good cup of coffee!