Introduction:A café in Sydney, Australia, has launched one of the world’s most expensive pour over coffees, priced at 1,500 Australian dollars (approximately 7,000 RMB) per cup, with reservations required at least two weeks in advance. What makes this premium pour over, crafted using rare high-altitude beans from Panama, command such an astonishing price? From the origin of the beans and their flavor characteristics to professional brewing parameters, we take you on an in-depth journey into this ultimate coffee experience that moves customers to tears.
While a regular pour over coffee typically costs just a few dozen yuan, The Brew Lab Cafe in Sydney’s western suburbs offers an ultra-premium pour over experience priced at 1,500 AUD (nearly 7,000 RMB), and appointments must be made at least two weeks ahead. This sky-high-priced coffee is made from an exceptionally rare single-origin batch — BATCH #22324 from Ninety Plus — with green bean prices at around 18,000 AUD per kilogram (equivalent to over 80,000 RMB), making it a true “luxury item” in the coffee world.
These coffee beans are grown at the foot of the Silla De Pando volcano at an altitude of approximately 1,700 meters in Panama, representing top-tier beans cultivated at extreme elevations. With a cupping score exceeding 90, they showcase a complex and delicate flavor profile, including notes of peach, strawberry, lemonade, rose petals, and a unique juniper aroma. Some tasters have described the experience as akin to savoring a meticulously blended floral-fruit tea rather than a traditional black coffee, leading café staff to dub it “Australia’s rarest coffee.”
Mitchell Johnson, owner of The Brew Lab Cafe, emphasizes that this is more than just a cup of coffee — it’s a complete sensory experience. Each cup is served with one-on-one service by a professional barista, who provides a detailed introduction to the bean’s origin and brewing process, ensuring every step is executed with precision.During brewing, water temperature is strictly maintained at 94°C, and the filter paper must be thoroughly pre-wetted beforehand. The coffee is then brewed using a pulsed pouring method, with strict standards applied to each pour’s flow rate and timing. Any slight deviation could affect the overall flavor expression.
It is reported that only two cups of this premium pour over have been sold so far. Mitchell revealed that some customers were moved to tears after experiencing its extraordinary flavors. “This is what we mean by feeling the life force of coffee through your taste buds,” he explained. To maintain the beans’ optimal condition, the café places an order with the Panamanian supplier immediately upon booking. The beans are then individually roasted by local producers and delivered to Australia via private plane, ensuring minimal time elapses between roasting and brewing to maximize flavor expression.
Notably, neither Ninety Plus nor The Brew Lab Cafe have publicly disclosed the specific name or batch details of this coffee, primarily to avoid excessive market hype or information leakage and to preserve its rarity and exclusivity.
Of course, if you’re interested in high-quality pour over coffee but have a limited budget, the café also offers a range of more “affordable” specialty single-origin coffees, priced between 100 and 200 AUD (approximately 465 to 931 TWD), which also deliver outstanding flavor profiles and are ideal for coffee enthusiasts eager to explore the world of premium pour overs. According to the owner, these mid-to-high-end options attract many customers each week, becoming popular menu items.
Want to try pour over coffee but not sure where to start? It’s recommended to first familiarize yourself with the flavor profiles of beans from different regions, understand basic parameters such as water temperature, grind size, and pouring techniques, and then gradually explore more advanced single-origin beans to fully appreciate the diverse charm of coffee.
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
