I’ve been an avid coffee drinker since my freshman year of college, when I discovered this curious beverage’s amazing ability to ensure success when “pulling an all-nighter.” At the time I drank the swill produced in five-gallon lots by the staff of Van Houten cafeteria, cut by generous amounts of chocolate milk to enable threshold-level palatability. After hours I supplemented it with the rotgut stuff which could be had at the nearest all-night convenience store. Coffee was, for me at the time, a utilitarian beverage, hardly meant for enjoyment.

All that has changed. I had a friend in the early eighties who had spent several years stationed in Hawaii; while there he became enamored with the local coffees, especially the celebrated Kona variety. It was at his behest that I tasted my first premium arabica brew. Strong, dark, aromatic and seductive -- uncut with the typical condiments of cream, milk nor sugar, and unspoiled by industrial food-grade adulterants as are many commercial brands -- this stuff had my name written all over it. And I haven’t looked back since.

My latest infatuation has been the range of coffees produced by Allegro. Having purchased varietal coffees for years, and exclusively from small, local, boutique shops, I discovered Allegro one day in the late nineties while on a wine run at the now-defunct Merchant of Vino in Ann Arbor. The wine steward noticed that I was looking at their sizeable display of coffees, so he came over and offered me a sample which he had poured from a freshly-brewed pot in the back room. It was an Allegro variety (which one escapes me); I was immediately impressed by its quality and flavor. When I checked the prices, I was converted. This coffee was every bit as good as the types I had been buying from boutique coffee merchants, at a fraction of the cost. Over time we tried the entire line of offerings. I eventually settled on the Extra Dark French Roast, which, more than any other, duplicates the experience of the finest coffees in the finest restaurants in the City of Lights.

Well, when the Merchant of Vino suddenly closed a year or two ago, I was heartbroken. Until discovering that the Allegro line was now owned by Whole Foods Markets, which just happened to be opening a store just a mile or two from the old Vino location. Here, Allegro coffees are roasted before one’s very eyes, to order, by well-trained and knowledgeable staff. I like to watch through the cylindrical, clear glass “business end” of the roaster as the constantly-moving beans slowly turn from light olive green to an oily, dark chocolate brown. The aroma is unforgettable. And due to the freshness, the coffee is even better than that which I had previously obtained from The Merchant of Vino.

I enjoy dark, full-flavored cigars; I also prefer full-flavored coffee. Allegro Extra Dark French Roast is the darkest and most robust coffee in the line. I would add that it is perhaps the most flavorful. A blend of select Indonesian and Central American beans, the base material is far superior to that of many more common, so-called "French roasts," which typically utilize inferior beans and cover their poor quality through excessive roasting. This is a quality blend, roasted impeccably.

An aromatic brewing experience is capped by the pouring. This coffee, when properly prepared, is as black and opaque (but never cloudy!) as a coffee can be, with abundant, dark bubbles caressing the rim and a hint of oil darting about on the surface. The first sip is marked by an immediate impression of soft tannin and toast. An almost contradictory lightness of body may be noted -- followed almost immediately by a burst of flavor. One knows instantly that this is a superior brew. The deepness of the roast comes through in its uniquely rich smokiness, while a hearty, complex bean flavor excites the palate. The finish is long and characteristically French. Like the unforgettable coffee served at Hôtel Lancaster, my favorite hotel on the Champs Elysées -- this coffee could, by flavor alone, rouse a weary, jet-lagged traveler and get him off to his first meeting with a smile on his face.

This superior product from Allegro is sensibly priced, widely available, and has proven to be absolutely consistent. Curiously light-bodied but incredibly full-flavored, not too winey but full of soft, supple tannins and enticing smokiness, the Allegro Extra Dark French Roast has earned its place as my favorite morning coffee. It is highly recommended.