Elusive Coffee
Adelaide roaster, based in Athelstone and roasting to order at their Somerton Park roastery. Four coffees this round, across the whole subscription board.
Roaster Feature
Elusive is a newer name in the Adelaide scene, started by George, a home coffee obsessive who got serious enough to take it commercial. Based in Athelstone in Adelaide's north-east, George roasts weekly in small batches at their Somerton Park roastery, roasting for the order rather than letting bags sit on a shelf. That is the entire reason to bother with a small roaster instead of grabbing something off the supermarket aisle.
The roasting is matched to each coffee rather than a single house style. The delicate filters get a lighter touch to keep their clarity, while the espresso lots are roasted developed for body, so they pull sweet and full under milk.
This round, four of his coffees land in the Allways rotation. One blend, two single origins, and a decaf that actually earns its spot. One for every way you brew.
Grindstone Espresso Blend
South American + African blend · Catuai, Bourbon · Washed, Natural, Honey · Medium roast
George's everyday blend, built from three coffees he also roasts on their own: Anahy from Brazil for body and sweetness, Apia from Colombia for chocolate and balance, and Yirgacheffe Haro from Ethiopia for a blueberry lift. Roasted developed for body, so it is rich chocolate and hazelnut up front with a bit of fruit underneath.
This is the reliable one, and it is built for milk. The flat white that tastes like it came from somewhere good, not a packet off the shelf. Holds up black too.
Guatemala El Matasano
Finca El Matasano, Cuilco, Huehuetenango, Guatemala · Bourbon, Caturra, Catimor · Washed · 2,000-2,200 MASL
Grown by Samuel Barrios on some of the highest coffee land in Guatemala, between 2,000 and 2,200 metres. Barrios farms a mix of varieties alongside the native forest he works to protect, washing and drying the cherry for a clean, layered cup.
George roasts it developed for body. The dense, high-grown beans reward the heat, turning malic apple acidity into jammy baked fruit and a deep toffee-and-chocolate sweetness. Rich in milk, smooth as espresso.
Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Haro
Haroberdame, Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia · Landrace · Natural · 1,950-2,000 MASL
A Grade 1 natural from Haroberdame, grown high and dried slow on raised beds. The result is bright, polished and jammy: juicy peach and dark berry over a silky milk chocolate base, with almond hanging around in the aroma and the aftertaste.
This is one George roasts light, to keep the clarity. He calls it a beautiful filter and he is right, so this is the filter pick of the round. It will pull a fruity espresso too if you push it, but slow and over water is where it sings.
Apia Decaf
Apia, Risaralda, Colombia · Sugar Cane (EA) process · Washed · 1,700-1,900 MASL
A single origin Colombian decaffeinated with the Sugar Cane EA method, which uses a compound derived from sugarcane fermentation to pull the caffeine while leaving the sweetness and body intact. The difference shows: chocolate and cocoa with berry, apple and pineapple brightness, rather than the flat, hollow thing decaf usually is.
Proper coffee that happens to have the caffeine taken out, not the other way around. Good in milk or black, any time of day. For the Decaf Coffee Subscription crowd who have been let down before.
Who's behind Elusive
George started Elusive the way a lot of the better small roasters start: as a home enthusiast who got obsessed enough to make it the day job. That origin still shows. Based in Athelstone in Adelaide's north-east, he roasts weekly in small batches at the Somerton Park roastery, and keeps the operation deliberately small.
The roasting is matched to the coffee, not stamped with one house style. Delicate lots like the Haro get a lighter touch to keep them clean and expressive, while the espresso coffees are developed for body so they hold up sweet and full under milk. Sourcing matters to him as much as the roast, with sustainability and the people up the supply chain front of mind in how he buys the green.
You'll often find George in person at the markets, pouring the coffee himself and talking people through it. That is the thing about a roaster this size. There is an actual person who cares whether you liked it, and it tends to show in the cup.
Adelaide specialty roaster started by George, a home coffee obsessive who took it commercial. Based in Athelstone, roasting weekly in small batches at the Somerton Park roastery, with the roast matched to each coffee. Turns up at the markets to pour it himself.
Elusive Coffee is in the Allways rotation.
Fresh from the roastery, across all subscription types. Pick the one that matches how you brew.
