As sophisticated palates evolve nationwide, specialty coffee retailers in Canada are taking advantage of this age of culinary enlightenment.

Independent shops focusing on the highest quality espresso are cropping up from coast to coast, and with them, the retail landscape has begun to shift - indeed, strides being made in independent coffee are not only post-Starbucks, but post-Vancouver.

Part of the so-called "third wave" of espresso, today's indie cafes operate with a distinct product quality focus that emphasizes fair- or direct-trade beans prepared only under the most exacting conditions - high-end equipment operated by carefully trained barista staff.

Elements of precision and careful presentation, such as latte art - graceful designs literally poured into the textured milk of lattes or cappuccinos - are but a few of the earmarks of a movement in espresso that goes far beyond the levels of, say, a Tim Horton's blended mocha drink. And at most of these cafes, you won't even be able to get a sandwich - they're just that focused on doing one thing right.

Photo by Liz Clayton, Business Edge
Deanna Zunde of Toronto's Dark Horse Espresso Bar puts the finishing touches to a cup of coffee.

Though the origins of specialty espresso in Canada are tied, as in the United States, most distantly to Italy and most closely to the Pacific Northwest, the last two years have seen carefully crafted espresso and coffee move slowly eastward from the hotbeds of Vancouver and Victoria, reaching out as far as Montreal and Saskatoon.

In Toronto, where high-end specialty coffee emerged in 2003 in the form of Bull Dog Coffee, the market has widened to support several newcomers in the past 18 months. They include Dark Horse Espresso Bar and Mercury Espresso bar, both located in the city's burgeoning east end - where the clientele is willing to go off the chain-coffee grid in search of something special.

Deanna Zunde, who opened Dark Horse last fall with partner Edward Lynds, says their decision to open was timed to the city's readiness to appreciate coffee on a higher level.

"It just felt like the right time here in Toronto," said Zunde.

"Things are changing, people are starting to pay attention to the independents. Now that Starbucks has established what specialty coffee is, the rest of us are able to move in and show people how to do it right."

But the difference in approach between chains and the little guys has as much to do with operation as attitude, says Zunde. While she stresses that an integral part of the independents' edge is the ability to build personal relationships with the customer base, she acknowledges that it's a dedication to quality - and not just the bottom line - that makes these particular stores stand out, and separates them from other independent cafés.

"I think the distinction among some of the places that are doing what we're doing, you can tell that there's a serious love and interest on the part of the owners to offer the best they can, and it's not only that they're in it for the business, but because they love coffee.

"If you don't know coffee, you can serve bad coffee. If you know coffee, you wouldn't dare. There's a lot of places some people try to cut corners on and I think they choose the wrong kind of things and hope people don't notice," said Zunde, citing inferior coffee beans as one of the key areas in which other independent stores fall short.

Matthew Taylor, whose year-and-a-half-old Mercury Espresso Bar operates near a Starbucks, with comparable prices, insists that a carefully chosen staff is also key to a high-end indie café's particular advantage.

"I don't hire anybody that doesn't have experience on the machine," said Taylor, whose café uses a three-group Elektra espresso machine and does not serve traditional brewed, or "drip" coffee. "I don't look for people who know how to pour latte art right off the bat, because I don't think that's a realistic goal, but what I want to see is a passion for coffee, for espresso especially, because this is what we do.

Photo by Liz Clayton, Business Edge
Geoff Linden's latte art is displayed in a cappuccino he designed at the Three Bananas café in Edmonton.

"I don't want people that are just here for the paycheque. The passion is important, because that's where you learn."

And continuing to fuel the fires of interest in one's own industry seems to be integral to these café owners, particularly in making them feel invested in not just a business idea but a belief system.

Geoff Linden, a partner in Three Bananas café in downtown Edmonton, was particularly inspired by the direct-trade model offered by his coffee supplier, Intelligentsia Coffee of Chicago.

"I wanted to bring fresh quality coffee to Edmonton, I wanted to also bring the idea of fair trade, but in a different way. I wanted to ensure that the (coffee growers) that produce the product are getting compensated to what we should expect they do. I mean we're enjoying their product - we enjoy it, we make a living from it, I feel that they should make a living from it as well."

Unlike Toronto's specialty espresso bars, which largely work neighbourhood niches, or other third-wave cafés in the Prairies, like Saskatoon's Musa (located in an art gallery) or Calgary's Phil and Sebastian (located in a farmer's market), Linden's sunny location right on Churchill Square is in a prime spot that positions it to cater to a wider populace. But is Edmonton ready?

"I think the difficulty for us is we're building slowly," said Linden, who still believes the market is tipping toward a more conscientious, quality-focused model in urban centres across the country.

"I think we can see purchasing on all levels, not just on the coffee but in general, going more towards independents and towards ethical purchases. Coffee is following along with that, but there's a huge segment of the market that just wants to get their coffee and go get their products and go look for the cheapest price. We're not a part of that."

"I think it's a matter of getting enough people on board to take this step whether it's going to take off in Edmonton or not."

Even in Toronto, it's an uphill climb for these baristas and owners who want to educate a slowly awakening public to the pleasures - and ethics - of a higher level of coffee consumption.

"Yes, it costs more," said Zunde about operating a café on this new playing field.

"But there's still a profit to be made if you're doing it well."

(Liz Clayton can be reached at clayton@businessedge.ca)