25th October 2023
Well – I’ve already done coffee in my Swindon in 50 Drinks series but my chum Chris Eley assures me that Pour Bois is worthy of mention. So, with thanks to said chum, here’s a post about this as-yet-unvisited-by-me coffee place. But I’ve decided to keep it top level eating/drinking/coffee.
So where is it then?
You’ll find Pour Bois downstairs at the back of the Oink Gallery on Victoria Road. It’s a small but cosy space. You can also get in via the back way if you find your way through the building site by the old Adver building on Albert Street.
It opened at the back end of October in 2022. It’s owned by Tom Beau Smith and Corey Colar. They both have several year’s experience in the coffee business and a strong passion for coffee.
When they opened, their ambition was to make Pour Bois like a wine bar for coffee lovers. They were also hoping, post-pandemic, to create a community space for coffee lovers.
About the coffee
But this should be about the coffee. The Bois have been sourcing their coffee from both the UK and places in Europe like Paris, Barcelona, Amsterdam, Krakow and Warsaw.
Tom told me that it was important for them to only serve coffee that they would drink themselves. Like a wine bar has a wine list, at Pour Bois there is a coffee menu. A typical offering is a choice of around ten coffees.
The pour over
A pour over is like an individual filter coffee made for you by the barista. They grind the beans when you order it.
I suppose you could considered the whole thing to be a bit like the Japanese tea ceremony. I wasn’t feeling that daring so I didn’t go far down the menu. I chose a Santa Rosa Honey from Chalatenango in El Salvador. The beans are dried on a bed of honey then roasted by Right Side Roasters in Barcelona. The tasting notes talked about cherries, dried peaches and Champagne. As a wine drinker, I am used to strange descriptions of flavour profiles. I reckon I got the cherries and peaches but I was less sure about the Champagne – although there was some acidity. In spite of that, it was a lovely cup (glass actually) of coffee, and I’ll definitely be back to explore more of the menu.
You don’t have to be a coffee nerd to enjoy Pour Bois. They make a fine range of espressos, lattes and flat whites as well as serving up vegan cookies and donuts.
In the ether
They boys have a website and on it you can find out more about them. Go here to do that thing. They’re also on Facebook here and Instagram here.
