Vivace Espresso Vita - 1 lb.

I liked this a lot for latte's and it was a co-workers (straight) espresso so far and she is familiar with dolce, ecco and black cat

Good coffee. Excellent service.

A good coffee, but somewhat less character than the Dolce to my palate.

Didn't have any trouble getting good results. I love the 2 small sealed bags instead of one big one. Great idea.

Update: Received another pound of Vita. Let these beens rest for a week, (was out of town), and pulled double and triple shots for lattes this morning. This batch was completely different, nice chocolate, nice caramel, amazing crema, and none of the dark roast taste I had in the first batch. I like these beans a lot. I'll be back for more. Thanks to Scott at ROASTe and everyone at Vivace.

I've previously purchased Vivace Dolce and had a great experience with those beans. I'd read so many reviews that claimed they were finicky or hard to dial in, Phewey. I got excellent and consistent results, great chocolate hits and sweet finishes and all with milk based drinks.

Now Vita on the other hand... I have been drinking lattes with Vita for two weeks, the first half pound was used up trying to dial in these beans. I've dropped the temp by 3 degrees and dialed the grinder 2 notches finer than I had the machines set for Black Cat. I'm finally getting drinkable shots, but question if my 2 pound order really meets their standard. These beans are very shiny and oily, have a pronounced dark roasted flavor, and nothing like the Dolce beans I enjoyed a few months back.

Anyway, not my favorite beans to date, or something I will jump to order again. Dolce on the other hand, I will gladly order again. I'm just confused that Vita was developed as a roast for milk based drinks.

A little bit finicky, when compared to Vivace Dolce. Great for cappuccino, not so great as espresso.

This was my first try of Vita as I've ordered Dolce several times in the past. I was not quite sure what to expect reading other reviews with most saying it's best with milk. Although I do mostly drink milk based drinks I tend to enjoy an espresso blend that can handle both options.

The Vita was bold and crisp once dialed in and delivered with amazing crema. I did enjoy it as a shot but agree with most that it tames down to a nice flavor as a cappuccino or a latte. I especially liked making some iced lattes with the Vita.

I also want to note that I love how Vivace packages in 2 - 8oz. bags that really keep the beans fresh. The Dolce bag is a foil Mylar type and the Vita is a clear heavy duty plastic bag. Both with pressure relief valves. Not sure whey they went clear on the Vita as it offers no protection from light.

I am trying Vivace Espresso Vita after trying out Dolce, and must echo the sentiments of other reviewers. This blend is excellent for making milk-based drinks, but if you are looking for something to make straight shots with, I'd take a look at Vivace Espresso Dolce...

I drink cappuccinos almost exclusively, and I don't know what else to say about Vita other than I could drink it all day. It's not something that shocks me with anything unexpected, it's just so smooth I want to keep sipping after the cup is empty and I'll definitely order it again.

Had it not such a bad stigma,like Vivace's Dolce, you could call Vita a 'one trick pony', well, maybe specialist is a better word. It does one thing, the thing it is designed for, but does it extremely well. Both are Northern Italian Dolces - not the place to look for complexity and surprises. This is your everyday, 'know what you gonna get', sweet, smooth, caramel and chocolate fix. The comfort food of espresso. The Dolce does it straight up, the Vita does it in milk drinks. They are the long lost North American twins of a really, really fresh Illy, or Lavazza. And just like true Italians, they can have some attitude - you better have all the parameters (especially your brewing temp) right, or you will not like what ends up in the cup

The Vita blend is the first espresso I began playing with when I purchased a espresso machine two months ago and is the one blend I keep coming back to.
Very little if any oils present on coffee bean surface. Coffee produces a lot of crema - strong caramel flavor does not get lost in milk.
Espresso Vivace packages the beans in convenient ½ pound vacuum sealed bags.

Drinks made:
Cappuccino: 7oz
Latte: 12oz

Other espressos tried:
Intelli – Black Cat
Klatch – Belle & House
Espresso Vivace – Dolce

16.5-17 grams
203 degrees
25-30 sec
1.5 oz

Machine: Vivaldi Mini II
Grinder: Vario

As others have noted, Vita is sensitive to temperature variations, so it's probably best if you have a machine with PID installed. I found at 203.5 and slightly updosed I was getting tons of crema and a rich vibrant flavor. Best with milk, and made both an amazing cappucino and iced drinks.

I have tried Dolce and Vita and both are great. My personal preference is Dolce but only because I have the option. If I had only had Vita I would love it as well. Maybe better suited to milk drinks than Dolce which seems milder to me.

It did well for me at 18-19g in Synesso double basket, 203f, 1.75 oz in 30 seconds. Try both of Vivace's best and decide for yourself.

I continue to be impressed by Vivace. I am a big fan of the Dolce blend for espresso and the Vita will also not dissapoint. Not as bold as the Dolce, but perfect for a french press or an americano. Highly recommended. Received the roasted beans from Seattle to Boston within a day of being roasted. The beans arrive in a great zip lock vacuum pack that is reusable. Try it....you'll love it.

Bought 1 lb of the Vita and 1 pound of the dolce. Enjoyed the Vita very much for my cappas and the wife liked it in her large lattes. Still perfecting teh dose but using 18gms, 203 degrees in triple basket. So far so good

Smooth with a great crema. I still prefer the dolce over vita but vita is still very good.

This is really nice for capps, which is what I drink. As espresso, it has a very slight bitter edge, but when combined with milk, you end up with a wonderful dark chocolate which is very smooth. The best coffee I've had for a long time. I'm on my second order. Also, seems to be fairly forgiving temp wise and tastes good over a wide variety of temps.

Makes amazing lattes! Very smooth as well for straight drinking.

Will buy again!

Another solid blend from Espresso Vivace, this one is designed for the milk drinks. Shot parameters are the same as dolce, 203.5F temp, high dose(17-19gram) and ristretto pulls(1.5-1.6oz in 30-35seconds).

In milk drinks up to ~7oz, this makes a wonderfully sweet and creamy cappuccino, that tastes like liquid caramel. Tons of lush sweetness, and full of body.

It also preforms well as a straight shot, with a heavy caramel/roasty presence. NOT to be confused with overroasted, burnt, stale bitterness, but bittersweet roast tones. If you're looking for straight espresso, this isn't the #1 pick, although it IS good. From Vivace, the Dolce is what you want. BUT, if you want a blend which will transform any properly sized milk drink (ie: 5-7oz) into a caramel dream, this is what you want.

Highly Recommended.

I have a Vivaldi II and a Vario. We loved Vita so much that I ordered three more pounds!

We love RoastE.com!

Vivace is officially my new favorite roaster. I loved Dolce, and I now love Vita as well. It's a little spicy and chocolaty straight, but that same profile goes great when rounded out in a macchiato or cappuccino. I prefer Dolce for my straight shots, but Vita holds up well in milk drinks and is definitely worth checking out.
I also enjoyed the fact that I didn't have to make many adjustments when dialing in Vita, after Dolce ran out. I lowered the temp from 203 to 201, upped my dose a little, and really enjoyed the results.

This is the Vivace I remember from Seattle. Nothing against the Dolce, I'm just not a straight espresso drinker. With milk, just as Vivace describes in their website: rich, full flavor, with sweet, caramel finish. The perfect latte. Highly recommended.

Has a nice earthy/chocolate flavor. After trying it for he first time my wife who favors milk drinks concluded that we don't have to look for another coffee. I wouldn't go that far but I have to admit that so far I haven't found anything better for cappuccinos.

If you get grind and temperature right you'll be rewarded with incredible amount of crema. I'm not sure if it is the batch or age but it may
require some fine tuning.

Had to work with this a bit to get a good shot. It is more subtle than I prefer in milk drinks. Was better in a double shot small...10 ounce drink. I would try it again.

This is Vivace Espresso's offering for the cappa / latte lover.
I prefer this to the Dolce in my cappa's / latte's. Dolce works better as the standalone espresso blend.

198-200 works well when mixing w/milk.
Give it a try, what do you have to lose?

Thanks Vivace and Roaste!

Very nice. It is tempermental though. Higher temps are better.

I'll begin the review with a caveat. I've been making lattes and cappuccinos for more than 5 years and can froth microfoam with my eyes closed -- but I've never developed a palate that can enjoy an espresso, or even a macchiato. Just keep that in mind when I tell you I much prefer Vivace's Dolce over their Vita roast.

Those of you who prefer a smooth flavor may find Vita's flavors a bit overpowering in our milk drinks. But Dolce deserves applause for this very nice blend. Definitely try them both - I did, and I'm going back to Dolce.

I've recently tried a number of espresso coffees for my new Rancilio Silvia espresso machine...It brings me great joy to know I'm having a glorious coffee drink that is as good if not better than a Starbucks or Caribu Cofeehouse...

...so here we go...I'm reading all this praise about this David Schomer guy from Cafe Vivace who is totally obsessed with coffee and has a number of books and DVD's about the great art of espresso...

...so I dive into his VITA blend roasted made daily at his Roateria in Seattle. It is truly decadent to see a gusher of crema dispensed from his special espresso...and I'm very, very impressed with the drinks I was able to make....Great tasty lattes and even a bold Americano had a zesty Northern Italian roast flavor.

No need to look further....this stuff is top-notch...

The Vita blend is a deliciously rich low-acid espresso, has a heavy body, some chocolate and caramel notes with an excellent crema. It is very good for shots (even though not my favorite, try Klatch) but absolutely fantastic with milk. And there is no excuse if you have not tried it ;] - 4 beans In the small cup, 5 beans for the mastering of milk.