Quick one from the roastery. Four of our coffees have just gone into the rotation at Allways Coffee - an Adelaide subscription service that curates beans from independent South Australian roasters and ships them around the country. One blend, two single origins, and a decaf that actually earns its spot - one for every way you brew.
If you’ve followed us from the start, you’ll know we didn’t begin as a business. It began at home, with me getting a bit too obsessed with roast curves on a sample roaster on the kitchen bench. That’s still the heart of it: small batches, roasted to order here in Adelaide, so the bag you open was roasted for your order - not sitting on a shelf for months. So when Allways got in touch about putting our coffee in front of more people around the country, it was an easy yes.
Who is Allways Coffee?
Allways Coffee is an Adelaide-based coffee subscription that, instead of backing a single roaster, rotates through a list of independent South Australian roasters and matches the coffee to how you actually brew - espresso and milk, black filter, or decaf. It’s a genuinely good way to discover small Adelaide roasters you’d never otherwise come across. You can see the current lineup over at Allways Coffee.
Which Elusive coffees are in the Allways rotation?
Four of them - picked so there’s one for every way you drink coffee.
Grindstone Espresso Blend - the everyday all-rounder
Our house blend, going into the Espresso Blend subscription. It’s built from three coffees we also roast 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. Rich chocolate and hazelnut up front, a bit of fruit underneath. This is the reliable one - the flat white that tastes like it came from somewhere good. Built for milk, but it holds up black too. Shop Grindstone Espresso Blend →
Guatemala El Matasano - single-origin espresso
A single-origin espresso pick, grown by Samuel Barrios on Finca El Matasano in Cuilco, Huehuetenango, between 2,000 and 2,200m - some of the highest coffee land in Guatemala. Samuel farms a mix of varieties alongside the native forest he works to protect. We roast it developed for body, so the dense, high-grown beans turn malic apple acidity into jammy baked fruit and a deep toffee-and-chocolate sweetness. Toffee, chocolate and baked apple. Made for a flat white. Shop Guatemala El Matasano →
Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Haro - the filter
The filter coffee for the round, and a beauty. A Grade 1 natural from Haroberdame in Yirgacheffe, dried slowly on raised beds and roasted light to keep it clean. Peach, dark berries and milk chocolate, with almond hanging around in the finish. We brew it as a pour-over using the 4:6 method - the recipe’s on the product page. Shop Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Haro →
Apia Decaf - the decaf that earns its spot
For the decaf crowd. A single-origin Colombian from Apia, Risaralda, naturally decaffeinated using the Sugar Cane (EA) process - so it keeps its sweetness and body instead of going flat. Chocolate, cocoa and a bit of fruit. Good any time of day, black or with milk. Shop Apia Decaf →
How do I get these coffees?
Two ways:
- Straight from us. Everything’s roasted to order. If you want it on repeat, our coffee subscription ships freshly roasted beans on your schedule - pick by how you brew and skip or pause any time.
- Through Allways. If you’d rather get our coffee as part of a rotating local subscription - and try other SA roasters along the way - you’ll find us in the Allways Coffee lineup.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Elusive Coffee based?
We’re an Adelaide micro-roaster, based in Athelstone in the city’s north-east, roasting in Somerton Park. No café - you’ll find us online, through stockists, and at Adelaide markets.
Are Elusive’s coffees roasted to order?
Yes. We roast in small batches to order rather than holding stock, so your beans are as fresh as possible when they reach you.
Do you roast light or dark?
Neither, really - we roast to suit each coffee. A delicate Ethiopian filter gets a light hand to keep it clean and fruity; an espresso lot built for milk gets developed for body so it’s sweet and chocolatey through a flat white. We keep the character that’s already in the bean rather than push everything dark and uniform.
What’s the difference between buying direct and through Allways?
Buying direct (or on our subscription) gets you exactly the Elusive coffees you choose, roasted to your order. Allways is a rotating subscription that mixes us in with other independent SA roasters - great if you like variety and discovering new beans.
Which of these should I pick?
For milk-based drinks, the Grindstone blend or the Guatemala. For black filter, the Yirgacheffe Haro. For decaf without the let-down, the Apia.
Where can I buy Elusive Coffee in person?
Catch us at the markets around Adelaide - and you’ll probably find me behind the stall.
Everything we send is roasted to order, same as always. Thanks to Mikey and the Allways crew for having us in the rotation - and if we’re new to you, welcome. You know where we are.
