Today, I’m continuing my Adelaide café series. In Australia, great coffee is everywhere. Whether you’re in Melbourne—often called the coffee capital—or in the slightly more low-key fifth-largest city, Adelaide, you can always find a little café sanctuary that brings you joy. The atmosphere here feels warm and unpretentious, making it incredibly easy to settle in and feel like you belong.
Adelaide, of course, is even more famous for its wineries. I made a special trip to Penfolds, where 25 AUD gets you a six-wine tasting flight—let’s just say I left very happy. I highly recommend visiting if you ever get the chance. Absolutely worth it.
A Journey in Aroma
Maybe coffee and wine really do belong together. Forgive me for starting with a little detour to recommend Penfolds—but honestly, after a wine tasting, a good cup of coffee feels even more satisfying.
With that lingering buzz, I headed to Coffee in Common, located at 7 Bacon St, Hindmarsh. This café wasn’t originally on my list; a friend recommended it after trying their pour-over beans and speaking highly of them. So I blindly trusted the recommendation—and here I am.
Like many Australian roasteries that operate as “front café, back roastery,” Coffee in Common sits just 3.3 kilometers from Adelaide’s city center. Yet the neighborhood feels slightly industrial and sparse. Still, that kind of location makes perfect sense when you’re integrating a full roasting operation with a café. From afar, the space gives off a strong warehouse aesthetic. You can spot the Coffee in Common sign from a distance, though the actual entrance is tucked a bit further inside. Out front, their opening hours are clearly displayed—and surprisingly, they don’t close on weekends, which feels rare these days.
The moment I pulled open the door, I was struck by the sheer openness of the space. It’s a massive, flat-layout roasting workshop. Directly opposite the entrance is the roasting area—interestingly, it’s not enclosed in glass. Roasting doesn’t take place during service hours; it likely happens after closing. The roasting zone also doubles as storage, giving it a slightly raw, functional feel.
A long, oversized bar runs through the center of the space, naturally dividing the seating area into two sections while keeping the sightlines open and airy. Seating is arranged in parallel rows, allowing for comfortable social distance without awkward eye contact with strangers. A thoughtful design detail, I’d say.
Both side walls double as gallery space. The artwork on display is by an artist known on Instagram as adamtarif.art, and all pieces are available for purchase. Above me hung a piece titled The Last Supper, priced at 2,750 AUD. The vibrant colors made it striking and visually uplifting. The blend of industrial warehouse elements with curated art creates a compelling dialogue between warmth and ruggedness. I genuinely loved that balance.
Small-Batch Roasting, Thoughtfully Curated
Coffee in Common is one of Adelaide’s local small-batch roasters. Their bean selection is carefully curated, with a clear emphasis on preserving each coffee’s natural flavor characteristics.
When ordering, I chatted with the barista about the different options. Each coffee has its own information card, making it easy to understand flavor notes and origins before deciding.
Let’s start with their house espresso blend, “More Juice.” This blend consists of 90% natural-processed Brazilian beans from the Paubrasil region and 10% natural Ethiopian beans from Kayon Mountain in Guji.
I chose it as a flat white. The first sip was rich and velvety, bursting with notes of toffee apple, vanilla biscuit, and roasted hazelnut. The cup was beautifully balanced and sweet, incredibly approachable and satisfying. Once again, I found myself thinking—why is Brazilian coffee in Australia always this good?
A Taste of Yunnan in Australia
Now, we have to talk about their pour-overs.
Coffee in Common regularly features two beans from Yunnan, China. This was actually my first time drinking coffee from my own home country while in an Australian café. A V60 pour-over here costs 9.5 AUD—not cheap, but understandable.
Both Yunnan coffees available were processed using experimental methods. I was curious to see how they would interpret the flavors.
I chose a coffee called “Blue Iris,” an anaerobic yeast-controlled fermentation Catimor from Project One Light in Mangshi, Yunnan. This producer, founded in 2021, operates at elevations between 1,300 and 1,500 meters. They carefully select ripe coffee cherries from high-altitude areas in Dehong, Mangshi, controlling temperature and humidity during anaerobic fermentation to develop complex flavor profiles. Afterward, the beans undergo two weeks of sun-drying, allowing time, sunlight, and nature to shape their unique character.
The barista brewed it with remarkable clarity and precision. If you hadn’t looked at the flavor card, you might have assumed it was a clean, traditionally washed Yunnan coffee—there was virtually no obvious fermentation funk. Instead, it delivered an intensely vibrant berry acidity. As the temperature dropped slightly, the acidity brightened further, reminiscent of wild rose-apple juice. And yes—there was a distinct lychee note, which honestly made me smile.
While the processing technique might sound bold and experimental, the final cup felt harmonious and refined. The green bean processing was clearly handled with sophistication and restraint. I love this kind of advanced yet balanced approach to experimental processing—where the flavors are expressive but never overwhelming. The overall experience was smooth, cohesive, and genuinely pleasurable.