Good coffee beans have now become abundant in Moscow, thanks in large part to the rapidly expanding network of coffee houses selling beans to go, and the market is set to grow even larger with the heralded appearance of the world-wide giant, Starbucks. Like tea, a wide range of coffee can also be found in good supermarkets, with each retail chain offering something that the others don’t. What’s pleasant about shopping for coffee in coffeehouses is that you can try the blend before buying it. The cafes on and just off of Tverskaya can give you a caffeine fix within minutes and a pack of freshly roasted beans for a second cup back home. The center is dotted with places tempting you with aromatic coffee pleasures, and considering expert’s opinion that Moscow has a population to sustain 2,000 coffeehouses, it’s likely that a lot more will open soon in the suburbs. The Tverskaya coffee tour starts just off the main drag at the quaint Nadin tea and coffee store. Most of the coffee here is sold under its own brand name at a reasonable price (80 rubles for 100 grams), however there are pricier varieties such as the Kopi Luwak coffee from Java, Indonesia. Gathered and eaten by the Luwak civet-like animal, the ripe beans pass through the little tree-dweller undigested and are deposited on the ground where they are gathered by locals - such exotica naturally doesn’t come cheap, costing a little over 1,100 rubles for 100 grams. Just one block up is Zen Coffee, (one of three in Moscow) which offers an extensive range of Montana coffee, both ground and beans. Ask for a brochure, and you will be presented with its entire product line. Next stop is Coffee House, with another three locations along Tverskaya and more than 50 around Moscow and in the surrounding regions. Here you will find four types of Vezzali coffee beans (all at 99 rubles for 100 grams). Coffee House also sells three- to nine-cup percolators (1,250-1,650 rubles). Coffee Bean has four Moscow locations, one of which is on Tverskaya, offering an extensive range of beans with 10 aromatic flavors (110 rubles for 100 grams), and another 30-plus varieties with original names like "Brazilian Rain Forest" and "The Accountant." If you care to walk over to Bolshaya Nikitskaya Ulitsa, you will be faced with the choice of Shokoladnitsa and Coffee Mania, located opposite each other. The latter impresses, not only because of its stylish decor and attractive, young staff, but its selection of beans is well displayed with 13 classic varieties from Africa, Central and South America and Indonesia, (120 rubles for 100 grams) and aromatic coffees (vanilla or nuts, for example), all from Musetti, the Italian coffee masters. Shokoladnitsa, well known for its many central locations, also offers some 15 Montana varieties priced at around 100 rubles for 100 grams. Back on Tverskaya-Yamskaya Ulitsa, Fauchon has a nice range of its own coffees with an average price of 22 euros for 100 grams. The store’s most popular brand, Melange Fauchon, is an exotic mixture of Ethiopian, Colombian, Costa Rican, Mexican and Guatemalan beans. Any purchase can be bought by the kilogram for take-home purposes or specially wrapped as a present. Still in the center, but near Chistiye Prudy, is Chayok Kofeyok. This sweet little store has a wide array of everything that is associated with coffee. Beans, of Italian and French varieties, can be bought by the bag (1 kilogram) or by the gram (on average, 100 rubles for 100 grams), or Swiss coffee machines from Jura for 29,700 to 31,950 rubles. Reasonably priced syrups (100-200 rubles a bottle) come in flavors such as Irish cream and amaretto. At the end of the trail is Mir Espresso, one of four located in the center. Not only does it have a huge range of coffee from all the world’s leading suppliers, but it has an impressive range of coffee makers from Italian company Saeco. Irrespective of the size of your wallet, you can set up your own cafe at home with professional-standard equipment. The choice is Mir Espresso excellent, starting from 5,850 rubles for an intimate rendezvous to 49,690 rubles if you are planning to invite the whole neighborhood over. Naturally, if you are going to invest in such a fine piece of machinery, you would only offer something like Blue Mountain from Compagnia dell’Arabica at 8,500 rubles for 1.5 kilograms. Mir Espresso also stocks a great selection of coffee accessories. Go-magazine