From wintry cocktails and foraged foods at the Forest restaurant to my most recent discovery of chocolate-covered oreos, as though I needed yet another reason to visit Selfridges Oxford Street… I now have two. A scrumptious new breakfast menu & a silky smooth range of coffees developed by Origin Coffee Roasters, exclusively for this London institution.

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Both are available at Brass Rail – Selfridge’s heritage Salt Beef Bar.

Established in 1966, this in-house restaurant almost seems like an institution in itself, although one I can’t say that I’ve visited before given my vegetarian disposition…

So I was quite excited to receive an invitation to a speciality coffee tasting session over breakfast, to try out both the new offerings.

The morning was off to a strong start with warm, deliciously flaky, golden croissants cocooning a rich combination of Béchamel and Swiss cheese…

Seeing as nothing goes better with coffee than a cracking doughnut, we were also treated to Crosstown’s gourmet hybrids that combine sourdough and yeast to create a distinctly doughy texture, capping the dreamiest of fillings… which on the day was none other than that of a mince pie!

There’s nothing quite like a mince pie doughnut to officially get into the festive spirit of things, wouldn’t you agree?

Also making their rounds, were  classic smoked salmon and cream cheese bagels and crisp salt beef and potato hash. Both went down a right treat with the group, who included many a familiar name from dessert queen Felicity Spector to the charming Victoria of the blog,  A Spoonful of Sugar!

We had gathered in Brass Rail’s dedicated coffee space – a sleek area featuring UK’s first permanent Modbar.

In case you’re wondering (I know, I was), a Modbar is basically an innovative new coffee brewing method based on a modular layout. There are three gleaming taps on display – for espresso, steam and drip coffee – but all other major equipment is located under the counter, meaning that there’s much less of a physical barrier between you and the barista!

It definitely makes for a much more interactive experience, if you’re interested in the art and craft of coffee making…

We had a chance to chat with the friendly team from Origin Roasters Coffee, learning a bit more about how they’ve worked with the Mierisch family in Nicaragua to develop Selfridges’  exclusive espresso blend as well as a single origin coffee.

I’m not usually one for straight-up espressos, but I have to say that I loved the creaminess of the rich coffee, with its combination of nutty, chocolatey and slightly fruity notes… if Selfridges were a a coffee, this flavour profile would fit the bill quite well!

We also tried the single origin coffee – Finca Placeres – which has been produced with a new style of coffee pulpers under a much slower drying time and wet fermentation process. The result is quite beautiful – incredibly vivid flavours with light citrus and red berry notes…

Perceptively anticipating that the morning may have sparked a whole new chapter of my caffeine addiction, the lovely Selfridges team bagged up some coffee beans to go along with other handy brewing equipment… perfect for tiding me over until I’m able to next pop in, preferably over brekky so that I can make my way through the rest of Brass Rail’s tasty menu…

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Brass Rail, Selfridges & Co, 400 Oxford Street, Marble Arch, London W1A 1AB