Milano Coffee Roasters

It's a tall order when your business goal is to be the best in the world for espresso. But that's exactly what husband-and-wife team Brian and Linda Turko, owners of Vancouver's Milano Coffee, intend to achieve.

In 2017, Brian and Linda's original Italian espresso blends Suave Rico, New Italian and Frank's roasts won gold medals at the annual International Coffee Tasting Competition (a blind sensory evaluation with a panel of 30 international judges). They've won 10 medals in total, having accrued seven gold since 2012.

Brian is a true artisan with a deep-seated passion for coffee excellence and innovation, and his unbridled enthusiasm and curiosity have helped him to maintain the legacy of his mentor Francesco Curatolo, whom he met when he walked into his café-roasting storefront in 1993. Brian says that thanks to Francesco, "I learned the best blending technology since the creation of espresso."

Brian and Linda took over Francesco's Café de Milano and roasting facility in Vancouver's Mount Pleasant neighbourhood in 2003, launching the first of five family-owned and operated Milano Coffee bars.