Gramado in August has the cold that southern Brazil saves for festival season. The Gramado Film Festival transforms the city into a state of attention—there are films showing on three screens simultaneously, critics crossing the Rua Coberta, couples who came for the event and stayed for the alpine scenery.
In a break between sessions, William & Sons Coffee Co. appears as an obvious answer to the cold and the need to slow down.
The espresso arrives in a minimalist black bowl—that bulbous format that retains heat and warms your hands while you hold it. On a bamboo tray, two glasses of water: one before, one after. The ritual is complete without anyone needing to explain. Water before to cleanse the palate. Water after to prolong the memory of the coffee.
A good espresso on a cold film festival day is an aesthetic experience in its own right. It’s not a metaphor—it’s literally sensorial.
The black bowl in contrast with the natural bamboo of the tray communicates something about the house: there’s aesthetic intention here, but it serves comfort, not Instagram. The coffee was extracted with precision—firm crema, right temperature, without that bitterness of burnt coffee that says the machine wasn’t calibrated today.
Gramado has a historically problematic relationship with coffee: the city sells chocolate with competence and wine with enthusiasm, but coffee often takes a back seat, served as protocol in façade cafeterias. William & Sons is an exception worth recognizing.
In a film festival, breaks are part of the program. The coffee at William & Sons was one of the best scenes of that week.
Technical Details
- Location: William & Sons Coffee Co., Gramado, RS
- Category: Coffee / Terroir
- Average Price: R$ 15–25 per person
- Rating: ⭐ (4/5) — careful espresso, elegant presentation, necessary break during the festival