Kenya Mtaro Estate Peaberry

Kenya is a country whose preeminent coffee origins are rarely matched. Well-run mills and efficient trade routes all contribute to an exquisite cup of coffee. Your Kenyan Mtaro Estate Peaberry is a delicate brew, with a kind of dry caramel and spice quality, and aromas that almost remind me of fresh kettle corn. This is a refreshing East-African gem, a perfect roast to welcome the fall season.

Impeccable quality control reveals a dry fragrance laced with burned sugarcane and vanilla. Once brewed, the aromatics open up into a tart, robust character, like a well-rounded Shiraz. The delicate sweetness of this cup is supported by a medium body with a bright, clean acidity that's highly unusual for an African varietal. The dark caramel and golden raisin fades into a candied-apple finish as the cup cools down. This is a lively, complex coffee you have to taste to believe!

Kenya Mtaro Estate Peaberry

Roast Color: Dark
Prep: Washed, Euro-prep
Body: Syrupy, heavy-bodied
Flavor Profile: Subdued sweetness, cardamom, cinnamon, and anise root
Cupping Notes: The grind reveals a dry fragrance laced with burned sugarcane and vanilla. The wet aroma is delightfully tart, developing a distinctly spicy bouquet of cardamom, cinnamon, and anise root. The delicate sweetness, with the faintest hint of burned caramel and golden raisin, fades into a somewhat rindy finish as it cools.

Honduras Beneficio Santa Rosa Organic

Honduras has all the necessary ingredients for the perfect cup of coffee. Rich soils, tall mountains, and a generous climate result in balanced acidity and heightened sweetness. Having struggled with its reputation as an unreliable region, Honduras Beneficio Santa Rosa has worked hard to increase standards, promote sustainability, and has improved the overall processing infrastructure. And this year, Fair Trade USA has awarded Beneficio Santa Rosa the "Presidential Award For Exporters." This bright, slightly-candied varietal is simply breathtaking!


This is a simple, clean cup of coffee with a distinct perfume of hazelnut in the dry aromatics. It also has a lively praline sweetness that comes out even more once it's brewed, along with a hint of vanilla-bean. Over-all, this is a mild cup with a light, silky body that is well-matched with it's crisp, snappy character. Expect fruity apple flavors with a hint of nutmeg and a nutty quality from start to finish. It's delicious.
 
I am incredibly proud to be roasting and serving this coffee. It has won a number of prestigious awards, the most notable of which is an award for "The Best Honduran Exporter of 2013." Beneficio Santa Rosa is something special. Enjoy it while it lasts!

Received 09/17/2013

Honduras Santa Rosa Co-op
Bio Latina Certified Organic

Roast Color: Medium
Prep: Washed
Body: Medium, velvety
Flavor Profile: Bright, perfectly balanced
Cupping Notes: If you like a crisp, traditional washed varietal with the slightest hint of ripened cherry, then this carefully cultivated mountaintop coffee is what you want.

Bolivian Organic Peaberry from CENEPROC

I've never had a season that brought so many distinctive, high-quality coffees into the shop. Last week we roasted a most unusual Nicaraguan coffee, and now we're heading a little farther South, to the Yungas Mountains for another peaberry! Your Bolivian Organic Peaberry from CENEPROC is a smooth, candied cup that delivers velvety textures and sweet, clean flavors. Known as caracols (literally "snails") because of the shape of the seed, these delicious coffee beans are insanely rare.

I have never sampled coffee like this. There is no smooth ascension to taste in this cup. Rather than a nuanced progression of flavor, what you get with this peaberry is an instantaneous, intense coffee experience. The dry aroma hints at forest herbs and oriental tea leaves. But, once brewed, a sweetness creeps out of the grounds, giving way to Swedish coffee candy, caramel, and a distinct cut of burned, caramelized sugar. Beneath the crema are hints of cedar shavings & toasted almonds. Combining dark chocolate and sugarcane with a roof-of-the-mouth, zesty acidity, this is genuinely mouth-watering coffee.

Received 09/10/2013

Bolivia Organic Peaberry

Roast Color: Medium to Dark
Prep: Washed
Body: Heavy
Flavor Profile: Nutty, bold, sassafras and ginger root
Cupping Notes: Sweet, smooth, and creamy. Reminds me of old-fashioned coffee hard candy with that delightful, lingering sweetness.

Nicaragua Caracolito Peaberry

This is an insanely special coffee, and I can't even begin to emphasize enough how incredibly rare peaberry coffees are. Representing 3% of all the coffee harvested in the world, the bulk of all peaberry varietals come from Eastern Africa (Tanzania & Kenya) and Papua New Guinea. Your Nicaraguan Peaberry is, arguably, the most unusual coffee I've ever roasted. The flavors are as smooth and delicious as the coffee is rare, filled with bright, flavorful nuances. This caramel dream is easy to love.

The dry fragrance presents a smoky vanilla quality, with apricot and dark stone-fruits. The sweet notes here are unusually pronounced, reminding me of honey-nut cereal. The wet aroma reminds me of freshly cut white cedar and, once brewed, the front end proves incredibly floral with a crisp acidity. Expect a brusque, malty, salted-caramel sweetness in the aftertaste. With an elegant mouth-feel and subtle, creamy flavors, I can't imagine anybody not loving this coffee. I only have a limited number of bags, so expect this delicious brew to disappear quick!

Received 09/03/2013

Nicaragua Caracolito Peaberry

Roast Color: Medium/Dark
Prep: Washed, Euro-prep
Body: Medium, Buttery Body
Flavor Profile: Balanced with a crisp sweetness
Cupping Notes: Exceptionally clean with a bright acidity and a brusque, malty, salted-caramel sweetness in the aftertaste. A restrained cup with an elegant mouth-feel and subtle flavor notes.