Ethiopian coffee farmer (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

After aiming my recent roasting efforts towards blending, it’s time to get back to some of my favourite regions and sample some single origins. I will also post a further update in the Crop to Cup series in the near future, as we get closer to roasting and sampling.

So, in searching for a fruity African varietal, this Ethiopian Yirgacheffe came along through the good folks at Ministry Grounds, who also supplied the following roasting advice on this coffee:

Go easy on the heat early on, allowing a gentle drying period. But build some momentum up to the start of first crack. When the beans go exothermic, expect a temp rate drop and try and anticipate this. Not letting the rate rise drop too much will develop the sugars and fruit flavours fully. Don’t go near second crack!

Santa Ana (El Salvador) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

At the same time I stumbled across a Central American variety in the form of the El Salvador Siberia Pacamara which placed 20th in the 2012 Cup of Excellence, and certainly read well in terms of its potential out of the roaster and into the cup:

Floral with green apple, pineapple and black cherry. Lovely honeycomb and sugarcane sweetness. A balanced cup.

I am looking forward to seeing whether the El Salvador lives up to the usual crispness of varieties from the Central American region, and likewise the usual blueberry explosion of the Yirgacheffe. Tasting review to follow soon.

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