Coffee

What’s Roasting – El Salvador Duo

/ Pete Denison / 1 Comment

Today’s roast consisted of two batches, both originating in El Salvador. The first being the unusually named Finca Siberia Pacamara, explained by Ministry Grounds:

The farm’s history dates back to 1870, when Fabio Morán and Etifanio Silva decided to conquer this hostile territory, sowing coffee trees in one of the highest summits of the Apaneca-Ilamatepec Mountain Range. They named the 28 hectares of land Siberia after its chaotic weather conditions, along with its difficult accessibility. One century later, Rafael Silva, brother of Luis Silva, inherited the property.

All of the coffee is shade grown under Pepeto Cedro and Cypress trees, which protect the coffee from wind and sun.

The expectation for this variety is for some nice fruit flavours, along with a sugar cane sweetness and good overall balance.

Cordillera de Apaneca mountain range in El Sal...

Cordillera de Apaneca mountain range in El Salvador. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The second batch through the roaster was another from El Salvador, Finca Suiza. Again from Ministry Grounds:

Finca Suiza is located in prime specialty coffee country in the foothills of the Santa Ana volcano. The farm’s 22 hectares are planted out with a mix of Bourbon and Pacamara varieties, as well as a few old Typica trees. The coffee is grown in the shade of native trees, which also provide habitat for a variety of birds and insects.

The resulting cup for the Suiza should demonstrate floral characteristics with some maple syrup sweetness and fruity acidity.

I am looking forward to comparing the two to determine how closely the flavour profiles align if at all. Both roast batches went reasonably well with the exception of the Siberia Pacamara ending up a little darker than I would have liked, courtesy of playing trampoline volleyball (don’t ask) with my son at a critical part of the roast. The challenges of home roasting!

Third Wave Coffee Thoughts

/ Pete Denison / Leave a comment

Dave Lieberman in the OC Weekly Blogs:

There’s one place I won’t go anymore, though, and that is the so-called third-wave coffee shops, the new generation of coffee bars with patent machines and a heavy concentration on knowing exactly which patch of steep, shady, equatorial land the coffee beans came from.

Mostly, though, I’m tired of the attitude of the people who make it.

It is fairly apparent the author takes issue with a certain “attitude”, “condescension” and “superiority” of some who work in these “third wave coffee” establishments. Should we put up with arrogance, rudeness or indifference when we are handing over our money? Absolutely not – a point which I touched on in a previous post. Here I agree with the author, however am mindful this is not limited to, nor the main feature of, any particular industry (or sector within it).

We should be very careful in placing blame at the feet of an entire sector of an industry over behaviour related to a smaller subset of it (and a subset of characteristics unrelated to the industry itself at that). I am referring to the fact that in any event, a certain proportion of the general population exhibit these very characteristics. Do they all work in “third wave coffee establishments”? No they don’t. However, a condescending attitude or the arrogance in these people (or anyone for that matter) has the potential to show through where they have a certain amount of knowledge (and often a great deal of passion) – in the case discussed here, coffee.

Is this an excuse? No.

My point is simply this, a more appropriate title for such an article would be, “Some people are rude, condescending and arrogant in our society – they work across many industries and therefore you may find some working in the coffee industry”. Not the most catchy title, and as you can see, I didn’t use it either – for obvious reasons. At times an attention grabbing title and a quick scan through an article without too much thought does not do justice to the issue at hand.

Sure, what the author writes is not fiction and does at times occur, however there are some hardworking purveyors of specialty coffee out there, who serve with humility, passion for their craft and do everything possible to make you feel at home. They are only too pleased to educate you on all things coffee and get excited when a customer shows a genuine interest in what they are doing and seeks out their knowledge. They deserve our support and respect, and I tip my hat to those very people. Lets not forget, it is they who provide us as consumers, access to features of an industry that may otherwise only be available to those within it – much to our benefit.

As for the rest, well, do as the author has done and speak with your feet, however it is not far before you will find somewhere you can feel at home. A place where the staff may cringe if you put sugar in a carefully filtered single origin, but they’ll never let on, and continue to serve you with enthusiasm and a smile.

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Serving Cup of Excellence as Espresso

/ Pete Denison / 1 Comment

When serving a Cup of Excellence[1] single origin coffee, does brewing by espresso undervalue what ultimately ends up in the cup? If we assume lighter roasted, filter brewed (V60, Chemex) methods demonstrate the subtlety and complexity of the overall flavour profile, is espresso a waste of a good single origin?

Of course the answer is no, as indicated by the enthusiasm these types of offerings routinely generate in the establishments that serve them – Strauss in Brisbane’s CBD (Web, Twitter) sparking my thoughts on this with a Cup of Excellence La Gloria, El Salvador #7 currently being served as a single origin espresso.

Should we not look to explore the many and varied ways a single origin will express itself through different brewing methods? Altering the concentration, extraction time and any other variable does nothing to alter what goes into the brew – that is, single origin (in this case Cup of Excellence) coffee and water. The output being a very rewarding drink in the cup. Will this be different to a filter brew? Absolutely. Ever so fortunate are we in having the choice in how we sample these fantastic single origins. I have lost count of the times I have been blown away by the results achieved with a particular method of brewing, when my expectations had prepared me for a completely different (read inferior) result.

Whether or not you are a fan of the higher acidity typical of a Cup of Excellence coffee, or prefer a lower acidity, full-bodied espresso, with more cafés willing to offer limited runs or seasonal changes in blends and single origins, along with real passion in how they are brewed and served, we as consumers can only be better off.

My La Gloria? A fantastic, brightly acidic cup with hints of chocolate and berry jam[2]. Followed of course by an Ethiopian Yirgacheffe courtesy of the V60 – the joys of variety and choice! My advice, get out there and try these when offered – it may only be once if it is not your cup of … well, espresso, but you won’t die wondering.

  1. Cup of Excellence is the most prestigious award given to a fine quality coffee. The level of scrutiny that Cup of Excellence coffees undergo is unmatched anywhere in the coffee industry. The prices that these winning coffees receive at auction have broken records and proven that there is a huge demand for these rare farmer identified coffees.  ↩
  2. I highly recommend you try this but make it quick – with only a limited amount available, at $4.00 a cup it is sensational value.  ↩

What’s Brewing – Panama Carmen Estate

/ Pete Denison / 1 Comment
English: View of the Rio Caldera from the home...

English: View of the Rio Caldera from the homemade bridge near Volcan Baru national park, Boquete. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Although I am hesitant to call something a good all-rounder, this is probably the most apt description for this variety from Panama’s Carmen Estate. This tag often carries with it the connotation of being solid without ever reaching any great heights. I don’t think that is probably a fair description of this crop, however is something I keep coming back to in trying to describe it for this review.

As I mentioned in my previous Coffee post, the expectation for this “honey” processed lot was for a fairly full-bodied brew with reasonably low to medium acidity. A little on the Carmen Estate from Ministry Grounds:

Carmen Estate is situated in the Paso Ancho Valley, which is located in the Chiriqui province, close to the border with Costa Rica in western Panama. Paso Ancho Valley lies on the western slopes of the Baru Volcano. The Baru is an inactive volcano located between the Boquete and Volcan-Candela areas. At 3,500 meters above sea level, the Baru is the highest point in Panama. The Baru Volcano has provided very rich, deep and fertile soils to the Paso Ancho Valley micro region. This coupled with regular rainfall and appropriate altitude are a key factor in the outstanding quality portrayed by the coffee produced in this micro region.

Expectations aside, how did it actually taste?

The Whack

What
– Panama Carmen Estate
– Altitude: 1250–1500mtrs
– Crop Year: 2013
– Varietal: Catuai Caturra Typica
– Processing: Washed

How
Latte; Hario V60 Pourover; Aeropress

Assessment
Milk course – When brewed with milk, there is enough body to carry the drink, and a nice creamy finish, however the low acidity and overly subtle fruit flavours result in a fairly middle of the road experience overall.

V60 – Hints of stone fruit sweetness in this form of brewing; really came to life after most of the heat had come out of the brew. A fairly long, subtle finish. I suspect this would make a great cold brew.

Aeropress – Performed pretty well in this method. Noticeably low acidity, with undertones of the fruitiness seen in the V60 above. Both the V60 and Aeropress would be my preferred methods of consumption with this particular varietal.

Conclusion; Know this
Overall, a solid performer across most forms of brewing. A couple of points to note however. Firstly, the sweetness of the brew increased significantly as it cooled, and perhaps would be well suited to a cold brew. In addition, it would probably work quite well in a blend, providing some body in the middle and creaminess to the finish. I’m of the opinion it just needs a little more fruitiness to drive the overall flavour profile.

Rating 3.5/5

Wait…there’s more
Thankfully, brewing the Carmen Estate overlapped with another batch of roasting which included this Ethiopian Yirgacheffe, a variety I have always found brings a lot of fruit to the cup.

Hence, a blend was created with 40% Carmen Estate, 40% Yirgacheffe, and 20% Indonesian Blue Batak. The Yirgacheffe added a great burst of fruitiness, with blueberry and lemon/lime flavours, whereas the Blue Batak provided a hint of spice, which together, improved the milk based drink significantly and really packed more sweetness into the V60 and Aeropress.

So to conclude, the Carmen Estate is certainly an enjoyable drink as a single origin, however is at its best when part of a blend with varietals that will provide a little more acidity and add to the overall flavour profile.

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What’s Roasting #6 – Panama Carmen Estate

/ Pete Denison / 1 Comment

IMG_1334Recently I’ve been clearing out some remaining green beans left over from blending experiments, and along with roasting the usual decaf batch for my wife’s consumption, finished the last of my store from Panama’s Carmen Estate.

Details on the particular processing method described by Ministry Grounds:

This is a Honey processed lot, which means that fully ripe cherry is picked, sorted & pulped the same as a fully washed coffee, however after pulping the mucilage is left untouched on the bean and is sent to dry with the mucilage on. “Honey” coffees are sun-dried and normally on raised beds to allow greater airflow during drying as the mucilage left on the bean provides the opportunity for spoiling. The result is a more full-bodied, sweeter coffee, with less acidity.

Most coffees I have tasted from Panama generally do not disappoint, so I am expecting the same from this batch. From what I understand this has a lot to do with the very unique microclimate and rich volcanic soils enjoyed by the coffee producing estates in this country.

Here’s hoping for enough body to punch through the milk in my morning latte, and I’m also looking forward to a few sweet V60 and Aeropress long brews. A nice light roast should do it.

Tasting review to follow soon.