exquisite blend
I just had the most amazing cup of coffee. I was in Pasadena last weekend, and I stopped by Peet's (several times). I picked up four half pounds of fresh beans:
Columbia
Ethiopia
Costa Rica
Kenya
All these are wonderful in blends and delightful as soloists, as well. I began the week (Monday - Thursday) with a cup each day of one of the four.
Monday was a trip to Ethiopia. The elegance of their coffee is exemplary. Flavors including cocoa, earth and grape stem are all in good proportion: none of them screams; none hides in the corner.
Tuesday, I visited Kenya. Always a treet. Pungent tea and young wine are at the forefront.
I then moved on to Columbia. The Columbian coffees tend to be a bit subdued. There are few or no bright, acidic flavors in this coffee. This may be seen as boring to some, but it allows the coffee to be brewed exceedingly strong without becoming harsh; similar to mocha java, for example, but more evocative of roasted nuts and less reminiscent of cocoa.
On Thursday, I treated myself to the exotic Costa Rican experience. This coffee is a real sparkler, the feistiest of the siblings. Acidic hot tar flavors leap from the cup and are backed by floral and citrus tones. The coffee is not without body, however, with the brighter flavors supported by fresh walnuts, and pine straw.
And today I started mixing. This is an activity that kept me entertained as an undergraduate, living in Eugene, where I could purchase fresh regional beans from local roaster Full City (and occasionally from Sisters Coffee Company, which was en route between Eugene and Bend). I mixed two parts Columbian beans with one part each of beans from Costa Rica and Kenya. I used almost enough Columbian beans to brew a cup by itself. But the Columbian beans strike a very different note than the Costa Rican and Kenyan beans, so I could get away with that.
The results was a very strong, yet delicate cup. The most prominent flavors were fresh citrus and oaked sangiovese (really). These were backed by a lovely foundation of nuts and berries. Amazingly, the result was actually less harsh than pure Kenyan or Costa Rican beans, despite the very generous total volume of beans included. It shows the effect of spreading the flavor impact over the entire palate.
Columbia
Ethiopia
Costa Rica
Kenya
All these are wonderful in blends and delightful as soloists, as well. I began the week (Monday - Thursday) with a cup each day of one of the four.
Monday was a trip to Ethiopia. The elegance of their coffee is exemplary. Flavors including cocoa, earth and grape stem are all in good proportion: none of them screams; none hides in the corner.
Tuesday, I visited Kenya. Always a treet. Pungent tea and young wine are at the forefront.
I then moved on to Columbia. The Columbian coffees tend to be a bit subdued. There are few or no bright, acidic flavors in this coffee. This may be seen as boring to some, but it allows the coffee to be brewed exceedingly strong without becoming harsh; similar to mocha java, for example, but more evocative of roasted nuts and less reminiscent of cocoa.
On Thursday, I treated myself to the exotic Costa Rican experience. This coffee is a real sparkler, the feistiest of the siblings. Acidic hot tar flavors leap from the cup and are backed by floral and citrus tones. The coffee is not without body, however, with the brighter flavors supported by fresh walnuts, and pine straw.
And today I started mixing. This is an activity that kept me entertained as an undergraduate, living in Eugene, where I could purchase fresh regional beans from local roaster Full City (and occasionally from Sisters Coffee Company, which was en route between Eugene and Bend). I mixed two parts Columbian beans with one part each of beans from Costa Rica and Kenya. I used almost enough Columbian beans to brew a cup by itself. But the Columbian beans strike a very different note than the Costa Rican and Kenyan beans, so I could get away with that.
The results was a very strong, yet delicate cup. The most prominent flavors were fresh citrus and oaked sangiovese (really). These were backed by a lovely foundation of nuts and berries. Amazingly, the result was actually less harsh than pure Kenyan or Costa Rican beans, despite the very generous total volume of beans included. It shows the effect of spreading the flavor impact over the entire palate.
posted by Allan Friesen at 11:32 AM
4 Comments:
Hey Al:
Glad to see that you are back having culinary fun and sharing it with us now that your oral exam is over.
Could you send me enough of your blend for two cups -- one for Air and one for me. Hurry, he leaves in a couple of days.
Hmmm...that would be one expensive cup of coffee. I think it would be more efficient for YOU to order two pounds each of all the coffees in the blend. Once you've tried the mixture, you can send me the leftovers.
Hi Big Al,
I like your coffee choices, plus some of the African blends if they are bold or extra bold.
On my first trip to Guatemala in April 1991 I had a 'hay day' with all the choices of local coffee, which were very inexpensive, i.e., $1 U.S. dollar per kilogram or about a pound at the airport. I visited Antigua twice ... famous for their Guatemalan Antigua.
Upon my departure at the airport, I loaded my suitcases with a variety of coffee.
There are so many choices of very good coffee. As long as it fresh brewed and bold, I can't go too wrong. I enjoy trying different brews.
Yes Uncle C., I agree the freshness and "boldness" (to borrow a word from a certain big evil corporation which shall remain nameless) are most important. However, snob that I am, I must emphasize the importance of stopping the roasting process before "bold" turns to "ashtray."
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