Dear coffee subscriber,
We have entered the summer and here in Oslo the trees are blooming and the smell of lilacs is following wherever you go. After months with strict restrictions we were finally allowed to open our espresso bar for indoor seating last week and we can’t express with words how amazing it is to serve our customers in porcelain cups and see their faces again.
We would normally be able to send out fresh crop Kenyan coffees for the June shipment, but the Covid 19 situation has lead to congestions in the ports all over the world and shortage of ships. Our container was therefore not picked up as scheduled from the port, but we are crossing fingers it will be here on time for the July shipment. Until then we can enjoy some other tasty coffees from last years harvest.
For the June shipment we are sending out coffees from three different farms and our 3 to 6 bag subscribers will be treated with a honey processed Caballero Geisha. This coffee makes the perfect iced coffee and if you want to learn how we make it you can check out our brewing guide here.
Nacimiento Pacas 1 + 4 bags
Flavour notes: Chocolate, fresh herbs, apples & stone fruit
Producer: Jobneel Caceres Dios
Harvest: April 2020
Origin: El Cielito, Santa Barbara, Honduras
Process: Washed
Cultivar: Pacas
This Pacas lot is from the late April 2020 harvest from Nacimiento which means it is harvested from the higher part of Jobneel’s farm. A really sweet and fruity Pacas from one of the best coffee areas in Honduras. Packed with stone fruit, red apple and ripe red berry flavours with loads of sweetness.
Finca Tamana SL28 2 + 5 bags
Flavour notes: Floral, black tea & red berries.
Producer: Elias Roa
Harvest: July 2020
Origin: El Pital, Huila, Colombia
Process: Washed
Cultivar: SL28
I planted these SL28 seeds with Elias in 2013 and the trees were planted in the field in early 2014. Since then we have been waiting to get this coffee in our shop. In 2017 we got 24 kilos, and in the last years we have gotten an increasing amount of this coffee, but it is still not a lot. The SL28 from Finca Tamana is quite subtle in the flavour profile but still has some of the classic SL28 flavours like red berries. It has a lower acidity and an interesting floral and black tea note. Therefore I find it to be quite different from the brighter and more intense Kenyan grown SL28 coffees.
Caballero Geisha Honey 3 + 6 bags
Flavour notes: Sweet mandarin, jasmine and honey
Producer: Marysabel Caballero & Moises Herrera
Harvest: February 2020
Origin: Chinacla, La Paz, Honduras
Process: Honey
Cultivar: Geisha
Three years ago Moises decided to do a small batch of honey processed Geisha for us. For those of you who are not familiar with this process, Honey process is where the coffee cherries are de-pulped and the parchment coffee is taken directly to be dried on raised drying beds with the mucilage still on the parchment coffee. It is sort of a process in between Natural process (coffee cherries are dried with the parchment coffee inside) and washed coffees (cherries are de-pulped and the mucilage is removed from the parchment coffee either through fermentation and washing or with a mechanical mucilage remover before it is dried.)
Normally we are not the biggest fan of this way of processing because when it is not done with special care you tend to get a slightly more rough cup and with off-flavours from uncontrolled fermentation during drying. But when I blind tasted a test batch of honey processed Geisha among the washed processed lots while visiting in Marcala in March 2018, I was surprised to learn that it was a honey processed coffee. It was so vibrant and clean with even more intense acidity and flavours than the washed lots. Expect an intense mandarin flavour with floral notes and a herbal finish.
Please note that when brewing this coffee with a filter method like V60, Kalita or Wilfa, the drawdown time (time for the water to pass through the coffee) can be a bit longer than what you are used to. A big mistake is to then grind a lot coarser as this will make the coffee taste thin, sour and bitter.
For best results make sure your brew water is as hot as possible, straight from the boil from your kettle. I also recommend not stirring a lot in the slurry as this makes the fine particles fall down faster and clog up the filter. Also make sure you grind the coffee like you would with the other coffees we are sending out or even better – slightly finer. Good luck and hope you will enjoy this coffee.
Thanks for reading and as always, we hope you enjoy the coffees and learning from our monthly videos. If you need some brewing tips, visit our website.
I hope you will enjoy the coffees
Tim W