What coffee are you drinking just now?

[gentlegreen]

Anxious not to add to my collection of emergency beans, this morning I mixed up the last few beans of four recent coffees - the oldest dating to late October - and though there was a touch of "caramel", it was surprisingly drinkable - especially when I got down to the fines .. I feel like I've drunk proper coffee when there's grit in it
My dilemma, as always is that I only make one brew a day and along with my home-made bread, it's very close to a religious ritual - especially now that it's been daily rather than weekends only for 7 months ... so it's difficult to ignore the latest fresh beans sitting there ...

I reserved my last few Ethiopian Uraga beans - which may add some magic to the random blend...

 

[gentlegreen]

Today I'm having the random bag-end blend cut 50/50 with the Uraga and it's very drinkable.

 

[gentlegreen]

Why did I do 50/50 ?
But being tired old beans, it seemed to work ...

Today it was my usual 66/33 - ish with the Brazilian - and it was OK, but not exactly magical - the fruitiness of the Uraga was there, but the Brazilian lacks chocolate and the blend came out a bit "mid-range" - heavy ...

 

[gentlegreen]

Today it was half and half tired old beans and Bolivian and it's a pretty decent earthy blend - comes pretty close (at least) to the mildly disappointing Brazilian, so I won't be adding to my "emergency" stash.
I need some chocolatey beans ...
Meanwhile I've actually been drinking cocoa most evenings to wean myself off of plain chocolate (though the creamed coconut, peanut butter and nuts are working against that cunning plan )

 

[kalidarkone]

I'm drinking Waitrose Colombia Tolima.
I tried making a coffee yesterday using cows milk because I'd got some in for the work men....and it was yuck! It only tastes OK to me with oat milk.
I can't believe I'm over cows milk!

I might try coffee with out sugar....

 

[gentlegreen]

I'm drinking Waitrose Colombia Tolima.
I tried making a coffee yesterday using cows milk because I'd got some in for the work men....and it was yuck! It only tastes OK to me with oat milk.
I can't believe I'm over cows milk!

I might try coffee with out sugar....

That's one of the joys of coffee for me - calorie-free and also helps make breakfast more sustaining, though I appear to be eating lunch today ...
I randomly tried oat milk in my cocoa yesterday and didn't think it was an enhancement ...

BTW - Southmead !
I'm relieved they told me the gate number for my appointment on Thursday - such a vast place and I had moderate difficulty getting to where I need to go the previous time ...

 

[gentlegreen]

I'm getting low on the tasty beans now and also missing some genuinely chocolatey notes ...

Perhaps some more African...

Ethiopia Ana Sora Natural

This coffee is a naturally processed lot of indigenous wild varietals produced by Israel Defga at Ana Sora near the town of Yirgacheffe in the Guji zone of Ethiopia. It has tasting notes of orange, fresh blueberry, florals and dark chocolate. Hasbean - freshly roasted coffee from our roastery in...

www.hasbean.co.uk

Kenya Kiriga Estate AB

This coffee is a washed lot of SL28 AB and Ruiru 11 AB produced by Dr Brian Gakunga at the Kiriga Estate in Muranga, Gatanga, Kenya. It has tasting notes of blackcurrant jam, brown sugar, biscuit and cocoa nibs. Hasbean - specialty coffee freshly roasted in Staffordshire

www.hasbean.co.uk

 

[Hassan I Sabha]

I'm getting low on the tasty beans now and also missing some genuinely chocolatey notes ...

Perhaps some more African...

Ethiopia Ana Sora Natural

This coffee is a naturally processed lot of indigenous wild varietals produced by Israel Defga at Ana Sora near the town of Yirgacheffe in the Guji zone of Ethiopia. It has tasting notes of orange, fresh blueberry, florals and dark chocolate. Hasbean - freshly roasted coffee from our roastery in...

www.hasbean.co.uk

Kenya Kiriga Estate AB

This coffee is a washed lot of SL28 AB and Ruiru 11 AB produced by Dr Brian Gakunga at the Kiriga Estate in Muranga, Gatanga, Kenya. It has tasting notes of blackcurrant jam, brown sugar, biscuit and cocoa nibs. Hasbean - specialty coffee freshly roasted in Staffordshire

www.hasbean.co.uk

Ana Sora is a great bean, not a Rocko mountain but a great bean. It is very fruity, the blueberry note is very prominent.

 

[Mogden]

Watched this video yesterday.



And it was actually bloody useful in getting an idea of what descriptions match what type of coffee I'm after. Yes there's more than an air of hipster about James but he knows his beans.

 

[chilango]

Funnily enough I'd just ordered some of that Ana Sora....

 

[gentlegreen]

Running very low...
I will keep the Ethiopian in mind in case I need to add some funkiness, but I am initially going local and ringing the changes in search of chocolate.
I was initially going for more El Salvador El Borbollon, but that wasn't quite chocolatey enough last time ...

Rwandan washed Bourbon :-

BUF Nyarusiza — TwoDay Coffee Roasters

Well balanced, long finish, velvety body.
Chocolate, dried fruit ( raisin, black cherry, plum?)

And some Sumatran as the more "risky" purchase ...

Bener Meria Mandheling — TwoDay Coffee Roasters

" Indonesian coffees are an acquired taste. Some of our customers love them immediately, for others they are simply too much. Sumatrans have a unique flavour profile. Dark, rich, chocolatey (well just like some Central American coffees- nothing new there) but then they hit you with spices, tobacco and earthy notes. "

 

[gentlegreen]

Today was the turn of an African (Rwanda) washed red bourbon - so very similar beans and processing to my usual South American.

"Well balanced, long finish, velvety body.
Chocolate, dried fruit ( raisin, black cherry, plum?)"

I got very little of that - partly because it's a slightly darker roast than I'm used to, and partly because it's a bit too soon after the roasting - and even re-infusing the grounds gave a rich, low-acidity brew with any "fruit" very indistinct .. so this will certainly do very nicely as the "chocolate" base for a blend - or on its own - certainly preferable to the rather disappointing Brazilian I had last time.

First impressions very positive.

 

[gentlegreen]

Indonesia Bener Meria Mandheling​

Indonesian coffees are an acquired taste. Some of our customers love them immediately, for others they are simply too much. Sumatrans have a unique flavour profile. Dark, rich, chocolatey (well just like some Central American coffees- nothing new there) but then they hit you with spices, tobacco and earthy notes.

This one is very different - the chocolate is mixed with molasses ... I thought I initially caught a hint of fig ...
Midrange and treble without the acidity ... the "fruit" has definitely been replaced with something else - perhaps even on the "savoury" side - though not like the Nicaraguans I've had - though as usual it's complicated due to the accompanying umami food ...

I will have several interesting blends to try over the next days before I start to get a handle on this one.

Second infusion is almost the same balance.

-----------------------------------

Bloody hell.
Ten years ago I set myself up with a Porlex grinder and Aeropress for about £50 and now that would cost at least twice as much ... I suppose philosophically that works out at 20p per week instead of 10p, but it makes me feel just a bit more decadent ... the beans work out at around 54p per brew ...

 

[pogofish]

Wigan’s Kiln blend - and a very lovely breakfast coffee it is to.

 

[gentlegreen]

Day three half and half.

The Indonesian is dominating.

So difficult to describe.
"Nicaraguan savouriness" is still the closest I can get - almost like the yeast extract I spread on my toast.
Having seen "tobacco" in the tasting notes I'm struggling to get "bong water" out of my head
I'm sure others would taste fruit of some sort - it's definitely at that end of the spectrum - acidity, but not tongue-curling ...

This blend is very yummy - looking forward to seeing what nudging it back towards the Rwandan will do ...

-----------------

Other tasters for the (perhaps different batches) Indonesian suggest :-

Red grapefruit, cedar, rose
expect a bold, full body, with sweetness throughout and a peppery finish.
Tasting notes: Raspberry, Tamarind, Dark Chocolate

That strikes a chord ...

 

[gentlegreen]

Day four - 2/3 Rwanda, 1/3 Indonesian.

It seems to have enhanced the dark chocolate of the Rwandan...

I can see myself rotating these for a while - a very entertaining pair of coffees ...

second infusion quite chocolatey with just a hint of acidity ...

 

[gentlegreen]

Wigan’s Kiln blend - and a very lovely breakfast coffee it is to.

I hadn't twigged that Wogan are based in Bristol

I have been deluged with coffee adverts on Facebook over the last few days - and the only supplier that tweaked my interest was based in Stirling - and it seems crazy to ignore another local supplier with some tasty looking coffee

This blend contains a similar Indonesian to the one I'm currently drinking.

Legacy Blend | Organic & Fairtrade | Wogan Coffee

Welcome to a coffee that doesn't cost the earth! Big & punchy, half medium roast & half more developed. Dark chocolate, coffee, bonbons. Subscribe & save 10%

wogancoffee.com

 

[gentlegreen]

Anyway ...

Randomly I thought I ought to contrast and compare, so today it was 50/50 of the disappointing Brazilian and the Indonesian and it's actually probably a winner.
The Brazilian tames the Indonesian very well and you're left with a lot of chocolate ...

My next coffee order will be challenging - but I certainly won't have any Brazilian left over.

 

[pogofish]

Who are the Stirling firm?

I found Wogan because they have a reliable supply of Monsoon Malabar - my local roaster can run out and take a while to get a resupply.

 

[gentlegreen]

Who are the Stirling firm?

I found Wogan because they have a reliable supply of Monsoon Malabar - my local roaster can run out and take a while to get a resupply.

Stirling Coffee

Stirling Coffee

stirlingcoffee.co.uk

 

[gentlegreen]

Today I was going to try 50/50 with the chocolatey Rwanda and the Vincent Paye fruity Bolivian, but I was half asleep when I weighed the beans so it ended up half Rwandan and half the disappointing Brazilian.
Quite pleasant, and at the chocolatey / non-acidic end, but bland ...

I skimmed a few coffee-making videos recently and was shamed into cleaning the back of my aeropress plunger seal - though I can't say I can tell the difference.
Mostly I find I lose the will to live watching those ...

I also weighed in my water today because one of the videos suggested 15:1 as the optimum ratio ... I don't trust my >200g scale, but it seems I'm adding about 200ml of water - so about 12.5 to 1 - I have no idea what my grind size is - perhaps one day I will buy some mesh samples and find out ... apparently paper filters are good for optimal purity of flavour, but I was used to use a smashy grinder and a cafétiere for years, so I actually like finding a small amount of fines at the bottom of my mug with my metal filter ... last time I tried, it was difficult to buy Aeropress papers online because they're so light.
Judging by second infusions I'm getting nearly all the flavour out and I quite often don't manage to finish the latter so it's not much worth having ...

Perhaps in the future, coffee will be a social thing with discerning guests - in which case I may start making an effort...

 

[gentlegreen]

Today it was the darkish-roasted chocolatey Rwandan plus the fruity Bolivian 50/50.
Another very nice refreshing blend and I think I may have an excuse to buy more of the Vincent Paye Bolivian.
So I reckon I might need to buy more Bolivian to go with the Rwandan and more Brazilian to go with the Indonesian - so another Hasbean double ...the Rwandan combined with the Indonesian is nice, but not quite as good ...

I would be sitting on rather a lot of beans though - except at least I got myself organised and now keep them in preserving jars ...

 

[chilango]

The Ana Sora is very nice btw. My kind of bright and fruity coffee.

 

[gentlegreen]

The Ana Sora is very nice btw. My kind of bright and fruity coffee.

But judging by your posts you mix it up a fair bit - still using the V60 ?
How long does it take to make coffee ?

 

[chilango]

But judging by your posts you mix it up a fair bit - still using the V60 ?
How long does it take to make coffee ?

Yeah. Tend to buy whatever looks interesting in Hasbean's £6-8 bracket!

Still on the v60, not bothering to weigh at the moment as I can eyeball it close enough by now

Takes maybe 5 minutes start to finish, if that. It's pretty routine by now.

Still occasionally hand grind while beans, but I usually get through a 250g bag of ground in a week so it's not really worth grinding myself tbh.

 

[rutabowa]

I've been getting kilo bags of beans off coffee link lately, works out cheap and they have quite a big range from all over the world... there is a 25% off offer on at the moment if anyone wants to try

 

[gentlegreen]

I've been getting kilo bags of beans off coffee link lately, works out cheap and they have quite a big range from all over the world... there is a 25% off offer on at the moment if anyone wants to try

A kilo would tie me to one coffee for two months ...
I think I quite like the "risk" of having to try new coffees.

Today I thought I would have the Rwandan by itself and it's super-yummy - chocolate ? - I'm not even sure if that accurately describes it - but definitely at that end of the spectrum.
So after two weeks in a preserving jar, it's hit a sweet spot.

 

[gentlegreen]

Arse.

Twoday have run out of the yummy chocolatey Rwandan, so I will probably have to order some more El Borbollon...
Hasbean don't have anything inspiring ...

EDIT:- 300g of El Borbollon on its way - who knows, it could be another super-chocolatey batch.

 

[gentlegreen]

El Borbollon — TwoDay Coffee Roasters

www.twodaycoffee.co.uk

El Salvador washed red Bourbon.

Yum. - even this soon after roasting - it will be interesting to see how this matures as it gasses off - and if it gains or loses through being blended with the "oddball" Indonesian

Very much at the chocolatey end of the spectrum, but not overpoweringly so ...

 

[gentlegreen]

After three days of having the El Borbollon straight, today I've tried it with 1/3 of the Indonesian and it adds a touch of acidity and something minerally - perhaps a touch of bong water ...