Someone Loves Me And Wants Me to Survive 2013

[lagilman]

I may have mentioned a few times that 2013 is going to get a little... crazy-hectic.  And lo, a box did appear at my door, and six beany beauties were revealed....
(from Grounds for Change)

Will I like any of them enough to wean me away from my workday standard Sierra Nevada Columbian?  Follow along, and we shall see...

First Up:



The color is nice (a sort of caramel brown) and it smells pretty, as one would expect from the description.  So that's the aesthetics out of the way.  :-)

The body is lighter than I'd expected, and without sugar surprisingly sharp in that first sip.  A touch of sweetener brings out the nut flavors, while the caramel is a bare suggestion on the tongue, mainly in the finish. Very smooth.  I think the emphasis here is on "delicate," which is enjoyable but probably not what I'm looking for in a breakfast coffee. It could be a very nice afternoon pick-me-up, though.  A keeper, but not a winner.


(I will be going through each sample not quite one a day, but over the next few weeks)

 

Comments

[desperance.livejournal.com]

What method do you use for brewing? Are you a filter person or a French press, an espressist or...?

[lagilman]

French press. I used to be a filter person, but I got converted.

[desperance.livejournal.com]

Yay. Shoulder to shoulder we stand! (I'll crouch a bit.)

So - in the interests of science - are you weighing your grounds to be absolutely equal for comparative purposes, or scooping, or judging by eye? (My coffee merchant back in the UK always advocated weighing, on the grounds that darker roasts weigh less, so the same number of scoops gives you a weaker brew.)

[lagilman]

...I'll get a footstool.


I do adaptive scooping - once I have a grind's measure, I can adjust how much I put in. That's why I want to give each blend a few days to settle with me, before I make a final decision.

Also: the idea of weighing anything BEFORE I've had coffee....

[desperance.livejournal.com]

Hee. I can actually make it a part of the process - grind coffee, set press on scale, turn scale on, tip coffee in - but mostly I don't. The thing is, though, I do regard the grinder with a bit of a jaundiced eye. Technically it's supposed to grind the same quantity every time I press the button, but I don't believe it...