So today we cupped three coffees from Ritual Coffee Roasters, our friends out in San Francisco. As usual, they were great, and the toss up for favorites were between coffee number 2 and coffee number 3. I am always fascinated cupping coffees from Honduras and Guatemala side by side, since it’s a learning exercise in regional difference and regional similarities. I remember hearing stories about coffee farmers smuggling their Honduran coffees into Guatemala to fetch higher prices on the market. Now Honduran coffees stand on their own, though I’m curious about the production levels this year due to the political climate there. When the coup took place this year, Sarah Allen posted this very interesting insider’s perspective on the situation in Honduras.
Also, coffee from Kenya can be very, very good.
Coffee #1 Finca Fernandez, Honduras Cup of Excellence #8, by Ritual Coffee Roasters
Pacas variety
Fragrance: nutty chocolate, leather, white chocolate, orange and caramel
Aroma: very sweet, nougat, molasses
Break: lentil soup, roasted almonds, chocolate
Brightness: orangey, apricot, medium-low
Flavor: dark chocolate, light fruit, straight sweet, juicier on cool, peaches
Body: light, very light, pillowy
Aftertaste: bitter, pungent, apricot, lingering
Coffee #2 Xeucalvitz Guatemala by Ritual Coffee Roasters
Bourbon, Typica varieties
Fragrance: chocolate, dark, sweet, cinnamon, honey, nuts, black pepper
Aroma: cadbury fruit nut bar, chocolate, nut, tangerine
Break: very nutty, earthy, split pea soup, roasted almond
Brightness: orangey yellow, little brighter than 1st coffee, medium-low, tangerine
Flavor: light bittersweet, chocolate with floral hints, lemon zests, concord grape, dark chocolate, pistachio
Body: swiss miss hot cocoa, light
Aftertaste: light cocoa, fruity, chocolates, pretty pleasant, fast finish
Coffee #3 Kanyoni, Kenya by Ritual Coffee Roasters
Bourbon SL-28 variety
Fragrance: hazelnut chocolately, sweet, grapefruit, currants, tomato paste
Aroma: light fruitcake, cinnamon, floral, steak
Break: raspberry jam, edinburgh (leather factory), fruits & nuts
Brightness: fruity orange, brightest, hibiscus tea
Flavor: sharp fruity, sweet & sour stir fry, tomato, lemony, an assault of flavors
Body: fruity earthy, changes: dry, then full, then dry finish again
Aftertaste: dry, tobacco