Some new coffees
We’ve had some new coffees hit the shelves and the front bar over the last week.
The Panama Duncan Estate Reserve is a pristine microlot from Ricardo Koyner, whose family has been producing coffee in Boquete for four generations. His carefully tended organic coffee farm, Kotowa, faces south in Volcancillo de Boquete de Chiriqui in northern Panama. Kotowa is the poster child of organic coffee farming, complete with ecologically sounds practices at the farm and the mill, as well as surrounding virgin forests that act as natural habita to both local and migratory birds. The microlot represents a small selection of the harvest; in fact, the lot comprises only one day’s picking. Throughout the harvest, “day lots” are kept separated until they are evaluated before export. The very best day lot was kept separate from the rest of the harvest, and we were able to purchase it farm direct. In the cup, honeysuckle, marzipan, and blood orange aromatics give way to a buttery, silky mouthfeel with sweet blackberry juice in the finish. The saturated sweetness and articulated acidity is a testament to the careful Penagos demucilaging and subsequent washing.
We have had a couple new-crop Kenyas available for the last few weeks, and we have a new arrival that we are very excited about. Society, is located about 140km northwest of Nairobi in the Muranga District of the Central province. We bought the Kenya Kangunu with three other roasters when our contacts in Kenya were blown away by the sample on their cupping table. Kangunu represents one of the highest prices ever paid in Kenya for a coffee either within or outside of the auction system. The Kangunu washing station, part of the 1340 member Kangunu Farmers Cooperative Society, is located about 140km northwest of Nairobi in the Muranga District of the Central province. After picking, the cherry undergoes density sorting before pulping, then a meticulous double-fermentation and washing is performed. Post-soaking and two-stage drying increase complexity and mouthfeel, two areas where this coffee excels. Jasmine, cardamon, and blackberry jam in the fragrance become chocolate truffle and balsamic reduction, followed by a sweet, lingering finish. As the cup cools, the superior complexity and structure become even more apparent, highlighting just how remarkable this coffee is.
Our Ehiopia Sidamo Shoye decaf is a surprising decaf. This coffee originates with the Shoye Union in Sidamo. Shoye is a cooperative mill, which allows this lot to bypass the Ethiopia Exchange System with the name of the mill and the traceability of this coffee intact. Shoye takes special care with this natural process coffee, harvesting ripe cherry, promptly screen drying on raised beds and including extra steps in the sorting after the coffee is hulled. Like a natural coffee, this coffee is fruit-forward, with notes of blueberry, wild strawberry, and passionfruit. It’s much cleaner and more refined than most naturals, however, with lots of clarity and an elegant mouthfeel. Caramel and milk chocolate persist throughout the cup, balanced with a juicy brightness and a sweet, clean finish.
