Big Island Coffee Roasters - Puna Kazumura, Hawai'i - Inverted Aeropress

We are stuck in a west rut. First, with the Papua New Guinea, now with some Hawai'i. I guess we'd actually need a third to have a trend.

Brent brought this one, as one of three coffees from Hawai'i by Big Island Coffee Roasters. The label and description caught my eye immediately: tasting notes of sandalwood?? We generally get stuff with sweet, citrus, nutty, or otherwise, but this is probably the first herbal coffee we have tried. I also noted the javalina on the cover, with the quote: "Never wrestle with pigs. You both get dirty and the pig likes it." attributed to George Bernard Shaw. As someone who holds a bottle opener made from a boar tusk, it made me hungry.

The foam on this was great, though not as thick as with the New Guinea.

The flavor was amazingly different, not too darkly roasted. I definitely agree with the sandalwood reference, though it smelled strongly of chocolate when ground, but this wasn't an really sweet or juicy coffee. I'd say nutty and herbal, but light enough to drink consistently without getting burned out. As it cooled, it shifted from having one strong flavor to three-dimensional. If we've got any cologne nerds out there (again, on the sandalwood reference), you may love this stuff.

Jay's Rating: 8.5
Brent's Rating: 9

As Brent pointed out, we've been drinking too good of coffees recently. Perhaps we will need worse coffee or to add elements of new measurement to distinguish these better. Or maybe you should just drink what we do.

PT's Coffee, Sihereni, Papua New Guinea - Inverted Aeropress

My amazing wife decided to make me a special Father's Day breakfast, and went all out, heading to the good ol' Tougo. She spotted a bag of the Sihereni, Papua New Guinea by PT's Coffee Co, and upon verifying its quality with the proprietor, promptly brought it back home. I prepared it initially on the French Press, which shocked me due to the lightness, crispness and acidity that it had for this region (normally it's charred up, earthy-smokey-herby monolith for my taste). So, I could only hope that the Aeropress would bring out further subtleties. This morning, we had that chance.

The foam on this was probably about a 1/2 inch thick, although I couldn't find a roast date on the bag for the life of me. But oh yes, it is fresh.

The black tea notes were forefront, followed by some fruit (you could call it peach, or cantaloupe), and the flavor rapidly evolved as the coffee cooled. This stuff definitely redeems any shortcomings within the Fazenda Rainha from Brazil which we weren't too keen on. Note to self: my wife has excellent taste in coffee.

Jay's rating: 9
Brent's rating: 9

Colombia v. Guatemala, or Sight Glass v. Kuma, Inverted Aeropress

Preparation for the World Cup? We wish Guatemala would be in this time around. So, let's just call it the spirit of the game. Today, we try the San Francisco based Sight Glass to our classic Kuma in Seattle. As these are both Latin American Coffees, we are probably going to get a close flavor profile, and the roasts don't look too different. I will say I found two quaker beans in the Kuma, but plucked them to not spoil the treat (shoutout to Brendon who introduced me to the concept and term).

The crema looks pretty close:
here is Kuma:

here's the Sight Glass:

Tasting notes: the Sight Glass El Meridiano, Tolima from Colombia came off slightly less fruity, but a lighter body, with elements of spices such as nutmeg . The Kuma Guatemala Hunapu came off much more cherry-like tone, with a crisp bite of tang. I think both Brent and I are feeling more into the subtleties within the Sight Glass, whereas the Guatamala's boldness would be best for those who like hibiscus tea, or something citric as such. 

Notes: 

Sight Glass El Meridiano, Tolima

Brent's Rating : 8

Jay's Rating:8

Kuma Guatemala Hunapu

Brent's Rating : 8

Jay's Rating: 7

Current Ranking: TBD

PT's Coffee, Fazenda Rainha, Brazil - Inverted Aeropress

After a slightly disappointing first round of the Fazenda Rainha, we tried an inverted Aeropress method which yielded much more interesting results. This time, I got some nuances akin to the notes on the bag which discuss fruit tones, like dates and raisins.

Verdict:
Me: 7
Brent: 8

I'm curious now: does the Aeropress smooth out darker roasts better than lighter ones?

PT's Coffee, Fazenda Rainha, Brazil - Clever Coffee Dripper

Upon my return from Brazil, I'm figuring that I'd start out our work week with some Brazilian Coffee. Tougo has been carrying PT's Coffee from Kansas City (yes, I know we have a surprising amount of midwest roasters), so I figured I'd give it a try. The barista at Tougo, when I asked about this PT's Coffee Fazenda Rainha (Queen Plantation) had noted the roast was a bit dark but it was good.

Arriving at work, my coworker had left me some water from the well on her property, which tastes great! As coffee is mostly water, it does matter what you use, so I am very curious of this impact on our coffee.

 We tried this on the Clever, which I don't think provided much subtlety. As the coffee cooled, I got a citrus like tang in the aroma and it proceeded to get sweeter, from the initial bold, smokey notes.

My ranking: 6-7

Brent's ranking: 7

New Week, New Klatch Coffee - Colombia Duvier Rivera Micro-Lot, Inverted Aeropress prep

This week finds me diving into the second bag from Klatch, the Duvier Rivera Micro-Lot.  Wow - another excellent Colombian from Klatch coffee!  Dare I say this one is even better than the La Esperanza, its flavor is more robust, richer and all-around extremely satisfying.  The flavor profile is similar to the La Esperanza in that I get a chocolate finish, however the initial kick is less juicy and citrusy - super smooth and rich on the first sip.   I am getting pretty good at this inverted aeropress style, I'm finding it to produce the best results. One tweak is to reduce the brew time down to about 60-70 seconds from the 2 minutes I had initially tried. This tip came from the Aeropress inventor himself, Alan Adler, in an interview I read on the Sprudge website.  He mentions there a shorter wet time for the coffee produced a sweeter cup on the aeropress.
Highly recommend Klatch, and their fine Colombians!

Brent's rating: 9 (A High 9 at that)

This Morning's Brew - Klatch Coffee Colombia Granja La Esperanza - Inverted Aeropress Method

I was excited to try these new beans when they arrived yesterday.  However, my first attempt at home with the Clever was less than optimal - I made that one a little too strong.  This morning I opted to go with the inverted Aeropress, and the results were quite good.   I remarked to my coworkers that the crema head on this brew was as thick as Guinness, you could float a quarter on it.  This coffee has a number of good things going for it: It's a medium roast, but I would put it on the darker side of medium.  The lingering aftertaste is that of a slightly burned campfire marshmallow, with an overtone of chocolate.  Very pleasant.  The initial taste is a bright citrus flavor which then blends into the sweetness with cocoa tones.  I could drink this coffee all day and not get tired of it.  I just might do that.

Brent's Rating: 9 (Solid)

www.klatchroasting.com