Tag: Single Origin

First Brew - Blue Bottle Coffee Ethiopia Sidama Shantawene Natural

  • Coffee Name: Ethiopia Sidama Shantawene Natural
  • Region: Sidama
  • Country: Ethiopia
  • Producer: Shantawene Village
  • Processing: Natural
  • Cultivar: Heirloom
  • Elevation: 1,900-2,100 meters
  • Roaster: Blue Bottle Coffee
  • Brew Method: Chemex With Able Cone
  • Roast Date: January 19, 2020
  • Brew Date: January 30, 2020

About This Coffee

We can say that coffee comes from a fruit until the cows come home. But one taste of a coffee like this does more to illustrate that fact than a thousand words can. Such fruity perfection has everything to do with careful harvesting and sorting of heirloom arabica cherry. By paying attention to every last detail, producer Faysel Yonis and his team at the washing station in Shantawene Village give hyperfocus to the ripe and juicy fruit flavors that are a hallmark of the Sidama region’s finest.

First Brew - Blue Bottle Coffee Kenya Kiambu Hendege

  • Coffee Name: Kenya Kiambu Handege
  • Region: Kiambu
  • Country: Kenya
  • Producer: Handege Factory
  • Processing: Fully Washed
  • Cultivar: SL 28, SL 34
  • Elevation: 1600-1800 meters
  • Roaster: Blue Bottle Coffee
  • Brew Method: Chemex With Able Cone
  • Roast Date: January 19, 2020
  • Brew Date: January 22, 2020

About This Coffee

Coffee descriptions can seem vague. But one taste of this, and you’ll get what we mean by florality. Such delicate aromas are uncommon in Kenyan single origins. Usually, we’re gushing over juicy acidity or tropical fruitiness. But for a few years now, when we’ve had the luck to carry Handege Factory’s coffees, its perfume grabs our attention first. “We tasted dozens of coffees blind while in Nairobi this year,” our green coffee buyer recounts. “But Handege’s was the only one I could identify every time it was on the cupping table.”

Drift Away Coffee

For the last few weeks, I have enjoyed coffee from Drift Away Coffee in Brooklyn, New York. Drift Away has a subscription program.

I am not a coffee connoisseur, but I do enjoy a good cup of joe and have invested time and money to making a better cup. I usually get my beans locally either from Rojo's Roastery in Princeton or Buy the Cup in Rocky Hill. But I grew bored with the offerings and wanted to try something new.

For the last few weeks, I have enjoyed coffee from Drift Away Coffee in Brooklyn, New York. Drift Away has a subscription program.

My initial concern with coffee subscription programs is getting something I don't like. Drift Away has made the process of setting up easy while reducing the chances that the drinkers are delivered something they dislike. There is a $4 fee to set up the account, and the first delivery is the Rise & Grind tasting kit containing a 1 oz sampling of four different coffees. These four single-origin coffees have distinct taste profiles: Fruity, Classic, Balanced & Bold. The tasting kit including a description of each taste profile, the origin of the coffees and a scorecard for each. I prefer light roasted Ethiopian coffees with a slightly fruity character. Most Americans seem to prefer darker full bodies roasts. I think that's because they add cream and sugar.

Drift Away Coffee | 14 November, 2015 Apple iPhone 6 | 4.15 mm (39 mm 35mmFF) | f/2.2 | ISO 50

Once I was done a tasting and ranked the samples, I recorded the information on their website. Once I chose my favourites, I will only get coffees that match my taste.

The second delivery is two weeks after the Rise & Grind tasting kit is delivered, but every delivery after that is based on the frequency I choose. I opted for delivery every two weeks. Drift Away roast each week on Saturday and ships on Monday. Every other Thursday, a new 11 oz bag (Doppio) of freshly roasted coffee beans chosen to suit my taste arrives via the postal service. The Doppio is just the right size to make coffee for two for a week.

I have no complaints. So far, all deliveries have been on time, and I enjoyed the coffees I have received. The cool thing is that Drift Away is adding new coffees all the time. At any time, I can change my subscription to have coffee delivered more or less often. I can change my taste profile to medium roast or darker. I have options.

So far I have had the Rwanda Dukunde Kawa – Musasa and Tanzania Mbozi – Kanji Lalji Farm, both of which brew well in my French Press and Chemex.