First off, I would like to note that no matter how many fancy coffee shops I am surrounded by in downtown Palo Alto, there’s nothing that beats a good cup of coffee made in the kitchen with an Aeropress with good fresh beans. I’ve been working up here since September, and I could not find a good cup of coffee. “But what about Philz?” people often ask. Well I’m not one to wait in a 30 minute line in the morning for just a cup of coffee that is overpowering in flavor and end up paying up the nose (literal and figurative) for it. I found a whole Aeropress setup (ceramic grinder and scale included) in the kitchen a little while back and it looks abandoned. I decided to adopt it today. I realize I still need to really adjust the grinder to a finer grind (maybe later this afternoon), but it’s a start. I dropped by Whole Foods this morning and found they actually have a good selection of beans. So here we are, starting with the Four Barrel Rawanda Coproca.
I somewhat randomly chose this one because I was basically caffeine deprived and just needed to pick something. This was $15.99 for a 12oz bag of whole beans, which is pretty much on par with everything else on the shelf. Using about 15 gram at a time will yield about 22-23 cups of coffee via Aeropress for me. If I just go to Starbucks to get a tall brewed coffee (which is about the same amount), it will set me back $30+. Considering I often get espresso drinks, that amount would be quite a bit more. Although the beans seem to be expensive, it is still a considerable savings for me to do this instead of hitting the local coffee shop for a mediocre cup of brew. Enough with the wallet justification stuff.
This particular bag was roasted 2 days ago, on 1/7, so it is relatively fresh. There is no tasting notes denoted on the bag itself. The internet was somewhat helpful. On Four Barrel’s website they listed these flavors:
- Lily
- Lilac
- Fig
- Grape Fragrance
- Candided Lemon
- Pomegranate
- Sugar Cane
I’ll be the first to admit I’m not great at picking out flavors. My coffee palate is not as refined as my partner in crime’s. The flavors of this coffee is subtle, very bright, and the fruit is, again, very subtle. Not huge on the nose off the shelf. It does have a light floral note while I was grinding the beans. The flavors are easier to experience after it has cooled. At which point I am picking up the fig, a bit of the pomegranate tartness, and the finish of the sugar cane. I can’t say this is my favorite, since I normally sway more towards the chocolate notes. Sometimes I think I should stay off the continent of Africa for that matter. It is a very refreshing coffee, and I think this would make an excellent cold brew.
Gastronomdia 