Meeting the son of the Matriarch
Currently coffee in my household is drunk between three people. Everyone has their favorite notes. It seems that those of the Matriarch, jasmine, lemon zest, and black tea, were a favorite. More on that one here:
Where Muluemebet produced washed beans, her son Abel Tesfaye took the natural route. Blue Bottle writes that this is
…a celebration of Ethiopian naturally processed coffee from the renowned Hambela Estate. Often seen as a “gateway coffee” due to its uninhibited fruit notes, this rich and full-bodied coffee features dazzling grapefruit and nectarine, complemented by delicate aromas of rose, hibiscus, dried strawberries, and raspberries.
Region: Ethiopia Hambela
Processing: Natural
Flavor Profile: Strawberry, Rose, Grapefruit
When it comes to fruits, grapefruit is not high on the list. I was hesitant to purchase this bag. But it was the strawberry and rose notes that caught my attention and I thought, what the heck?
Some technicalities,
Equipment:
1. Grinder: Baratza Encore with stock burr grinder.
2. Scale: Acaia Pearl
3. Kettle: Fellow Stagg EKG Pro
4. Brewing: I used my glass Hario V60 and my Fellow Stagg XF Dripper. I brew for an average of 3:30, plus or minus two minutes or so over four pours.
Brewing:
As I usually get the first good brew on a Monday before work, the Stagg XF came out again. I have the most experience and understanding of brewing (at least for now) with it. I want to really learn the Aeropress though. Suggestions appreciated in the comments. Maybe more on that later. The first few brews were pretty conservative. I boiled at a high temperature, 212° or something close. The grind size was stuck on nineteen. The result was something predictable: good.
As the weekend approached, it was time to bring out the V60. This is usually a device I like to do other things with. Why I kept a conservative approach to it I’ll never know. But I did. The result was something good too.
And then I had a good night’s sleep and decided to tweak the settings. I adjusted the grind size and made the coffee a bit coarser, moving the notch up from 16 to 19 and 20 at one point. All of a sudden, BAM! Notes! This was the same whether I used the Stagg XF or my glass V60. For the final brew, I used my Aeropress and referenced Jonathan Gagné’s nine-minute recipe. It was worth the nine minutes. From the first sip until the last, notes were experienced consistently. That last cup was highly enjoyable. It was smooth, very consistent, went down easy. In the midst of editing this review, I tried this with a medium roast blend and the results were mediocore. I wonder if is for lighter roast coffee.
All in all, this bean was phenomenal. It was an experience. Going through this bag showed me what coffee can give to a person. I hope for the sake of consumers this collaboration can happen again some time in the future. Ethiopia provides the world rich complexity and flavors not experienced anywhere. It is something to be cherished.
If you appreciate the work presented, consider buying me a coffee. I’d greatly appreciate it. It goes a long way to keeping work like this coming. You’ll find there (eventually) more detailed work by yours truly.
