World Market: Guatemalan Estate

Heavy, velvety body. Lively aroma. Pronounced acidity. Those are the words chosen to describe World Market’s Guatemalan Estate coffee. Those words do nothing to tell you about this subtle blend.

Cracking open the bag exposes the “lively” aroma.  Lively is fairly accurate, though not at all descriptive. Chocolate and an earthy richness – those better define this bean. The aroma has a punchy sharpness. The combined effect is a shot to the nose. This is a medium roast, and that roast is rather forward on the nose – noticeable, but not nearly as domineering or overbearing as the darkest roasts can be.

The flavor has a much greater balance than would be expected from a bean that is described as heavy and acidic. The flavor is definitely sharper than most blends, and many other single-source beans, but not unpleasantly so. The velvety earthiness helps to balance the acidity, and checks any bitterness that might cause the flavor to fall flat.

I enjoy this coffee far more than I expected. It is a nice counterpoint to the milder blends. The medium roast helps bring out its finer qualities, but then, I’m a fan of lighter roasts. This particular medium is about as far as I would roast this bean – any darker might yield an ashy, carbonized flavor. But as it stands, this is a fine daily coffee.

 

Allegro Coffee: Espresso Sierra

Allegro Coffee is a wholesale distributor owned by Whole Foods, focusing on organic, fair-trade coffees. They have a pretty fair selection of both single-origin and blend beans. You can pick up Allegro beans at WF in both bags and bulk.

This evening’s brew was Allegro’s Espresso Sierra. The beans are a dark, dark brown – close to black, but not quite – evidencing a medium-dark roast. The beans smell slightly sweet, slightly acrid. Sampling the grounds found a very sharp, carbon flavor.

I followed my grinders directions for a “regular” grind, and ended up with a finer powder than expected. I ran this through the Chemex, and after the bloom, saw the water pushed the fines up the sides of the filter. Methinks I will return to a coarser French-press-style grind next time.

The coffee itself is sharp, woodsy and dark. The carbon flavor is definitely detectible. I tend to prefer lighter roasts, so I probably won’t make this part of my regular rotation. It is definitely more appropriate for espresso and espresso-based beverages.

First Brew: Chemex

First brew complete in the Chemex using Mexico Zaragoza.

The Chemex is a manual drip coffee maker. It’s an elegant vase-like flask whose design belies its chemistry-lab origins. The advantages over an automatic drip machine are that you control both the water temperature, and the rate at which the coffee is brewed – two things that are out of your hands when relying on Bunn or Mr. Coffee.

The result, when done correctly, is a velvety-smooth brew without a trace of bitterness. The brew process is relatively straightforward.

The recommended first step is to place the filter in the opening, and pour enough water into the filter to wet it down. This causes the filter to conform to the opening, and it’s various folds and creases to lay flat. It also rinses out the interior. Afterwards, pour out the water.

Next you simply grind the beans, preferably to a “regular” consistency, as for an automatic drip machine; load the grounds into the filter; boil water, then wait until 30 seconds, or until it stops boiling “vigorously”. This should leave the water at 200 degrees fahrenheit.

Now comes the fun part: pour just enough water to thoroughly wet the grounds without causing them to float in a pool. The grounds should expand as they bloom. After a few seconds of blooming, pour in enough water to fill the filter, taking care to stay well below the lip of the Chemex. Allow the water to drain through the grounds and filter into the carafe. Repeat until you have finished your brew.

One interesting point differentiating the Chemex process from the machines you may be familiar with is that the filter is considerably thicker than a standard drip machine filter. This slows the rate at which water drains through into the carafe, and thus maximizes the time the water is in contact with the grounds. This control over time, as well as the control you get over the water temperature  by boiling separately, is what creates creates the incredible flavor while eliminating the bitterness.

For my test, I used my new favorite varietal: Mexico Zaragoza. Brewed in the Chemex, this rich, mouthy bean becomes smooth and clean. It still possesses all of its positive traits, but the Chemex balances them remarkably well.

Buy for Yourself: Chemex 6-Cup Classic Series Glass Coffee Maker

Mexico Zaragoza Zing!

Tonight I’m drinking a cup of Allegro Coffee’s Mexico Zaragoza from Whole Foods. This is an experience. Rich? Yes. A single sip fills the mouth. I don’t know if umami is a concept that adequately applies to coffee, but this has it in spades. When I die, I want to be embalmed with this stuff.

The first whiff of the beans wasn’t at all like the usual store-bought blends. It’s almost underwhelming. Once through the grinder, though, the scent is almost dripping with goodness. It’s a tease, though. The standard coffee note is very light, and there’s an oily, earthy, chocolaty scent. I felt apprehensive for a moment, fearing I would brew too long or too hot, and destroy the lovely volatiles that were responsible for that aroma, and make it bitter in the process.

I needn’t have worried. The result is liquid gold. Smooth and full and almost chewy with flavor. Allegro describes the flavor as milk chocolate and pecans, and that’s not a bad description.

I’m going to go ahead and place this at the top of my favorites list.

Early Birthday Present

My dear wife gave me a Chemex this year. Unfortunately the filters are back ordered.

Related articles

• Chemex Coffee. How we make your coffee at Apéritif et Amis, and how you can do it at home! (aperitifetamis.wordpress.com)
• Great Idea: Turn Your Chemex Into a Vase for a Vibrant Floral Centerpiece (thekitchn.com)
• Ratio Eight Coffee Machine (uncrate.com)

Buy for Yourself: Chemex 6-Cup Classic Series Glass Coffee Maker

Mister Coffee

After three years of frustration and annoyance, I finally abandoned the cult of Keurig. I was introduced to Keurig through my new job, and was so impressed with the technological coolness that I started to want one. Then, my wife discovered them, and we purchased our first machine.

That machine worked great for about a year when it popped the GFI breaker in our kitchen and died. The replacement lasted about six months and then stopped brewing reliably. It’s replacement lasted three. Our correspondence with Keurig turned nasty, and they upgraded us to a better model.

Six months later, that model is sitting in my basement, replaced with a Bodum electric kettle, a grinder and a French press. It wasn’t until my second cup of pressed coffee that I realized that Keurig coffee is just awful. I mean it is hot, bitter-bean water, without much flavor. Attempting to sweeten that mess results in the ever-lovely pencil-shaving taste. I’m much more of a coffee drinker now, and I love grinding the beans (the aroma!) and pressing a cup after dinner. It’s absolutely wonderful to have coffee that tastes the way the beans smell.