Saul Perez, Micro lot

Name:　Saul Perez, Micro lot 
Roaster: Home roast
Roasting degree: City
Area: San Antonio, Departamento de El Progreso, 
                                                                            Peru
Variety:  30% Typica, 30% Burbon, 40% Catura
Grade: N/A
Screen: N/A
Altitude: 1,650m
Defect: N/A but almost none
Processing Method: Fully washed

※Organic certified by JAS, rainforest allaiance


【Flavor scale】
Aroma: 5
Sweetness: 5
Acidity: 3
Bitterness: 2
Richness: 3      
※Grade 1 to 5 

【Note】
The Northern part of Peru, the highland between Cordillera de los Andes and the upper Amazon valley, is the most notified area produces the world highest quality coffee.  Due to inability of access, it has been "sealed" from the world market.  This beans were brought and shipped from the depth of Cordillera de los Andes, Finca of Mr. Saul Perez at San Antonio, with very limited QTY 350kg.
Unlike usual Peru, this cup was high tone aroma with deep sweetness hidden in clear after taste.  This lot wide-opens possibility of Peru coffee.  

Typica Full-matured

Name:　Typica Full-matured
Roaster: Home roast
Roasting degree: High
Area: Pluma Hidalgo, Estado de Oaxaca, MEXCO
Variety:  Typica
Grade: SHG
Screen: N/A
Altitude: 1,200 - 1,500m
Defect: N/A
Processing Method: Fully washed

【Flavor scale】
Aroma: 4
Sweetness: 5
Acidity: 3
Bitterness: 3
Richness: 2      
※Grade 1 to 5 

【Impression】
Light body, light citric aroma, soothing, mild texture, deeply sweet flavor, clear, high in acidity, fruity citrus, grapefruits or blood oranges, mellow sweetness, sheer bitterness with short sweetness to finish, mellow sweetness with a sheer bitterness as a long lasting after taste.
Mild coffee fits anytime of the day and anytime of a year.  Recommended as Black, may fit with someone prefer light flavored coffee.  

【Note】
This rot is explained as Wild Grown typica which left on the tree until berries matured fully until they turn into wine like dark red color. Then, the berries are picked by hands.  This typica is characterized by mellow sweetness and mild mouth-feel; deeply comforting flavor.  High or cinnamon roast may improve flavor character of this coffee for pour-over style.    

valkyrie blend

Beans: Valkyrie Blend
 ※Blend of 50% Sumatra, 25% Ethiopian Harrar, 
     and 25% French Roast. 

Roaster: Valhalla Coffee Co.
Roasting Degree: City to Italian
Origin/Area: N/A
Grade: N/A
Screen: N/A
Defect: N/A
Altitude: N/A
Variety: N/A
Process: N/A

【Impression】
Medium to medium dark, savory aroma, dark chocolate, mellow roasted nuts like aroma as a base note, followed by herbal, a touch of high tone citrus peels as a top note, light touch, juicy mouth feel, fresh plum like flavor over taken by tangy bitterness, smokey, lemony acidity, lime, cinnamon, a touch of natural but thick sweetness hidden, prune, dates sugar, a smorky bitterness and tangy-ness as a long lasting after taste.
Overall, very interesting and unique flavor as beans do.  Flavor significantly changes not only by the brewer but also by time to time.  It is difficult to describe a profile of this blend and may need more time to repeat try and error.

Paraka

Beans: Paraka
Roaster: Nama-mame Hompo
Roasting Degree: City
Origin/Area: Mt. Hagen, Papua New Guinea
Grade: Prantation A
Screen: 17
Defect: None
Altitude: over 1,500m
Variety: Typica, Burbon
Process: Free Wahsed
Crop: 2009.

【Impression】
Mild, Medium ~ semi-dark body, well-balanced, round flavor.  Summer tangerine like light, juicy, refreshing acidity with settled, well-harmonized sweet-bitterness, thin, smooth texture.
Well harmonized combination of bitterness and sourness, but not either of them: bitterness and sourness are evenly set on the base of light sweetness, fruity aroma like mango, a little bitter aftertaste. 
Different sensations of sourness and bitterness are intertwined to create deep and rich flavor of this coffee.


【Note】
Papua New Guinea, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini, is located in the South of the equator and the North of Australia, consisted of over 300 islands over coral reef in South pacific.  Coffee is cultivated mainly Western Highlands Province called Mt. Hagen, Golocka, Wau, Bantz area, the area where were blessed with volcanic ash soil, stable weather, and stable rainfall throughout a year. 
We are happy to introduce "PARAKA", the high quality beans from this area. 

★Note　2★
Originally written in 2011, this cupping post was hidden and slipped in other articles.  I happened to find this so decided to bring it to the life.

Finca Las Golondrinas

Name:　Finca Las Golondrinas
Roaster: Home roast
Roasting degree: City
Area: Mosonte, Nueva Segovia, Nicaragua
Variety:  Villa Sarchi, Catura
Grade: SGH
Screen: N/A
Altitude: 1,400 - 1,700m
Defect: N/A
Processing Method: Fully washed

【Flavor scale】
Aroma: 5
Sweetness: 5
Acidity: 3
Bitterness: 3
Richness: 3    
※Grade 1 to 5

【Impression】
Medium dark, mellow, highly aromatic, cacao, coconut sugar, roasted pecan, rolled oats, Hazel nuts, silky, well-balanced sweetness and bitterness, coconuts sugar, molasses, unrefined cane sugar, vanilla, cacao nib, roasted almond, light touch of acidity, lime, blood orange, black berry, dark chocolate like bitterness with almond essence sweetness as a long lasting aftertaste. 



【Note】
Since 1974, this coffee farm has carried the dream of Peralta Family.  Finca Las Golondrinas won the first place in Nicaraguan SOE in 2007 and bit on the highest price, 47.06 at that time.  They grow very rare variety: Villa Sarchi.  Rarely grown in Nicaragua, Villa Sarchi is a natural hybrid of Burbon variety, which has low level of disease resistance but high yieldability.  This Burbon hybrid often explain as Orange, clean flavor, which strongly depends on and varies by the country/soil they are grown.    

Seattle Coffee Works

After visiting lovely "Ballard Coffee Works", the question comes up:  Is there any choice than visiting Seattle Coffee Works?"
So, here is Seattle Coffee Works in downtown Seattle, near Pike place market.

The cafe is located on Pike St., between 2nd and 1st Ave. Since brief history of Seattle Coffee Works has been covered in Ballard Coffee Works post, This post focuses on introducing Seattle Coffee Works.  

Although Seattle Coffee Works has limited space, you may notice their unique floor layout once step in a cafe.  They divided the space into 3 sections: espresso bar on the left, brew bar on the right and roasting room through the door .  Brew bar is hidden behind roasted/packaged beans shelf and kind of separated by a hip high swing door from the lest of cafe space.

With the order of Soy latte, Latte art came out as angel with a heart shaped head.  In San Francisco, Ballistas often says SOY has less capability to bring silky and creamy texture form to last long, so that they prefer/switched Almond Milk, which bottle shapes like a 18c woman.  However, "the almond milk movement" seems like hasn't affects Seattle Coffee here yet. 

Soy Latte at Seattle Coffee Works came with silky and milky creamy soy form stays until 16oz cup became empty.  Compared with Ballard Coffee works, drink was soft, creamy and comforting.  

Maybe, it was just because out side was heavy rain.  
Maybe, I was soaking wet.

    

Environmental-wise, Ballard Coffee Works has more "handy" and "stay-as-long-as-you can stay". 

Considering the location, in the middle of Seattle downtown very close to Pike Place Market, Seattle Coffee Works cafe has considerably friendly atmosphere for both locals and tourists.   

Intelligentsia Coffee ~ Venice Coffeebar

Since their name was mentioned, here is L.A.'s one of the most popular, the highest media exposure coffee roaster, Intelligentsia, known as "big-three" of third wave coffee in the United States.


Maybe, there is nothing to say about them, but here is brief overview about who they are just for reminder.  

Dated back in 1995,  Doug Zell and Emily Mange left San Francisco, a sanctuary for third wave coffee, to plant a seed of their dream coffee roaster.  The idea of Intelligentsia sprouted and rooted in Chicago, where they opens the very first roastery to bring freshly roasted coffee beans to their own.  After they bloomed in Chicago, Intelligentsia planted a seed in L.A., then in NYC, and now in SF, the city where picked up the seed.
Although they have more coffee house in Chicago than any other location, 7 in Chicago and 3 each in L.A. and NYC for now, somewhat L.A. has more media exposure than any others.  Is this because so called "Specialty coffee movement" has more active and influence on West Coast?  Maybe so.

Although all of their coffee bars has significant meanings to Intelligentsia, here is the one in Santa Monica, where celebrities and money actively flows.

Located on Abbot Kinney Blvd., the cutting-edge/sophisticated area ranked with Robertson Blvd. and  Melrose Ave.,  Venice Coffeebar shows its creativity emerged by corroboration with sophisticated L.A. architectural design.  The coffeebar hides itself in inside of old brick made building on almost end of Abbot Kinney shopping area.  The building appears historical, but inside of the building is nothing historical.  As you walk along a short shaded approach to the door, you will find a modern metallic interior merged into natural woody warmness.
Seating area are arranged like a stadium:  the stairs of bench seats are located by the window at the end looking down the espresso bar area.     

To be honest, all baristas appears in training, not fully professional enough to be at the championships.  Not only my cup but also other cups I watch did not appear fancy enough.  My usual choice "Soy Latte" was served as it shown, and creaminess of formed soy milk was far away from San Francisco quality.  

Maybe, this happened just because timing wasn't right.  
Maybe, my expectation was too high. 

Whenever I visit roasteries, I focus to read how much they enjoy "Coffee" and how strong they have the faith in their business.  Sometimes it is better to just simply visit their original location to observe and find out how they are.