Mocca Queen ~ MOPLACO special blend

Beans: Mocca Queen
Roaster: Home roasitng 
Roasting Degree: Full City
Origin/Area: Ethiopia
Grade: G3
Screen: N/A
Defect: 28～45
Altitude: 1,700-2,000m
Variety: N/A
Process: Natural

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

【Impression】
Medium, high tone, fragrant, chocolaty, lightly brandy, rummy, touch of vanilla, toasted coconuts, flowery, bright, elegant, almond flower, clean, medium body, clean mouth-feel, smooth, light in texture, juicy, highly well balanced sweetness, bitterness, and acidity, rich in flavor profile, syrupy sweetness, light tone, thin layered, mellow, clean bitterness, cacao nib as bottom note, millet, light molasses acidity, slightly tropic, fruity, jasmine like, no significant flavor but well held bottom sweetness, light clean acidity, flat but rich round sweetness as a long lasting aftertaste.  Orange like flavor stays.

【Note】
MOPLACO is one of the biggest coffee shipper in Ethiopia.  This Mocca Queen blend tastes "the Ethiopian" with typical Mocca flavor with clean mouth-feel and bright flowery acidity with mellow sweetness, lighter and more mild than Yirgacheffe Natural.  

Guji Quality One

Beans: Guji Quality One
Roaster: Namamame Hompo
Roasting Degree: Full City
Origin/Area: Guji, Cidamo Province, Ethiopia
Grade: G-1
Screen: 14up, More than 80%
Defect: ～3
Altitude: 1,900 ～ 2,100m
Variety: Ethiopia native
Process: Fully Washed

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

【Impression】
Medium, creamy and mellow aroma, cocoa, lightly citric, milk chocolate, orange peel, medium body, soothing, refreshing, well balanced high tone acidity and clean bitterness, white grape fruit, lemon peel, Meyer lemon, light touch of acerola, dark chocolaty bitterness, roasted peanuts, rustic natural sweetness, un-refined cane sugar, coconut sugar, soothing Valencia Orange like acidity as long lasting aftertaste.

【Note】
Located on southeast of Yirgachefe, Guji also produces high quality coffee beans.  Guji has wider range of flavor from citric to Mocha sweetness.  This Guji-G1 will soon be making the Yirgachefe look to their laurels.

Yirgacheffe G1 Natural

Name:　Yirgacheffe G1 Natural
Roaster: Home roast
Roasting degree: City
Area: Sidamo, Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia
Variety:  Ethiopian heirloom
Grade: G-1
Screen: N/A
Altitude: 1,900 - 2,000m
Defect: ～ 3
Processing Method: Natural, 
                                100% sun dried

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

【Note】
Coffee of the dream came with process sampling.  Ethiopia's highest rated coffee "Yirgacheffe" came with natural processing.  Usually, Yirgacheffe processed washed, hulled + washed + dried, to produce "very clean" flavor.  However, this one comes with natural processing, uniqueness of Yirgacheffe beans flavor reserved with high Mocha aroma.  Not all beans increase flavor with natural processing, but this one does.
Mocha has iron image of "high acidity, lemony flavor coffee", but this may over-wright an general definition. 

Yirgacheffe Koke

Beans: Yirgacheffe Koke
Raoster: Akai-mi coffee
Roasting Degree: Medium
Area:  Koke, Irgachefe, Ethiopia 
       Southern Ethiopia
Altitude: 1,800 -2,000m
Varieties: Ethiopian Native
Processing: Washed
Screen: N/A
Grade: N/A

【Impression】
Light to medium, silky, Earl Grey, Bergamot scented, deep sweet-toned, orange, apricot, lemony acidity, baked chocolate, cacao, flowery, crisp, rich, round bitterness and honey sweetness, plush mouth feel, smooth bitterness and sweetness as a long lasting aftertaste with citric finish.

【Note】
Both Cidamo and Yirgacheffe are categorized as Moca, the highest quality, have distinguished/unique flavor.  While Cidamo has widely known, familier flavor of "Moca", Yirgacheffe has fruity "unlike Moca" Flavor.  Among Yirgacheffe, this has highly unique beans brought by koke washing station.  Coffee beans shows "grand sum" of growing condition.  Now, coffee beans are from narrowed area, farms and limited section from farm, adding more uniqueness in flavor.  

Highland Harrar Bold

Beans: Highland Harrar Bold
Roaster: Kasyu
Roasting degree: Medium
Origin: Ethiopia


【Impression】
Medium Dark, well matured, sweet aroma, scent with matured dry fruits, mixed with Madagascar vanilla, Bergamot and Barley Malts, mellow rich bitterness, a tint of lemony acidity hidden,  dark chocolate like, blackberries infused with matured red wine, soothing moderate bitterness, mouth-filling, rich, a fragrant juicy sweetness as a long lasting after taste.

【Note】
Ethiopia is the paradise, maybe the heaven, for coffee lovers, which is often referred as where native coffee threes grow.  Unlike Kenya and Tanzania, Ethiopia barely escaped from influence of Modern European agriculture and has preserved their traditional cultivation which enables them to produce higher quality of beans.  
Highland Harrar is grown in Eastern area of Ethiopian Plateau, 2,000～3,000masl, where blessed with the ideal environments for coffee cultivation.  Their beans are fully matured on trees and picked by hands. 




   

ARAMO COOPERATIVE:Ritual Roaster

Beans: ARAMO COOPERATIVE

Ethiopia 

Ritual Coffee Roaster: the cutting edge of coffee roasting in SF, among third wave coffee roasters.

Why?

Because of Ben Kaminsky, three-time winner of the National Cupping Championships, who is titled as Ritual Coffee's quality control expert.

Photographed is beans with his recommendation given to Joy Egami, Blue mountain distributor and the representative of UCC America.  It was just lucky enough to picture and to taste a cup roasted by SF, no world's the best cupping master's coffee.

Flavor was wonderful, even with subtraction of bias which may have caused; however, the beans was too high and subtle in craftsmanship to recreate "the flavor".
Flavor was very edgy and sensitive, which may apply to all beans presented by Ritual coffee.  Their beans selection has no doubt: single origin or micro rot, natural process, selected with highly sharpened cupper's seances.  Every single aspect of their coffee beans were carefully manipulated and operated to bring out the best flavor hidden in the beans.


BUT, here is my question: 
Is there anyone re-create the flavor?
Is there anyone operate commercial amounts in that quality?
Is there anyone can brew this with original flavor?

I wish we would say "YES" to all.

Edgy & whizzy roaster needs barista to synchronize, at least to follow, to transform his creation into a liquid.  
There may be few sensitive enough to taste difference; however, I hope people will enjoy "real" flavor of this precious cutting-edge coffees more and more.      

Ethiopia

Beans: Ethiopia 
Roaster: Iwashi Coffee, Kyoto


This was the choice of the day by the owner/roaster on Jan. 15.


Lemony aroma, very light and smooth, nutty, matured sweetness as a top, clear bitterness lay underneath, seer bitter-sweetness as a   short lasting aftertaste.  Fruity, Well-balanced flavor.  Finely  polished pearly sweetness and mildness with moderate chocolaty sweetness.


With a very little information given about this coffee beans, following are assumptions from its flavor/aroma: Sidamo, washed, Medium roast...perhaps, by 5KG German gas roaster.

Aleta Wondo

Beans: Aleta Wondo
Roaster: Barefoot Coffee


Origin: Sidama region, Ethiopia
Varieties: Typica
Process: Washed


【Cup Characteristics】
"Aromas of tangelo and berry torte. Melon-like acidity with notes of Bergamot throughout the cup. Cognac nuttiness with a pleasant finish."
(Copied from a bag)

 【Impression】
Medium to medium dark body, lemony flavor and fruity aroma.  Acidity on top, cherry like sweetness to touch, earthy flavor with spice.  Mixture of bitterness and lime like flavor to finish.


Micro sized beans with cacao like aroma.

Mokha Sidamo

Name: Mokha Sidamo
Roaster: Grancino
Roasting Grade: Medium


【Comment on Web】
Ethiopia is where native-grown coffee trees are found, and the word "COFFEE" comes from "Kaffa" Region.

Mokha, original species of coffee, still fascinates us with its outstanding charactor in world nowadays, which has became common to grow.  Especially, Natural-processed coffee beans is in a class by oneself, stronger flavor of citrus and tea.
Native arabica

【Impression】
Mixed size, rather tiny beans with peaberries.
Although the first cup left impression of little over roasted, found dark carbony roast taste,  a second cup gave less bitter and earthy note with medium body.  Mokha Sidamo is often characterized by floral aroma and light citrus sourness, which keeps Mocha as my the last choice, but this Sidamo has mild bitterness wins over sourness.