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Coffee Labs El Salvador Santa Rosa, Washed Process

First thing I note is slightly fermented fruit. Berry of some sort. Blueberry even, but I wonder if my brain is just primed for blueberry after that Ethiopian I had at Drip. Something nutty, bitter nut in the taste. No way I can tell what type, but not almond at least I know that. Hard to smell anything past the fruit, which is powerful and nice. Of course as soon as I say almond, I start to get that almond extract/cherry aroma. The power of suggestion.

Taste is bright, acidic, a little bitter, some of that woody taste that is so familiar. Not getting any chocolates, caramels, or florals, unless the fruity and floral are combining in a way that I can't separate - it is aromatic.

And now for the label notes:

Cacao nibs, Meyer lemon, roasted hazelnuts.

Roast level - 3 on a scale of 9 (light)

Retasting after reading the notes. Yeah, OK, I can get the lemony - it's a cirtusy but sweet aroma, that fruit that I was struggling to name, but I would need to have a Meyer lemon on hand to confirm - I know Meyer lemons are sweeter than regular lemons. I never thought hazelnuts had any strong distinctive flavor, but I will buy some and test them since they are so frequently used as a flavor descriptor. Cacao nibs should just smell like cacao, no? If it's there it's well hidden behind the fruit, as far as I can figure. Subtle but there, and I get it more as the coffee approaches room temperature.

A nice cup, but the bitterness detracts a bit from the otherwise wonderful flavors. Of course that may be down to my brewing methods, Same method I have been using for other coffees but maybe this one needs less time to extract. I will retest tomorrow. 

Update: I lowered the temperature to 195 and reduced extraction to 2 minutes. It helped. I know, don't change two variables at the same time, but I'm going on intuition here. I will reduce extraction time again tomorrow while keeping the 195 temperature. Fruity flavor still out front. Less bitter, but I'm not getting any hazelnut.

Method - Aeropress, 16:1 ratio, medium grind (#8 out of 16 on grinder settings), 195 degrees.

 

Rating (1-5 cups)






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