Counter Culture Coffee Washington, DC

Hi all

Today we had 3 coffees on the table to evaluate:

Aida’s Grand Reserve 2009 - a blend of peaberries from Finca Mauritania, Los Alpes, and Finca Kilamanjaro farms in Santa Ana, El Salvador.  ”Citrus! Lime! Sweet!” were the first couple words from people after I had asked what they smelled in the coffee.  There was also a bready-peanut thing happening in conjunction with raspberries and honey.  We were off to a great start and ready to dig into this coffee and see what lay ahead in the slurp.  But first, we evaluated the break and folks thought that the citrus and bready notes were the major descriptors.  When we finally started to taste, we found there was a lot going on:  more citrus (orange and lime), sweet & sour sauce, rich and sweet chocolate, and a savory/salty element too.  The body was light and waxy with a clean/quick/sweet finish.  Great job, Aida–This is a really terrific coffee!  6 favorites

Teka from Muramvya, Burundi - This is a coffee from the Teka washing station–a quality focused mill in Burundi.  We got some great smells starting off including earthy chocolate, salted meats, black pepper, and fruits.  The break was sweet maple syrup and oranges.  This was a bright coffee (with acidity ramping up as it cooled), but not quite as citrusy as the 1st coffee.  Flavors were juicy red fruits, bitter chocolate, sweet pipe tobacco all wrapped up in a syrupy, whole milk body.  The finish was resiny pine with dry tannins reminiscent of red wine.  We were really into this coffee.  6 favorites.

Gayo from Aceh, Sumatra - Hemp and nut seed oil on the nose first off became green pepper and strawberry jam when water was added.  During the break we smelled toasted corriander, nuts and dark cherries–a little winey.  We started tasting this coffee and really noticed the herbaceous flavors:  sage, black pepper, thyme, and earth.  The brightness was high, but in a different way than the previous two…more of a baking chocolate acidity.  We felt that the body was thinner than we expected based on the aromas, and the finish was very lasting and vegetal.  Gayo was named “most interesting coffee on the table.”  3 favorites.