Tasting Notes: August 2022 Coffees
An award winning coffee roastery based in Brixton, London, Assembly roast some of the world’s highest quality coffees using precise roasting methods and offer them in some of the world's most-acclaimed independent cafes and restaurants. Known for their coffee illustrations as much as their limited edition coffees, their collaborative setup allows them the ability to create innovative solutions to industry challenges.
Assembly Coffees | UK
| Coffee | Story | Notes & Essentials | Packages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mio Lot 1934, Brazil | Renato Pellicer was born in 1939 at Fazenda Mio, or as it was named then, Fazenda Cachoeirinha. Renato's father had worked on the farm after immigrating to Brazil and he was to follow in his footsteps. Fast-forward to 2022 and Renato's daughter Renata and husband Carlos own the farm, with their daughter Ana Luiza representing Mio abroad. Ana has become a great friend of ours over recent years and our time together spans both the farm and Mio's new London base in Battersea.
The farm is located between southern Minas Gerais and the high-altitude Mogiana region. A third of the farm is used for milling and processing using state-of-the-art technology. A wet mill, concrete patios, raised beds, ambient drying machines, wood silos, cross-beater hullers and a density separator are used to produce both natural and honey-processed lots. Mio Lot 1975 is as balanced as you would expect a high-quality Brazilian coffee to be. It carries a classic milk chocolate flavour that's complemented by notes of cranberry, toffee apple and date. A super smooth coffee, perfect for filter or for espresso brewing. |
Milk chocolate, cranberry and smooth Altitude: 1100 masl, Process: pulped natural |
Plus 87, Single / Light |
| House Decaf, Colombia | The Assembly Decaf is produced in Huila region, southern Colombia by farmers and producers from Raw Material's El Carmen project. The decaffeination plant for this coffee is located in Manizales - a city situated in the mountainous coffee-growing region of western Colombia.
A sugarcane decaffeination process is used to strip the coffee of its caffeine content. This process utilises naturally derived ethyl acetate (a byproduct from refining sugarcane), diluted with local spring water. This then attaches itself to substances of a particular molecular weight, including caffeine, to decaffeinate the coffee without hindering its natural complexities and flavour compounds. |
Milk chocolate, cherry and sweet Altitude: 1400 - 2100 masl, Process: sugarcane |
Decaf |
| Joyser Ramirez, Peru | Coming soon | Dark rum (spices) and red berries Process: natural |
Selected Mix |
| Atsabe, Timor Leste | Twenty years-old this year, Timor-Leste is one of the world's youngest countries. As it matures, the development of its agriculture sector has become a key foundation for economic stability. And, with its natural reserves of oil drying up, coffee will become the country's most important export in the very near future.
Already, 37% of Timor-Leste's households are reliant on coffee for income. since 2018, green coffee exporters Raw Material have invested significantly in the country's coffee-growing infrastructure. A number of washing stations have been constructed to support often-isolated coffee-growing communities, including smallholders across the Ermera subregion of Atsabe. This lot has been collected from the Malabe and Raimutin stations - both of which process coffees from small villages in Ermera. In the cup this coffee is full-bodied, with a distinctly dessert-like quality. Flavours of banana bread and honeyed fig are complemented with sweet acidity. |
Honeyed fig, lemon curd and bold Altitude: 1600 masl, Process: washed |
Plus 87, Selected Mix, Single / Light |
| Espresso Blend, Americas | The Assembly Espresso Blend has been created in collaboration with some of the most esteemed specialty coffee shops in the UK. The coffees that make up the Blend are regularly refined according to crop seasonality and our sourcing programme, currently it is comprised of: Brazil – Vale de Grame - 50%, Colombia - Risaralda - 10%, El Salvador - Pieonte - 40%.
The Blend is designed to be versatile, equally suited to black and milk-based drinks and fine-tuned for the evolving palate of the UK coffee drinker. Sweet, clean with a rich body and a viscous mouthfeel, it suits the tastes of both the independent coffee industry and the coffee drinking public. We recommend this coffee for anyone who enjoys a classic espresso. |
Banoffee, nutty and rich Altitude: various masl, Process: washed |
Blend / Darker |
| Kigwandi AA, Kenya | Founded in 2004, the Mutheka Farmers Cooperative Society (FCS) consists of more than 6000 active farmer members across Nyeri county, central Kenya. The society operates seven factories (as washing stations are named in Kenya), including the Kigwandi factory.
Powered solely by hydroelectric power from the nearby Kagumo River, the Kigwandi factory is used by 900 smallholder farmers from the surrounding areas. Harvested cherries are collected, delivered to the factory and combined together to produce coffees that regularly win awards for cup quality in local competitions. This coffee was dry fermented in tanks for 48 hours, then fermented in water for 24 hours before being washed of its mucilage and dried for 2-3 weeks. In the cup we're tasting plenty of fruit and black tea, with a sticky mouthfeel. A classically delicious washed Kenyan coffee. |
Lemon, peach and sticky Altitude: 1600 masl, Process: washed |
Selected Mix, Single / Light |
A roastery dedicated to slow coffee culture ever since 2011, CROOKED NOSE & COFFEE STORIES freshly roast different selected beans from the world in small quantities and are the inventors of the Lithuanian coffee tool CMO and other original coffee products; they also pay great attention to coffee culture and education by organising regular coffee tastings and other inspiring coffee events in Lithuania and beyond.
The founder of CROOKED NOSE & COFFEE STORIES, Emanuelis Ryklys, is the author of one of Europe's best known educational books dedicated to coffee, TEBŪNIE KAVA. Passionate about inspiration and discovery, the book echoes everything this roastery has become known for: creativity and playfulness, education and quality.
CROOKED NOSE & COFFEE STORIES Coffees | Lithuania
| Coffee | Story | Notes & Essentials | Packages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nueva Era, Guatemala | Pets of the LA NUEVA ERA cooperative in the village of Jumaytepeque, Guatemala. Due to the special volcanic soil characteristic of this region, the beans acquire not only a fruitiness unique to this region, but also a richness that is not characteristic of other Guatemalan coffees. | Rose, blackberries, caramel and cookies Altitude: 1300 - 1800 masl, Process: natural |
Plus 87, Rest of World, Single / Light |
| Cundinamarca, Colombia | Coming soon | Apples, oranges, plums, caramel and chocolate Process: washed |
Selected Mix, Plus 87, Rest of World |
| Ywangan, Myanmar | These delicately flavored YWANGAN beans come from small farmers located around the town of Ywangan in the southern Shan. By the way, Shan borders China, Laos, Thailand and is the largest state of Myanmar. Here, the main coffee growers are the small farmers of the Danu and Pa-O tribes, who, in addition to coffee, grow avocados, papayas and other delicious exotic crops on their land. | Blackberry, lime and vanilla Altitude: 1200 masl, Process: washed |
Selected Mix |
Kiss The Hippo is a speciality coffee brand devoted to creating the ultimate coffee experience, based in London. Accomplishing this through a considered approach to coffee making that places a strong appreciation for quality and sustainability at the forefront, Kiss The Hippo are also London's first carbon negative roasters.
With the aim of offering the most refined freshly roasted coffees, served in beautiful spaces as part of a thoroughly memorable service experience, Kiss The Hippo are absolutely worth the recommendation.
Kiss The Hippo Coffees | UK
| Coffee | Story | Notes & Essentials | Packages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buki, Rwanda | Much like how great wineries can transform grapes from the same vineyard into remarkably different wines, great coffee mills can do the same to coffee cherries. Jean Paul created the Liza mill, named after his daughter, and like a great wine maker he produces different lots there by carefully processing the coffee cherries in unique ways.
This lot is part of a series of his coffees we are releasing, all named for the mills named after his children. For our second release we are happy to share the honey processed Buki for which the coffee cherries are picked and pulped, then dried in the sun. The result is a flavour that sits somewhere between a washed and a natural coffee, with a vibrant, fruity quality and a calm acidity. This series from Jean Paul explores a host of different processes, but all using coffee from one lot of cherries. We hope this will show just how a mill can transform and change a coffee, and shine a light on how exciting and talented people like Jean Paul are in the coffee world. After all, a coffee producer does more than just grow coffee – they actually span many roles within the coffee chain. |
Red apple, peach and strawberry Altitude: 1600 - 1800 masl, Process: honey natural |
Plus 87, Rest of World |
| Monte Bonito Decaf, Colombia | Monte Bonito was decaffeinated using the Carbonated Water method. Just like other decaffeination processes such as the Swiss Water or CO2 method, the unroasted coffee is submerged in warm water, where it expands. The water is then carbonated, allowing it to attach to the caffeine molecules so it can be removed before the coffee is dried. After processing, the coffee becomes rounder in flavour, softer in acidity, and creamier.
We like this method because it is zero waste. The caffeine is used for carbonated drinks, the water is filtered the remains are used as part of cow feed and the water is used in future batches. This lot is like so many great Colombian coffees, composed of coffee grown on small family farms that are usually only a couple of hectares big. Although made up of coffee from different producers, the farms share many of the same growing conditions, from soil to cultivars to climate and plant care. This means that the coffees have an incredibly similar taste experience, giving them an incredibly clear flavour profile when blended together. |
Butterscotch, dark chocolate and brazil nut Altitude: 1700 masl, Process: carbonated |
Decaf |
| Nziza, Rwanda | Much like how great wineries can transform grapes from the same vineyard into remarkably different wines, great coffee mills can do the same to coffee cherries. Jean Paul created the Liza mill, named after his daughter, and like a great wine maker he produces different lots there by carefully processing the coffee cherries in unique ways.
This lot is part of a series of his coffees we are releasing, all named for the mills named after his children. We wanted to start with a lot that captures what we love about Rwandan coffee, something bright, fruity and massively refreshing. This series from Jean Paul will explore a host of different processes, but all using coffee from one lot of cherries. We hope this will show just how a mill can transform and change a coffee, and shine a light on how exciting and talented people like Jean Paul are in the coffee world. After all, a coffee producer does more than just grow coffee – they actually span many roles within the coffee chain. |
Pink Apple, raspberry and lemon Altitude: 1600 - 1800 masl, Process: washed |
Plus 87 |
| Los Vascos, Colombia | Los Vascos is a community lot made up of a small collection of farms near Bilbao in Colombia. The farms that make up this coffee are incredibly similar—usually only a couple hectares or so in size and all family run, the producers create a coffee with the same signature soft acidity and round sweetness. Each producer’s small lots are pooled together based on their flavour profile which is identified at the daily tastings held at the co-operative mill. This lot was created specifically to be a crowd pleasing easy to drink coffee, something everyone will love.
The thing that allows the diverse group of producers in Bilbao to create such a uniform lot is their usage of the same cultivars: caturra, Colombia and castillo. Cultivars are the different kinds of coffee plants, like how granny smith or red delicious apples can completely change the experience when you taste them. Cultivars are also artefacts of history—caturra was the traditional cultivar of Colombia before a fungus called rust killed most of it off. The government then released a cultivar named Colombia at the height of the crisis, bred to be resistant to the fungus. It held out for years until a second crisis hit, and in response to this castillo was released. Now farms across Colombia have a collection of the cultivars, all usually mixed together. Lessons from the agroforestry world tell us that there’s a strength in this genetic diversity—each farm having many different cultivars can help to avoid the next crisis. |
Caramel, honey and green apple Altitude: 1650 - 1950 masl, Process: honey natural |
Selected Mix |
| George Street, Americas | Certified organic by the Soil Association, George Street Blend is our go-to house coffee. Strong enough to shine through milk, George Street is carefully roasted to highlight the coffee’s robust, natural flavours while also pushing it to have a deep sweetness that helps create a syrupy body. This version of our mainstay blend was created by combining two coffees from Latin America: the Peruvian coffee San Fernando and the Nicaraguan San Juan. Together, they offer a crowd-pleasing combination of sweetness and strength.
The Peruvian San Fernando comes from two cooperatives in Cusco. The history of cooperatives in Peru goes back decades, and their collaborative nature is central to what makes Peru one of coffee’s most crowd-pleasing and reliable origins. The Peruvian coffee profile is all about balance and light sweetness, and San Fernando is all that and more: a calm acidity supports lightly fruity flavours, with a gentle chocolate note throughout. The Nicaraguan coffee San Juan was created by Unión de Cooperativas Agropecuarias San Juan del Rio Coco, known as UCA SJRC. The co-op represents the coming together of hundreds of producers to pool their resources and focus on creating stand-out lots. |
Chocolate, berries and butterscotch Process: washed |
Selected Mix, Blend / Darker |
| Lady, Myanmar | The Lady is the name of a small coffee mill started by Thi Ha and Su Nandar in 2018. The coffee cherries are grown by the people in the nearby village of Nwar Ban Gyi and then brought to the mill for processing. The Lady is an incredibly unique coffee as it is a carbonic macerated honey, a processing method that started in the wine world. In this case coffee is pulped with just the skin removed (the honey part of the process) and is then placed in a tank which is filled with carbon dioxide. The coffee ferments from the inside out with the CO2 breaking down the acids and sugars, creating a more complex and interesting cup.
Although specialty coffee from Myanmar is relatively new, the South-East Asian country has been cultivating the plant since 1885. The colonists who followed after the invasion by the British Empire planted coffee, but there was never widespread adoption. In 2016 the first lots of specialty coffee left the country and were exported to the west, allowing the world to finally experience this new growing region. Most production is centered around the Southern Shan region, where cultivation began in 1885. What’s interesting is how fast coffee has been developing in Myanmar and how swiftly producers have adopted some of the most innovative coffee processing methods. |
Caramel, yellow plum, hazelnut Altitude: 1350 masl, Process: carbonic red honey |
Plus 87, Rest of World |
Ineffable Coffee Roasters kicked off as a project through which they aimed to help shed a different light on the Spanish coffee culture. The founders have a collective experience of over 10 years living in different countries and cities such as Cape Town, Istanbul and the United Kingdom where the specialty coffee industry is firmly recognised and established. Having a solid experience in working with specialty coffee as baristas, roasters and trainers in well-established businesses, the co-founders have all now returned home excited to share and keep learning.
The team are made up of Omar, Jose and Alejandro; they have all had a different experience in the specialty coffee industry and now have joined forces together. Focussing on all of roasting and wholesale, training and consulting for specialty coffee shops, Ineffable Coffee Roasters aim to develop lasting relationships and alliances with the people we work with through service, fair trade and transparency every step of the way. Looking for people who are as excited as they are to do things well, Ineffable Coffee Roasters' partners all convey and offer a truly unique coffee experience.
Ineffable Coffees | Spain
| Coffee | Story | Notes & Essentials | Packages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Busasa, Burundi | The Busasa washing station is the meeting point for smallholders from the town of Ruvubu, in the Muyinga province of Burundi. The Busasa washing station is the meeting point for smallholders from the town of Ruvubu, in the Muyinga province of Burundi. The coffee farmers entrust their cherries to the station during the harvest season for processing. The station was built in 2014 and employs 6 permanent workers throughout the year and more than 150 during the harvest season.
The work is carefully supervised by the manager of the station, Daniel Sayumwe, who is in charge of ensuring the correct grading, lot separation by quality and processing. This lot is made up of the highest quality fruits, which are then processed through a natural process where the cherries are left to dry on African beds for about 35 days until the desired level of humidity is achieved. |
Forest fruits, blueberries and toffee Altitude: 1650 - 1800 masl, Process: natural |
Plus 87, Rest of World |
| Estela de Chontalí, Peru | Estela de Chontalí is the name given to this batch of washed coffee produced by farmers in small plots of land in the beautiful Chunchuco Valley in the Chontalí Jungle. Estela de Chontalí is the name given to this batch of washed coffee produced by farmers in small plots of land in the beautiful Chunchuco Valley in the Chontalí Jungle.
It is Located in the heart of the Cajamarca coffee region, with a landscape that is a mix between thick jungle and small farm plots surrounded by views of the surrounding mountain range. A high altitude and a cool climate create ideal conditions for the cultivation of specialty coffees for local producers, who are usually families with small plots of about two hectares, where they mainly cultivate the Caturra, Typica and Catimor varieties. Cherries are always hand-picked and at their optimum point of maturity before being transferred to the washing station where the batches are classified and processed separately. |
Chocolate, orange and orange blossom Altitude: 1700 - 2000 masl, Process: washed, natural |
Plus 87, Rest of World |
| Decaf, Mexico | The water decaffeination process does not use chemical solvents, its only ingredient is water. The water decaffeination process does not use chemical solvents, its only ingredient is water. It might seem that decaffeination with water is a rudimentary process, but it is a process that requires high technology and facilities. Green coffee beans are hydrated in water mixed with green coffee extract that has previously been reduced in caffeine.
Through an osmosis process, caffeine is extracted from the high concentration of the coffee beans to the low concentration of the solution (water). The decaffeinated beans are dried with hot air and then left to dry until the desired degree of humidity is achieved and their flavor and quality profile is checked. |
Spices, marzipan and chocolate Altitude: 1100 - 1300 masl, Process: washed |
Decaf |
| Sao Silvestre, Brazil | São Silvestre means Immaculate Wildness and it’s the name this farm was given by its owners, the Andrade brothers due to its natural beauty and good climate. São Silvestre means Immaculate Wildness and it’s the name this farm was given by its owners, the Andrade brothers due to its natural beauty and good climate. The farm is surrounded by incredible scenery, a place where you can stand and have your head cleared out for a minute while you appreciate the extent of the plantations, the river Paranaíba which passes through and the natural beauty of the landscape.
The conditions of the region, the flawless management of crops, crop-planning and post-harvest with selection criteria of cherries, grains and natural drying. The soil, fresh air, perfect climate and a dedicated production team of up to 40 workers during the harvest season, working closely as a family all help produce a delicate balanced sweet cup. |
White chocolate, biscuit and plum Altitude: 1200 masl, Process: pulped natural |
Selected Mix |
| Yandaro, Burundi | The Yandaro washing station is located near the border with Rwanda, in the Kayanza coffee region. The Yandaro washing station is located near the border with Rwanda, in the Kayanza coffee region. This area is close to the Kibira Forest, a rainforest thanks to which the natural subsoil water reserves and the adequate level of nutrients in the soil are kept balanced. The washing station helps to process the coffees of nearby local producers.
These are mainly families who grow coffee on their land and have an average of about 250 coffee trees per farm producing around 1.5 kg cherries per tree. That amounts to about 200 or 300 kilos of cherries per year per family.The fruits are selected by hand and moved to the washing station where they are classified and processed through a classic wash. |
Creme caramel, tangerine and magnolia Altitude: 1800 masl, Process: washed |
Plus 87, Selected Mix, Single / Light |
| Cyato, Rwanda | The Yandaro washing station is located near the border with Rwanda, in the Kayanza coffee region. The Yandaro washing station is located near the border with Rwanda, in the Kayanza coffee region. This area is close to the Kibira Forest, a rainforest thanks to which the natural subsoil water reserves and the adequate level of nutrients in the soil are kept balanced. The washing station helps to process the coffees of nearby local producers.
These are mainly families who grow coffee on their land and have an average of about 250 coffee trees per farm producing around 1.5 kg cherries per tree. That amounts to about 200 or 300 kilos of cherries per year per family.The fruits are selected by hand and moved to the washing station where they are classified and processed through a classic wash. |
Creme caramel, tangerine and magnolia Altitude: 1800 - 2200 masl, Process: washed |
Plus 87, Selected Mixt |
GUSTATORY (adjective): curating excellence in taste.