Tasting Notes: December 2020 Coffees
Stooker live for beautiful coffees. A green coffee bean has a whole range of flavours. For example, they can contain chocolate notes, have a sweet fruit flavour or be freshly sour. It is our goal to let you taste those flavour characteristics. All the qualities that a green coffee bean contains, only really come into its own in your cup if you let the bean develop properly during the roasting process. With a healthy dose of interest in the product in combination with the right training and education, Stooker are able to master this extraction.
Stooker Coffees | Netherlands
| Coffee | Information | Notes | Packages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Decaf Colombia La Victoria | La Victoria is an association of around 50 committed coffee producers and their families, who share a vision of perpetual quality improvement and protection of the environment. Their farms are sprinkled around the town of Santa Maria, which is located in the heart of National Park Nevados de Huila. Santa Maria is a small town on the foothills of the Huila volcano. For decades, Santa Maria has been secluded from the rest of the world, as the region was controlled by guerrilla forces. There are only two narrow, unpaved roads leading along dangerous precipices that provide access to the area, making it impossible for the authorities to enter. For specialty coffee lovers, however, this is very fortunate. Since the Coffee Federation has never had any influence here, all farmers of La Victoria grow Caturra, Colombia or Typica varietals. Almost no one converted to the Federation’s favorite; Castillo. |
Sweet caramel, almond and cacao. | Decaf |
| Guatemala Maria Jobita | Maria Jobita has a wonderful story. She is the second generation of coffee makers on her farm, Las Morónches y Margaritas. She started out with 114 manzanas (1 manzana is approximately 0,7 hectares), which she has slowly expanded into what it is today. Maria Jobita managed to return to Guatemala to purchase her family’s farm back with her savings after migrating to the United States. When she returned, Maria needed to invest heavily in the plantation, with new pruning, plants, fertilization and shade management. Having rescued the future of the farm, she grew more and more interested in her heritage as a coffee cultivator. Every week, Maria Jobita drives down to the Finca El Hato wet mill – located about an hour away – to deliver her ripe cherries, as she doesn’t own a wet mill herself. At Finca El Hato the cherries are de-pulped, fermented for 18 hours and subsequently sundried on cement patios for 6 – 8 days. |
Plums, almond and cane sugar. | Single, Selected Mix |
| Ethiopia Reko | Reko literally means challenge. This coffee owes its name to the mountain it grows on, which peaks high above the hills and can be seen from far throughout the Kochere region, which is located in the district of Yirgacheffe in Southern Ethiopia. As much as it is a challenge to climb mount Reko, the same counts when it comes to cultivating coffee on it. The high altitude has a strong positive influence on its flavor and provides it with a clean and acidic smoothness. Typical for the region are its bergamot, jasmine and peach notes. Magnificent as a filter coffee and robust as an espresso. |
Bergamot, jasmin and peach. | Plus 87, Rest of World |
| Peru Ulises Nayra Armijos | Finca El Lechero is a small family-owned farm situated at 1870 masl, close to the village of El Huabo in San Ignazio, in Northern Peru. The farm is run by Ulises – a young, ambitious farmer, who has organised things extraordinarily well. Ulises has a keen eye for detail and is strongly quality oriented – which earned him a 12th place in the Peru Cup of Excellence last year. When they say small, they mean small. Ulises’ farm covers a mere 2.5 hectares, where he grows about 80% Caturra and 20% Catuai coffee beans, which are mixed during the harvest. Ulises employs ten pickers at the most, who are paid 25 soles per day and enjoy a free lunch. The harvesting period leads from May to October and peaks around August. All the farmers in the area help each other out during harvesting season. This is called Mingas – which essentially means “today for you, tomorrow for me”. |
Nectarine, passionfruit and peach. | Plus 87, Rest of World |
| Motto Blend | Brazil - Capricornio 30% / Ethiopia - Reko 40% / Guatemala - Maria Jobita 30%. Stooker are always looking for new flavors, aromas and textures. This is why they love to experiment with different techniques and new ways of roasting. For this Motto Blend, they’ve combined three of their favourite coffees – each with its own distinct character, yet preserving and underlining their best traits. This has resulted in a balanced blend of Capricornio, Reko and Maria Jobita - a medium to full body texture, with sweet underlying chocolate tones and the just the right touch of acidity. Perfect for a robust espresso or sweet and caramelly in combination with any kind of milk. |
Chocolate and caramelly in combination with milk. | Blends, Selected Mix |
Working closely with remote Indigenous Communities, Easy Jose’s mission is to help them grow incredible specialty coffee, in harmony with the forests they live in. Rainforest protection and defending against its destruction is a project they believe everyone can get behind.
Easy Jose are creating long lasting, sustainable, personal relationships with indigenous producers. Each producer must show tangible results of forestry protection whilst upholding organic growing principles. Many logos, buzzwords and clever marketing has made the average consumer believe they are supporting good projects - yet with no visible results. With an Indy Best Buy also awarded for the great work they are doing, we really are proud to featuring them in our December subscription packages.
Easy Jose Coffees | UK
| Coffee | Information | Notes | Packages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mayni Indigenous Community Single Origin | The Mayni community live within the Peruvian cloud forests, about 6 hours drive from the nearest town of Satipo in the East of Peru. The coffee they grow, grows beneath the forest canopy and is picked by hand to ensure only the best fruits are pulled from the tree. These beautiful people are the protectors of the rainforest, taking it upon themselves to ensure the forests will remain intact for generations to come. Our work with the Mayni and now many neighbouring indigenous communities has provided a blueprint for coffee growing in the region, without the need for slash and burn and gives the communities a sustainable way to earn a good income from their lands without the need to destroy them. By supporting the work Easy Jose do, you are directly supporting a new way of thinking and a new, proven way to protect the rainforests. For the five years before Easy José was introduced to the Mayni, they had been the benefactors of sponsorship that enabled them to grow coffee as sustainably as possible, while ensuring maximum protection to the forest. This sponsorship came in the form of agricultural consultation and financial support from the Peruvian Government and the conservation group Programa Nacional del Conservación de Bosques para la Mitigación del Cambio Climatic (roughly translating to The National Program of Forest Conservation for the Mitigation of Climate Change). As the sponsorship came to an end, Easy José began working with the Mayni to create a viable commercial solution that supports the incredible work that was being done. Over the past four years they have seen incredible change to the communities harvesting and processing ability and it has ensured that the community can continue to thrive in their traditional and chosen way of life. |
Mountains of chocolate, hazelnut, honey, almond and an orange acidity. | Darker, Selected Mix, Single, Light |
| Community Blend | Easy José named this blend ‘community’ because it truly represents the incredible work being done with our partner communities in Peru. As they grow and sell more coffee, we’re able to expand our work to neighbouring indigenous communities, supporting them with better pay and in turn, they protect the forests they live in to reduce deforestation, slash and burn and logging. This blend is currently made up of a number of smaller indigenous lots, both washed and naturally processed arabicas, with typica, bourbon and geisha varietals making up the bulk. Blending these lots has produced a stand out cup, full of chocolate, orange, almond, hazelnut and malt, sure to be enjoyed both black and with milk. |
Creamy stone fruit, sweet chocolate and honeyed florals through milk. | Blends |
| Dalia Casancho Honey Process Micro-lot | Dalia is a coffee leader in her community, growing truly stand out coffees year on year. She is an incredible woman and key member of the indigenous community. She forages the rainforest for plants to create natural herbal remedies and ailments for the indigenous community. Dalia also grows, harvests and processed her own personal coffee lot. This special honey process lot has been milled and the parchment coffee dried with the sticky sugary juice from the coffee cherry still present, giving the coffee a fantastically sweet and complex cup. The coffee is turned multiple times a day and is tricky to manage but we feel the results are incredible and totally worth the extra effort. |
Honey, stone fruit and white grape. | Plus 87, Rest of World |
80plus have been roasting specialty coffee in Barcelona since 2016. They are inspired by the world of Gastronomy and Catalonia is the perfect place to find this fusion of traditional, contemporary and innovative nuances. They also believe that an extraordinary cup of coffee must also be a product that does not harm the health of the planet. The decisions they make are always aimed to reduce environmental impact and are part of our goal of being a more responsible and transparent company.
80plus Coffees | Spain
| Coffee | Information | Notes | Packages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coffee Kids | The Japanese family started working with farms in the estate of Paraná. After the severe frost in the 70th the decided to buy a piece of land in the Cerrado of Minas Gerais. They stated working as a coffee farmer in Cerrado in 1980, being the very first in the region known as Chapada o de Ferro, a volcanic area in the city of Patrocínio. The coffee is part of the Coffee Kids project from Hanns R. Neumann Stiftung for sustaining and helping young coffee farmers to stay in business, give them all the necessary knowledge to grow better coffee and live a better life. It is a way of giving the necessary skills to the young people for becoming entrepreneurs in the coffee community. |
Cacao, toffee, dried plums and apricots. | Darker |
| In The Clouds | “Muxbal” means “place surrounded by clouds” in the Mayan Mam dialect. The farm is in hands of the Rodriguez – Luethje Family since 1959. The initial road was built around 1965 to connect the farm with the town Union Juarez. Years of hard work had to be invested to rebuild the plantation and to modernize the wet and dry milling facilities. Nowadays the farm management takes care of weed control in a mainly manual way to protect the environment and the same goes for the shade management. Muxbal recognizes that it is only with enough beneficial sun that they will get the optimum quantity and quality of the beans. | Sweet milk chocolate and fresh citric acidity. | Darker |
| Mountain Water Decaf | This coffee from Chiapas has been treated without chemicals to extract caffeine from the beans in a more delicate and natural way with mountain water. The water solution is saturated with all coffee components except for caffeine, so caffeine is extracted by osmosis without affecting the flavours. | Citric, milk chocolate and cookies. | Decaf |
| Nazareth’s Formula I | This Yellow Bourbon is produced by Nazareth Pereira from the Fazenda Sertão, it is a fantastic example of how the Brazilian coffee producers are always more capable of growing interesting coffees for the specialty coffee world. This natural process coffee surprises with its extreme sweetness and a very clean low acidity. | Nutmeg, honey, cacao, cookie and a creamy body. | Single |
| Kamandu | This coffee is naturally processed on raised African beds. Natural processing is a rarity in Kenya, which has built a fine reputation on the back of exceptional fully washed coffees. Ripe cherries are selectively harvested and floated to select only the ripest, highest quality cherries for processing. These cherries are placed in a single layer on raised drying beds and dried in the sun for up to 6 weeks. | Spices, macadamia nuts, passionfruit and a creamy body. | Plus 87 |
| Santa María De Lourdes | The Peralta Family coffee growing history goes back to the beginning of the 20th century, but it was only in 2008 that they started focusing on developing new ways to market their coffees to international specialty coffee markets. This coffee utilises an ‘anaerobic honey’ process. Coffee is selected and harvested then left In cherry for 24 hours. The coffee is then pulped and then in an additional step recently introduced, there is a fermentation period in an oxygen-free environment after pulping. This increases the opportunity for a more prolonged drying and can lead to more flavour development without inducing negative fermented flavours. |
Cinnamon, honey, cocoa and red apple. | Plus 87 |
| Cafe de Mamas | The Nova Coffee washing station was once the site of a coffee coop known as COOGIPROCA. After the coop went bankrupt in 2013, it was bought by Nova that made renovations and started buying and processing cherries from local producers. Since 2013 the Nova Washing Station is run by Agnes together with her husband, she is dedicated to producing the best possible coffee and using it to transform her community. | Juicy, papaya, pineapple and chocolate. | Plus 87 |
| Gold Mountain | Gold Mountain Coffee Growers is a social enterprise that works directly with coffee producers in Nicaragua to connect them with roasters abroad. GMCG is on the ground, constantly teaming up with producers willing to take the steps necessary to produce high-cupping specialty coffee. They are literally present on every partner farm during picking to ensure ripeness with refractometers and ripeness bracelets. GMCG also carries out sustainable development projects in communities, such as free computing classes for girls from coffee communities, medical assistance, microcredit, running water in schools, and educational supplies. | Chocolate fondue, honey, pecan and a creamy body. | Plus 87 |
| La Plata Colombia | Crecert is a group of young farmers centered around La Plata, Huila (central/Western Huila). The group consists of 46 producers spread out between four municipalities (La Plata, La Argentina, Nataga and Paicol). Crecert is producing “biologically”-farmed coffee which means that all producers are either fully organic or in transition to becoming organic. This has been carefully and sustainably sourced by Osito coffee. | Citrus, hibiscus and cocoa powder. | Rest of World |
Makea believe in a completely transparent supply chain so know what compensation a farmer will receive for the raw coffee when they buy. Their operations are on a sustainable basis from the farm level to meet the challenges that are currently being faced. They believe that meeting the burdens of climate change on coffee cultivation is only possible if there is economic stability in the countries of origin to develop and reform cultivation. This is why Makea always pay significantly higher than the market price for their origin for their high-quality, fresh raw coffee. Through their partners, they participate in projects in countries of origin that improve the well-being of locals and raise awareness around coffee growing.
Makea Coffees | Finland
| Coffee | Information | Notes | Packages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lounge | The lounge is dark roasted and full of coffee. This best-selling coffee of is great as an espresso. The Lounge coffee, which holds the title of Full City with its official degree of roasting, is just suitably dark without being ashy. Coffee from Guatemala, the Huehuetenango region, is a collection of ten smallholder farmers. A mixture of Caturra and Bourbon Arabica varieties, among others, has been treated by the Washed method. | Dark chocolate. | Darker, Single |
| Non-originating Decaf | This decaffeinated coffee is non-originating. Intoxicating chocolateiness and full-bodied softness are guaranteed to bring a party to your tongue. The name says it all. No stems of caffeine, still without compromising on flavour. The raw coffee is from the same farmers in Huehuetenango, Guatemala, where Makea get beans for their other coffees as well. But these beans are soaked in liquid carbon dioxide, which separates the caffeine from the beans. Caffeine can bring even a bitter taste to a cup of coffee. The softness of this non-originating coffee is even more pronounced due to its decaffeinated nature. |
Chocolate and full bodied. | Decaf |
| Ana Perez | Juicy coffee with ripe stone fruit and fermented sweetness in the taste. Makea fell in love with this coffee right from the first taste to its growing area even because of its exceptional juiciness and taste profile. The coffee is an excellent filter coffee for lovers of light roasted coffee and is also suitable for espresso. Ana Perez Rafael is a first generation coffee producer from Concepcion Huista, Huehuetenango, Guatemala. The harvest season the four pick-up shifts will take care of the fact that only just the right kypyiset berries must be picked. The coffee berries are pressed on top of the beans on the same day and fermented with a layer of berry Mucilage for 36 hours in plastic basins. The beans are then washed and re-soaked for 12 hours in clean spring water. This processing is called “double soaking”. After the last soaking, the beans are dried on patios for six days. |
Stone fruit and juicy. | Rest of World, Plus 87 |
| Colombia La Pradera | Really fresh coffee from Colombia. The coffee from the La Pradera plantation has a wonderful nougat and citrus flavour. Makea latest co-operation is La Pradera in Santander, Colombia, operated by third-generation farmer Oscar Daza Bautista. La Pradera means prairie - the farm was still bare land decades ago, but now years of planting various plants have created exceptional greenery and biodiversity. This environment is good for growing many different coffee bushes. The soil is managed and if it stays in good condition year after year, tasty coffee is guaranteed in the future as well. Oscar has steered the farm towards more environmentally friendly farming practices. For example, water is used minimally in coffee processing and used water is recycled back for reuse. The farm's coffees are Organic, Bird Friendly and Rainforest Alliance certified. |
Nougat and citrus. | Plus 87 |
| Nietos Blend (Winter Edition) | Nietos Blend is a delicious blend of coffees from Huehuetenango’s small farms in Guatemala and Pedro Serrano from Honduras. With this blend, you will get Guatemalan chocolateiness and Honduran gentle forest berries in a soft cup. As an espresso, the nuance of blueberry brings interest to the cup. | Chocolate and forest berries. | Blends |
| Club | The club has medium roasted and soft coffee. Taste of chocolate and molasses. Club is Makeas answer to the question "what kind of coffee would suit many tastes?". The club has attracted many who like both dark and light coffees. It is an excellent filter coffee, as well an espresso where you will get a little fruity acidity from the coffee. |
Chocolate and molasses. | Selected Mix |
Cuppers Choice do not want to just be another coffee roasters - the world has enough of those. They want to stand out for all the right reasons. This is why they have made it their absolute-no-compromises mission to buy their beans ethically, either directly from the farmers in producing countries, or if necessary, from green bean importers whom have proven to have the same ethos as them. Cuppers Choice want to ensure that farmers gets as much money from the buying process as they can, which reduces poverty, and ultimately produces more consistent and experimental coffee in the long run. Every coffee they put on the shelf or send out to customers will be a product of these relationships, and you will be a part of that too. It will taste incredible, and you can feel proud while drinking it.
Cuppers Choice Coffees | UK
| Coffee | Information | Notes | Packages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ethiopia Adola | Beautifully clean, this natural is far from the usual with tons of tangerines on the tongue and wild strawberries on the nose. | Tangerine and cinema sweets. | Light |
| Decaf Nyamasheke | Cuppers Choice house decaf offering comes from Nyamasheke - one of their favourite regions in Rwanda - via Raw Material importers. They had held off supplying decaf until they had found a coffee they were proud to put their diamond sticker on… and here it is. | Kiwi and caramel. | Decaf |
| Mirtilo Brazil | This is a corker of a coffee. Super boozy, with notes of black forest gateaux and cassis. | Crème de cassis. | Selected Mix |
| Brazil Feijoa | Coming soon | Coming soon | Single, Selected Mix |
| Christmas Filter Blend | Coming soon | Coming soon | Blends |
A returning favourite, over the last 15 years, Origin have been exploring coffee. Seeking new flavours, collaborators and lessons in the pursuit of an exceptional cup. Whilst what they do may have changed over the years, their approach remains the same. Ultimately, it’s about respect – for the people, the process, the coffee, the brewing. Origin simply focus on making the coffee the best it can be. We look forward to seeing them do this over the next 15 years.
Origin Coffees | UK
| Coffee | Information | Notes | Packages |
|---|---|---|---|
| House Espresso Capsules | This coffee has a delicious richness, low acidity with a chocolate, nut-like profile and a caramel sweetness. | Chocolate, nuts and caramel. | Capsules |
GUSTATORY (adjective): curating excellence in taste.