What kind of coffee are you drinking?

[tintinet]

Storyhouse Ka'anapali Maui Moka Prime

Awsome stuff! Tiny little beans, darly roasted. Like the roaster says "toast $ chocholate...ends on a smoky, nutty note."

Try some- their samples are practically free!

 

[tintinet]

On to Kona

Chugged throught my Maui beans from Storyhouse...on to some Kona from Maine Coffee Roasters. So far, I really find I much prefer the Maui Moka to the Kona! And it's 1/2 the price!

 

[tintinet]

Kenya

It's 8:30 AM Sunday, and I've already chugged through 2 pots of Intelligensia Coffee Kenya. Not a bad brew, with quite a nice acidity and rich mix of fruit flavors. When brewing, I always grab a few beans to munch (assuming it's a decent bean) and this Kenya is, perhaps, the best bean I've ever had for munching! :-D

 

[Quink]

I always grab a few beans to munch (assuming it's a decent bean)

Ive never heard of anyone munching on beans before, Tintinet. Any good? Worth trying?

Anyway working my way through some, Smith farm kona at the moment. Not cheap stuff in England. After I'm done with that, which may be sooner rathr than later :-D , I've got a nice Guatemalan(probably spelt wrongly) to work through.

 

[Alun_evans]

Hehehe......I mainly drink my own coffees. Call me parochial but Indo coffees are the reason I live and work here :wink: .... anyway my current favourites that I am drinking a lot of are- Java Village Arabica and West Sumatran Highland Arabica. For me half the fun (or maybe 80% of the fun) is sourcing my own beans from around Indonesia. It takes time and patience but its worth it. I have a lot of stories that can be told in the search for both these coffees....but at the end of the day I can tell you both cup beautifully.

 

[tintinet]

Ive never heard of anyone munching on beans before, Tintinet. Any good? Worth trying?

Anyway working my way through some, Smith farm kona at the moment. Not cheap stuff in England. After I'm done with that, which may be sooner rathr than later :-D , I've got a nice Guatemalan(probably spelt wrongly) to work through.

1. In my opinion, it's always worth trying a few beans to munch- some are excellent! The Intelligensia Kenya is good enough just to eat- the hell with brewing!

2. Good Kona is almost never cheap, no matter where one is located, unfortunately!

 

[Alun_evans]

I too love munching..... learnt from experience to make sure you have a mirror handy before visiting friends and family after a munch session. The black bits stuck between your front teeth don't enhance the smile too much. Also if you are munching without a cup of coffee make sure you have water to rinse down the throat tickling pieces!

 

[Quink]

Hmm, might have to give this a try.

 

[tintinet]

Munch vs. Brew

Oddly, some coffees are not so great to eat, but make pretty decent brews. Not sure I've observed the reverse (i.e. most great tasting munching beans make great brews, at least, in my experience).

 

[Alun_evans]

Would have to agree with you on this. Some of the darker roasts, ie roasts somewhat past the second crack, taste very much like charcoal, with a chalk like texture when munched on. Not delicious at all. However when ground and brewed the coffee tastes OK. Lighter roasted beans can taste a little bitter when munched...but again the brewed coffee is fine. Perhaps munching is a true test of the quality of the roast! :grin:

 

[tintinet]

Dark Roasts

Agree about a lot of dark roasts- easy to overdo. The Intelligencia Kenya is a "medium-dark" roast and, to me, tastes great, straight!

 

[Quink]

Gave this a try at the weekend with a couple of Ethiopian Yirgacgeffe (think thats how its spelt). They were medium roasted, and the first thing that hit me after biting in to them was, how intense the flavour was, but not bitter in anyway. I have to say thank you to you guys as this was not at all what I had expected. Definately better than trying a spoonfull of instant coffee, which I have done in the past. I would not recommend trying it dry or otherwise.

 

[TN_13]

The Human Bean Zapatista medium roast. only brewed with a press.

 

[tintinet]

Intelligencia El Salvador-San Francisco!!!!

Love it!!! Great rich, dark brew- sweet and roasty with chocolate tones: terrific iced!!!!

I'm continually astonished by my wife's difference in taste!!! She finds this bean rough and harsh!!!! Very odd as I think it's precisely the opposite. Grounds for divorce? :wink:

 

[notmuffy]

Tintinet, I love hearing your opinion on individual coffees, beans, and brews. I can never ever remember that type of stuff myself, and to tell the truth I can't tell the difference between most of it. You must have a more sensitive palatte!