Now a Word From our Roaster:
"This precious seed had first arrival in the states in April/May of 2016. The current harvest was sorted several times and graded to a blended size 16-18, which translates to Excelso / Supremo in the Colombian system.
I learned to roast in a way that preserves the inherent flavor of the coffee's origin and processing method. Hence I rarely take any coffee past the second crack and into the land of "dark" roasts like French, Italian, and Espresso roasts where the coffee will end up tasting burnt, smoky, roasty, and bitter. There's nothing wrong with dark roasts for those who prefer their coffee that way, I personally don't think it honors the amount of energy, time, and care that the People put into their coffee (and the same for other farmers around the world who care deeply about their land and their labor) to roast out the very essence of the bean.
With that said, the predominant characteristics I've noticed while cupping and drinking the People's coffee over the years is that of an exceedingly smooth (aka buttery), medium-bodied mouthfeel with identifiable (to me) notes of hazelnut and raw cacao in perfect keeping with the Tree's offering of chocolate. The coffee always presents as balanced and sweet, with a lingering sweetness even as it cools in the cup. The fragrance emitted when grinding it reminds me of the Butterfinger candy bars my Grandpa loved and shared with me as a child. Feel free to insert your own experience here. Mine is inescapably linked to a wonderful time in life, even if I haven't had a Butterfinger in decades. ;)
As for brewing, this part is of course very important to meeting the expectations I just set. To that point, its also the most crucial element not in a roasters control. Lets start with water Perfect coffee water is free from chemicals (no chlorine, no fluorine, etc.), so it must be filtered, but it also must have a good balance of minerals (the hardness provided by calcium, magnesium, etc) to bond with the acids in the coffee during extraction, and bring out the fullest flavor.
I prefer to use a pour over method when I brew coffee, making one cup at a time with a Melitta, or Hario V60 style of brewer, and a quality paper filter. Because the coffee is a true medium roast removed from the roaster and cooled well before the start of second crack (please refer to Google for more information on first crack and second crack in coffee roasting) the grind is a bit finer than a dark roast, which extracts more easily due to the roasting process breaking down more of the cellular integrity. I aim for the consistency of table salt with the grind size. My pour over method usually takes about 3.5 minutes to finish, if its less than 3 minutes, then Ill use a courser grind next time. More than 4, and the grind needs to be finer.
If you're using a french press, or other immersion style method to brew the coffee, again err on the side of a finer grind (as in not course) to allow the lighter roast to fully extract.
Finally, the ratio I tend to use is closer to 15:1 in my pour overs. 15 parts water (right off the boil) to 1 part coffee. Which for me is 20 grams of coffee in the filter and 300 grams of water poured over it, as determined by my kitchen scale. If I don't have a scale (on the road, or at a friends house), Ill grind two handfuls of beans, and pour water slowly to cover for the bloom, then to the top of the brewer and try to gauge it so it doesn't overflow a typical size mug.
For more information: http://brewmethods.com is a great place to start for tutorials an the wide range of brewing methods."
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