Dear World,
We cupped some coffees last Friday. You know, just like every Friday. Meister weighed the samples out, Katie ground them and Tommy cleaned up. We listened to Ethiopian pop music from the ’70s while we cupped, and there were three people who joined us from the outside world.
The first coffee on the table was the raisiny, chocolatey and nutty Teka from Burundi. We all were bonkers over this cup’s crisp, clean acidity and rum-like, sweet/tart nose. Meister ended up having a long convo with one of our visitors about how this coffee had a very particularly Hershey’s Milk Chocolate quality to it — soft and sweet, really melty, and with a little kiss of nut. (The kind of kiss of nut that’s so subtle it’s basically just a warning on the package that the chocolate was produced in a facility that also handles nuts.)
Next up was Aida’s Grand Reserve, and oh man, what a stunner. Total strawberries and peaches up front, and then blackberry maple syrup, honey-roasted nuts and soft cow’s-milk cheese in the cup. This coffee is so sweet! Almost crazy sweet! Sweet like Katie’s guinea pigs, with their tiny paws and little “wheek, wheek” sounds! Just makes your heart melt.
Last but never least, our old pal Gayo brought the smoky, wheaty herbaciousness to the table. The two most prominent notes were chocolate and dried herbs — now I don’t know anything about magic brownies (no, really. nothing), but could Gayo be the magic brownie of coffee?? The spice, low brightness and nice hefty mouthfeel seems to point to yes…
Well, World, that was our cupping last week! Wish you’d have been there, but don’t worry — you can always come next time! Friday at noon, at the Counter Culture Coffee NYC Training Center: 37 W 26th St, suite 400 (between Sixth Ave and Broadway).
See you soon,
Katie, Tommy and Meister
