Chocolate lovers, you’re gonna want to check this out!
I will sometimes get asked by friends for help with finding a new coffee. For those people that really enjoy chocolaty, nutty, sweet black coffees, I usually think that grabbing a medium-roasted Guatemalan, Brazilian, or Mexican coffee is a good place to start (just check the tasting notes that are usually printed on the bag, as coffees can and do vary widely, just like people!). This particular Guatemalan coffee from Simple Beans sounded like something pretty much anyone could enjoy: nutty, cocoa, brown sugar, caramel. I couldn’t wait to try it.
Whole bean: Beautifully roasted beans that smell like milk chocolate bars with almonds. How can anyone not fall in love with this?
French press: rich mouthfeel, not very sweet to drink. This tastes of bittersweet chocolate and has a nice complexity to the flavor.
Chemex: Slightly sweeter with a clean finish.
V60: Like the French press, this was not overly sweet, but it definitely tasted like melted chocolate. It was sort of like the flavor of the gooey semi-sweet chocolate chips in a warm, fresh-out-of-the-oven chocolate-chip cookie.
AeroPress: Chocolate truffle!! This was by far the sweetest preparation of these beans, and brewing this as a concentrate resulted in a super smooth and strong coffee.
Summary: Single-origin Guatemalan beans are often a good place to start if you like chocolaty notes in your coffee, and these beans are no exception. Rich flavors abound in all of the brew methods but the sweetest cup came from the AeroPress. These beans would also be very likely to make an excellent single-origin espresso.
From the roaster: nutty, cocoa, brown sugar, caramel
Simple Beans Guatemala Jovenes
Review conducted 21 days post-roast.
Disclaimer: I received this product gratis in exchange for a fair and honest review. Even though I received this for free, I treat and test it the same way as if I had paid for it out of my own pocket.