Review: Huckleberry Roasters Phantom Limb Blend (Denver, Colorado)

The next three reviews are thanks to my lovely friend Alison, who surprised me in the best possible way by sending me a box full of coffee to try! Thank you, Alison!!

Huckleberry Roasters, based in Denver, roasts on Mondays and Tuesdays and only ships out whole bean coffee to preserve freshness as long as possible; they will not sell pre-ground beans. Unlike most roasters, that sell 12- and 16-oz bags, Huckleberry sells 10 oz bags. Pro or con? That depends. Odd sizing can be an adjustment, particularly if you go through a lot of coffee in a short period of time, but I like the smaller sizes because they allow me to try more coffees without worrying about them going stale (or having to freeze them). It can be more expensive in the long run, however, if you have to buy many small bags. I wish more roasters would offer a range of sizes, so that you can buy whatever quantity that best suited your needs.

In addition to being coffee geeks, I suspect the two guys that run this company are music nerds. The single-origin coffees were just named after the countries and regions they come from, but the blends were all named after songs. I could be wrong, and perhaps “Blue Orchid” and “Phantom Limb” don’t refer to the White Stripes and Shins songs respectively, but “Mean Streets” definitely is a reference to the song by the band Tennis. They even have Tennis’s tour dates on their site.

Since I’m also a little bit of a music nerd, I made sure to brew this coffee with “Phantom Limb” playing in the background. Heck, why not?

Whole beans: Strong scent of hot cocoa. Very comforting! I was expecting a little more fruity brightness than I got. The dominant aroma was definitely chocolate with just a little bit of blueberry. Once ground, the chocolate scent got even stronger.

V60: The flavor was mostly of cocoa powder with a little bit of blueberry and lemon. Very smooth and easy to drink. I enjoyed the multiple layers of flavor.

AeroPress: This cup definitely turned the treble up. Blueberry and the flavor of dark chocolate dominated overall. Medium to full body.

Chemex: Lighter in body but similar in flavor to the V60. Sweetest aroma of the four – smelled like agave nectar.

French press: Hot cocoa-esque with just a hint of fruit.

Summary: The roaster’s tasting notes make me think it would be very fruit-forward, but the coffee in the cup was definitely more weighted toward chocolate, in all of the preparations. I enjoyed the bit of brightness provided by the lemon and blueberry flavors that were present, as it made the coffee more interesting. The website indicates that this coffee can vary in flavor a lot as the seasons change and they adjust the blend, so it’s possible that if I have this blend again in six months, it would taste very different.

From the roaster: Expect jammy, fruity sweetness, tangy brightness, and a syrupy body.

Current Blend:  All Ethiopian: Adado Natural Process Yirgacheffe, Ardi Natural Process Sidamo, and a washed Yirgacheffe Gr. 1 ECX lot.

Current Tasting Notes: lemon brightness, floral aromatics, blackberry, subtle cocoa.

Huckleberry Roasters Phantom Limb Blend

One Reply to “Review: Huckleberry Roasters Phantom Limb Blend (Denver, Colorado)”

  1. wow- playing Phantom Limb WHILE roasting… Phantom Limb – that’s dedication and commitment right there!
    thanks for the review Margaret – I have some friends in CO and if I ever make it out there (these beans are definitely making it on my bucket list to try)

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