I received these beans as a gift from a fellow musician and coffee fanatic (hi, David!). I had never heard of this roaster, so I was super excited to give them a try. My first impression when we opened the bag was HELLO, BLUEBERRY MUFFIN! It seriously smelled like breakfast. I also smelled raisins and dates, and I could tell that this was going to be some seriously flavorful coffee. The beans were smaller than I’ve usually seen, and if coffee beans can be cute, these were!
Chemex: This made a really clean, juicy cup. I tasted a lot of berry flavor – it was like strawberry jam, which surprised me a little since I thought it would taste more like blueberries. Very bright flavors, a very light and refreshing cup. I once had a white sangria with fresh strawberries and a bit of orange – this was actually reminiscent of that, believe it or not. Absolutely delicious.
V60: Compared to the Chemex, this tasted like it had more depth – it was buttered toast with strawberry jam. Beautifully balanced between richness and fruitiness! Definitely made my mouth water.
AeroPress: The surface of the coffee had quite a visible amount of oils, and there was a lot of body in this cup compared to the first two. The flavors were rather complex; there was slightly less red fruit flavor but a pronounced citrusy note I hadn’t noticed before, like lime. I loved this!!
French press: When I was brewing this, the smell reminded me of pastries. Croissants spread with raspberry or strawberry jam… Mmmmm. In the cup, I didn’t find the flavor quite as satisfying as the smell, though. It was still pleasing, with a nice mouthfeel, but I didn’t get as much fruit flavor as the smell was promising, especially considering the berry bombs that the earlier methods provided.
I have had Ethiopian Yirgacheffes twice before – one dry-processed, and one wet-processed. This bag was a dry-processed variety, and it definitely has a strong berry character to it, along with some lime flavor and some butter. If this quality is representative of what Three Ships has to offer, count me in as a repeat customer!
Summary: Do you like strawberry pie? You’ll probably like this coffee. It’s bright and refreshing. Not really one for those who take milk and sugar – I think the dairy + the fruit flavors would taste weird. My favorite preparation method is a tie between Chemex and AeroPress, depending on if you want a cup with more high notes or more depth.
From the roaster: We taste: strawberry rhubarb, honeysuckle, and cherry limeade.
Three Ships Coffee
Great writeup…