Review: 49th Parallel Ethiopia Halo Beriti (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada)

Vancouver is one of my favorite cities that I’ve ever visited, and while on a short trip to Seattle earlier this year, I made a somewhat spur-of-the-moment decision to hop on a bus and spend a day in Vancouver. While there, I made it a priority to find my way to a 49th Parallel Cafe […]

Review: Kuma Coffee Ethiopia Suke Quto (Seattle, Washington)

I had last tried beans from Kuma Coffee back in 2015, not long after I had started this blog. I remember liking their coffee for its fruity, bright notes, but I also remember struggling a bit in my first tasting because I was picking up on a papery taste from the unbleached filter I was […]

Review: Simple Beans FUCK COVID-19 Social Distancing Blend (La Jolla, California)

Did the name of this blend catch your attention? It sure caught mine!! I haven’t been super motivated to write new coffee reviews lately; my energy level these days is lower than usual (from stress) and I sort of unofficially decided not to create more work for myself by accepting new beans for review. So […]

Review: Blue Bottle Coffee Summer Blend (Oakland, California)

Blue Bottle Coffee offers seasonal blends, and I was fortunate enough to pick up a bag of their Summer Blend while it was still available. I first was alerted about this blend through Blue Bottle’s email list, where Blue Bottle’s quality control director, Ben Brewer (really? Is there a more spot-on surname for someone working […]

Review: Square Mile Coffee Roasters Guatemala Los Suspiros (London, England)

The last time I had tried an espresso from Square Mile Coffee Roasters, it was their excellent Red Brick Espresso Blend, so this time I opted to try this single-origin Guatemalan espresso. Whole bean: Sweet, tangy aroma reminiscent of peach and amaretto. Espresso: Sometimes I really enjoy single-origin espressos and sometimes I just can’t find […]

Review: True Coffee Roasters Ethiopia Guji, washed, Grade 1 (Fitchburg, Wisconsin)

Readers in the US are probably familiar with the quasi-holiday Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving, when large retailers slash prices on all sorts of merchandise to kick off the Christmas shopping season), but a slightly lesser-known quasi holiday is Small Business Saturday, when consumers are encouraged to do their holiday shopping from small businesses. […]

Review: Friedhats Coffee Roasters Ethiopia Suke Quto, washed (Amsterdam, Netherlands)

Usually, when I feature coffee from roasters based outside the United States, it’s because I’ve had the opportunity to travel to the country in question. In this case, I did not actually go to Amsterdam (maybe someday!); I came across these beans at Revolver Coffee on Cambie St. in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Revolver had […]

Review: Monarch Coffee Colombia Finca El Cajon (Kansas City, Missouri)

Monarch Coffee on Broadway Blvd. was the final coffee shop I visited on my trip to Kansas City. What a gorgeous space! I didn’t take any photos while I was there but you can get an idea of their aesthetic via their Instagram account. This roaster/cafe has quite the pedigree: The owner is a licensed […]

Review: Prismatic Coffee El Salvador Finca El Nazareth Natural (Albuquerque, New Mexico)

My last coffee from my visit to Albuquerque was this bag from Prismatic Coffee. Prismatic’s cafe is a thoroughly modern space with lovely touches spread throughout – it felt very Instagrammable, if you’re into that sort of thing. Two things of note: They create stroopwafels by hand, in both salted caramel and fruit flavors (seasonally). […]

Review: Onyx Coffee Lab Kenya Gachatha OT-18 (Springdale, Arkansas)

I’ve had beans from Onyx Coffee Lab before; my local Whole Foods has started carrying their beans, and I’ve spotted this brand occasionally in Dallas-area coffee shops. However, this bag of beans is a bit special to me because I actually picked it up from Onyx’s Springdale location while I was in Arkansas for a […]