When I started getting into specialty coffee, one “rule” I heard a lot was that you do not need an “espresso” blend to make espresso. This is true. I’ve had some amazing espresso shots pulled from single-origin coffees, and I’ve had terrific drip coffee made from beans marketed for espresso. However, not all beans are […]
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Review: Kona Roasted Coffee 100% Hilo (Kona, Hawaii)
Hilo is located on the northeastern end of the big island of Hawaii, and this area experiences one of the highest levels of rainfall of anywhere in the world (around 300 days a year), which makes growing coffee a challenge. The resulting crop is small and rare; this will never be a coffee that will […]
Review: Kona Roasted Coffee Salvador 100% Kona (Kona, Hawaii)
I’ve had this blog for roughly five years, and I go through phases where I am really active, writing a lot of reviews, and also phases where I go quiet. Around about December of 2019, I started getting a little overwhelmed with life and I somewhat unintentionally took a hiatus from coffee reviews – I […]
Review: Sterling Coffee Roasters Ethiopia Shilicho (Portland, Oregon)
Shutterbug and I were wanting to revisit an old favorite recently with Sterling’s Blendo Stupendo espresso beans, and while we made that order, I poked around their website to see what other coffees they had available. I loved, loved, LOVED the Kenya Nyeri Gachatha AA I had purchased from them before so I was hoping […]
Review: The Missing Bean Colombia Asopep (Oxford, England)
I’ve reviewed coffee from The Missing Bean before, back in 2016 (their Unbirthday Blend landed in my top 10 list for the year), and on a recent trip back to England, I was really happy to have a chance to meet up with my friend Katie and visit the roastery itself. It’s not a fancy […]
Review: Ritual Coffee Roasters Guatemala Candelaria (San Francisco, California)
On my recent trip to San Diego, I was wandering through the Little Italy Farmers’ Market when I spotted a sign outside of the Frost Me Cafe and Bakery, proudly displaying the Ritual Coffee logo. I may have squealed a little bit… I quite like the beans I’ve tried from Ritual (their Day Drinker Espresso […]
Mini review: Slightly Coffee Roasters Guatemala Chochajau (Eugene, Oregon)
When Slightly Coffee’s head roaster, Joe (yes, that really is his name! How appropriate, right?), sent me the sample of his excellent Ethiopia Torea Village, he also included a small bag of this Guatemala Chochajau. It was a bit too small of a quantity for me to do a full battery of tests in my usual […]
Review: Stumptown Coffee Roasters Sleigh Ride (Portland, Oregon)
I almost never buy “holiday blends,” but this bag was a nice surprise at a Whole Foods location in Phoenix during the Christmas holidays. Impressively, it was only 4 days off roast when I bought it! That’s exceptionally fresh coffee for retail, especially considering that the nearest Stumptown roasting facility is in Los Angeles. I […]
Review: Oak Cliff Coffee Roasters Hidden City Espresso (Dallas, Texas)
I have a confession to make. For quite a while, I was convinced that I didn’t like coffee from Oak Cliff Coffee Roasters. OCCR is a Dallas-based roaster who has a sizable presence in the city, at both coffee shops and restaurants. I am all for supporting local businesses, but I had multiple experiences at local […]
Review: Madcap Coffee Roasters Ecuador Pepe Azul (Grand Rapids, Michigan)
I’ve been wanting to try Madcap Coffee for a long time. I’ve seen their name mentioned in multiple “best of” lists over the years, I like their logo, and I like the fact that they’re based in Michigan (as I have fond memories of my time in that state for graduate school). All of the […]