Lovely medium Ethiopian espresso with a lot of florality in the bergamot range. Also tangerine, plum, and very dark chocolate. Stiff, medium crema. Linger is a quite bittersweet.

Service friendly but a little uneven (offered sparkling water then forgot it). Great pastries here.

Cupping Method:Espresso at Alana's in Venice Beach/Marina del Rey

A very enjoyable gesha that leans fruity. Not too floral. Blueberry and blackcurrant with some funk and a slight wineyness. Very smooth and a lot of natural sweetness. Clean finish. I don't think there's a wow factor here but it's a very nice coffee.

Cupping Method:16:1 at 94C on v60 worked best for me after some tinkering. 92C and 18:1 was pretty flat and didn't highlight anything additional.

This is an older review that somehow ended up in the nethercyberregions of our early rollout. Visited Dua in DC and had a cup of this and then bought a bag. A sweet funky, natural coffeewith chocolate, guarana, and nutty notes. Fruity in the dark blackberry range.

A lovely, straightforward light roast with sweetness and a smooth mouthfeel. I think it's very grapes. Like a very sweet red grape with the skin on. Dried orange is an accurate note, it has that sweetness/very slight rind note. It's not bitter at all though. Very clean finish.

Cupping Method:Got it from Bean Archives. 16:1, 92C on v60.

Realized I forgot to enter this one.

The description of this coffee was a mouthful, but I think it was actually a fairly straightforward coffee overall. My notes say caramel, mandarin, and a lot of red fruit with good balance.

This coffee bursts with unmistakable fruit character. Mango and passion fruit leap out with clarity, supported by a deep molasses sweetness (makes it a tad funky, but not in a bad way). There is a hint of maple syrup in the mouthfeel that adds weight and smoothness. When hot, the cup feels a little flat on the finish, but it opens up into a more balanced and juicy profile as it cools.

Among recent coferments, this one is more of a hit than a few I've had recently. I preferred it over a similar one from Bean Archives last month. There's been so many of these from Huila showing up that the wow factor is probably gone as well.

A fun and expressive cup that does not feel overdone.

Cupping Method:v60 with a courser grind and lower temp 92C works best.
Took a bit of work to get to as it doesn't balance out quite as well with a standard grind/hotter water.

The tasting notes on my bag of Tide are a little bit different from the picture I pulled off the website, so I'm assuming this one has a little bit of seasonal variation.

I think this is a very good espresso, more towards a medium by speciality standards. Appealing aroma, dark chocolate driven. Dark chocolate is definitely the driver here, but there's a bunch of cherry and blackberry notes here. Very sweet with a syrupy mouthfeel. I don't get tons of complexity but the depth of flavor is quite good.

Cupping Method:Espressos and lattes.

This is a very interesting coffee that has a different mouthfeel as liberica. It's very floral, and I think has a sort of rose turkish delight character to it. It's very full body, complex, woody, floral, creamy, a little smoky.

It's clearly a very well-curated coffee that represents the varietal to a T. It's more something I'd want to drink every once in awhile than all the time.

Cupping Method:Leaderboard Season 18, Coffee #7

Very nice floral and tropical aroma.

Ruby red grapefruit
Tropical punch
Juicy
Pink starburst
Medium acidity
Jasmine tea

Cupping Method:Leaderboard Season 18, Coffee 9

A very nice coffee.

Dense beans, high quality looked beans, visually appealing. Very pleasant fruity aroma on the grind.

Really nice in the cup. I got redcurrant, a slight herbal note, honey, and lime.

Cupping Method:Leaderboard Season 18, Coffee #8

A smooth, light, balanced coffee with sweet orange, honey mouthfeel, and chocolate notes. Toffee/brown sugar sweetness. A touch of citric acidity makes it all come together and it's a great easy drinker.

Cupping Method:Leaderboard Season 18, Coffee #4

La Mushka has been a very good omniroast here, working well in lattes, as espresso, Americanos and filter. It's milk chocolate with a light nuttiness and sweet orange. I think it's a fairly straightforward coffee, but versatile with good depth of flavor across all mediums. It's a lovely looking uniform roast and has a very appealing aroma out of the bag.

Cupping Method:I got this coffee from Trade.

Appealing aroma, toasted cocoa.

Cup is very redcurrant, slightly funky, slightly herbal. Maybe a touch of sage and jasmine.

Notes had it a Natural Pink Bourbon 2x so I have no idea why I changed my mind when the time came to do the Leaderboard entry.

Cupping Method:Leaderboard Season 18, Coffee #1. Standard v60 18:1, 93C formula.

Incredible sweet aroma, especially post grind.

In the cup, very rose plus some lychee and passionfruit. Mid-palate there's a sort of grapefruit note that's not quite bright enough in the acidity for me. A good amount of natural sweetness and a smooth pleasant mouthfeel, like a drop of honey was added.

This is very close to being one of those sensational processed coffees, but just doesn't quite over the line for me.

Cupping Method:93C and 18:1 on the v60, 4 equal pours worked best. Hotter and more concentrated accentuated the grapefruit.

A very nice Turkish coffee, prepared very traditionally with earthy/nutty notes. Good depth of the chocolatey notes and has the proper thick mouthfeel. The proper mouthfeel for Turkish coffee is thick, dense, and velvety, with a noticeable body that coats the palate. Because the coffee is unfiltered and brewed with very finely ground coffee simmered directly in water, it retains suspended particles contributing to its rich texture. A well-made Turkish coffee should feel smooth rather than gritty, with the grounds settling gently at the bottom of the cup. I think you get that here. Definitely not always the case.

I think a higher quality blend than some of the robusta driven Turkish coffees you see that may or may not get covered up with spices. It's a very nice cafe with great vibe.

Cupping Method:Stopped into this cafe after a day at the beach. My wife picked up the coffee and I drank it in the car so no picture!

Amazing fruity aroma pre and post grind. A pretty interesting cup of coffee with a lot of natural sweetness and a little bit of buttery texture and funky texture to go with lots of fruit notes. It's blackberry blackcurrant forward, a little Ribena like. It's very interesting but I'd say that I like rather than love drinking it.

Cupping Method:Got from Bean Archives. 16:1, 94C on Hario v60 for dense, flavorful cup was best

An appealing and well-balanced character. Drinks a bit light so used 15:1 instead of 18:1 on v60 with a slightly finer grind than normal.

I get some Ribena character with a bit of eucalyptus. A lot of natural sweetness in the honey range. Some herbal notes as well.

Cupping Method:Bean Archives recommended 15:1. Drinks a bit thin unless concentrated. 25:1, 94C on v60.

This is a nice coffee with a honeyed mouthfeel. Very smooth, low complexity.

Slightly floral, lightly fruity. It reminds me a little bit of Ribena, a blackcurrant drink.

Cupping Method:17:1, 94C on Hario v60. I got this coffee from Bean Archives.

I had this coffee as dripped at Reprise in Providence. My tastes notes didn't really line up with the roasters but I'll stick with my grade. I got more of a milk chocolate strawberry, blueberry cup with just a slight funk. good brightness in the acidity and very well balanced and smooth with a lot of natural sweetness.

Cupping Method:This was drip and I bet I'd get more of the roaster notes on pourover.

Definitely get the strawberry and pink peppercorn here with some star anise. A really interesting coffee. A little bit flat at the end, and acidity is a bit muted but give a strong grade for the uniqueness.

Cupping Method:16:1, 94C in the Hario v60 per Bean Archives recommendation

Unique coffee with a lot of interesting flavor notes. I definitely get the green cardamom which is cool, and a little bit of sage. For me, it's blueberry heavy on the front of the palate. The cardamom note is unique and will determine whether you like the coffee or not.

Cupping Method:15:1 in v60 per Bean Archives recommendation. 94C

During a visit to Stone Barns, I had a double shot of their Blue Hill Select single origin Colombian coffee from Huila.

I brought a bag home and did most of the tasting there.

The roast falls somewhere between medium and dark, with a dry surface and no visible oils. It has a wonderful aroma that reminded me of chocolate cake. As espresso, it showed notes of dark chocolate and molasses with a rich syrupy mouthfeel. The acidity was balanced and leaned toward black cherry. It also performed well in milk drinks like lattes and cappuccinos, delivering a classic café style profile.

Very clean geisha, with a pleasant mouth feel and some interesting notes that you have to squint a bit to get it. The roaster has rambutan cardamom, and dragonfruit. I think dragon fruit is the one I can really pick up. I get a little bit of white/Concord grape. A little bit of ripe blueberry. The sweetness is a very faint honey.

Cupping Method:17:1, 93C in v60. Felt like I could get a five star cup out of this one, but three tries and never made it there. I got this coffee from Bean Archives.

A really well-balanced coffee that has great depth in the chocolate note, a lot of natural sweetness, and a very clean/sweet ripe orange note. Not an overly complex or fancy coffee but easy drinking and tasty.

Cupping Method:Pourover at Clover

A nice artisan style espresso roast. Good depth of chocolate flavor, some nice earthiness, sweetness in the caramel/maple syrup range. Good stiff crema.

Cupping Method:Double espresso at Newport shop. Ran in and out and didn't get a photo but the crema was nice.

Pulled on a beautifully restored vintage Victoria Arduino at Beacon Coffee & Mercantile in Beacon, NY, this dark roast had all the hallmarks of a classic European-style espresso. Syrupy and full-bodied, it leaned into earthy, nutty notes, walnut in particular, with a gentle thread of smoke running through the finish. The shot felt grounded and nostalgic, more about depth and texture than brightness. It was a great match for the vibe of the café, where the old-world machine added just the right touch of character to the experience.

Thick, classic medium dark. Nice crema and mouthfeel. Cherry, slight hint of smoke, slight nutty. Rich dark chocolate that carries through the palate and is the strongest part of the roast.

Cupping Method:Espresso at Kitchen + Coffee in Beacon, NY

Thick, complex espresso with massive creamy. Excellent depth of flavor in chocolate, earthiness, walnut, and blackberry. Might come in too earthy for some. Also quite a bit of bright acidity for this style of roast. Very enjoyable.

Cupping Method:Double espresso at Tarrytown Cafe. They have a Marzocco machine.

Classic washed Ethiopian. I get all 3 notes, mango, white peach, and jasmine mentioned by the roaster. Light black tea platform. A slight hint of cinnamon on the nose that's very subtle in the cup. Very clean.

Cupping Method:17.5:1, 93C in the Hario v60

This roaster has been on my list for sometime. Maybe just because of the catchy name or Tahoe vibe.

First impressions: I could just smell this coffee for days. Smells like a malted chocolate ball.

In the cup, it pulls a nice medium crema with some heft. I think it does taste a bit like a chocolate honey Stinger bar. It's chocolate, smooth, sweet, and has a cherry/blackberry fruitiness. The depth of flavor is good. I don't get a ton of complexity or a 5-star acidity note but the flip is it's easy to work with for milk drinks.

Cupping Method:Made 95C in La Spaziale A53