Roast Level:
Light MediumA Light Medium Roast coffee, sometimes referred to as a "City Roast" or "American Roast," lies between a light and medium roast. This roast level strikes a balance by preserving the coffee bean's unique characteristics while allowing for a moderate development of body and flavor. The beans have a medium brown color, exhibiting a slight sheen of oils, providing a more balanced and nuanced flavor profile. A Light Medium Roast typically highlights the coffee's inherent fruity, floral, or citrus notes, while also providing some of the deeper, richer flavors associated with medium roasts.
Bean Source Country:
ColombiaColombian coffees are known for their balanced taste, featuring bright acidity, medium body, and a range of flavors, including fruity notes, caramel sweetness, and nutty undertones. Colombia's worldwide reputation for producing great coffee at scale is well-deserved. Increasingly some of the best microlot specialty roasts are coming from Colombia thanks to their expertise in cultivation and process.
Bean Source Region:
TolimaThe coffee-growing region of Tolima in Colombia is known for producing high-quality coffee. Tolima's coffee producers cultivate their crops on the slopes of the Andes mountain range, allowing the cherries to benefit from high altitudes, rich volcanic soils, and cooler temperatures, which can lead to slower ripening and more complex flavors. Tolima's location in the central north and central south zones of Colombia provides optimal climatic conditions for coffee cultivation, with two distinct dry seasons and two wet seasons annually. This combination of ideal climate, altitude, and soil, along with the expertise of local coffee growers, results in the production of exceptional coffee beans with pronounced aromas, balanced acidity, and distinctive cup profiles.
Espresso
Espresso is a concentrated coffee beverage brewed by forcing hot water through finely-ground coffee beans under high pressure. It is characterized by its rich flavor and distinctive crema—the creamy layer that forms on top of the extracted process. When evaluating espresso, coffee experts often focus on key tasting characteristics such as aroma, flavor, body, and aftertaste. Aroma refers to the fragrant smells released during brewing, while flavor encompasses the coffee's overall taste profile, including notes of sweetness, bitterness, acidity, and richness. Body refers to the coffee's texture or mouthfeel, with descriptors like full-bodied, medium-bodied, or light-bodied. Aftertaste, or the finish, pertains to the lingering flavors and sensations experienced after swallowing the coffee. A well-prepared espresso is prized for its balance and complexity, combining these sensory attributes into a harmonious whole.