Top rated coffee beans: what are they? Traditionally there were a relatively small number of coffees that were considered to be top rated coffee beans, with people generally offering up Jamaican Blue Mountain, Hawaiian Kona, or some other prestigious coffee. Much has changed in the coffee world, in particular producers understand that the market will pay a premium for quality; that it doesn't need to be a race to the bottom for the lowest price as it is in a commodity market.
The pursuit of quality is partly a luxury of choice that is only available to the larger producers; those who have sufficient surpluses from trading to be able to invest in and develop their business in a way that small holders are not. It tends to be something of an escalator, and if the grower can afford to make the commitment to quality it generates further surpluses that provide funding for another layer of investment in the future. Quality based initiatives, such as the Cup of Excellence program that was devised by McKinsey Consulting Group is an example of a quality driven initiative that provides growers with a platform on which to showcase their best efforts to the highest bidders, thus providing an opportunity to be rewarded for their pursuit of excellence.
In short the world of gourmet coffee has become much less based on romantic tales of coffee estates in far flung parts of the former empires of European nations and much more scientific, although you may share our observation that the pendulum has swung too far in some cases and the levels of accuracy proclaimed feel a bit contrived. This merely serves to intimidate prospective customers who want to enjoy gourmet coffee yet have busy lives and are unable to set aside half an hour each morning before work to go through an obsessive science experiment involving the mixing of coffee and water.
Secondly, we observe that coffees with impeccable 'quality' credentials dont always translate into a taste that we find appealing. Often we find the Emperor is not wearing any clothes. Sometimes this is the result of applying an inappropriate brewing method to the coffee, sometimes it merely confirms our belief that no end of science can rescue a coffee that has been grown in an inappropriate location, has been subject to poor weather conditions or rough handling at some point prior to delivery.
Londinium's role is to identify what we consider to be top rated coffee beans based on how they taste under a particular brewing method. We are not affiliated to any industry body and larger commercial interest; we are completely independent. You may not not always agree with our thoughts, but at least you'll know they're our own and not a subversive marketing push. In concluding we would say that you are the ultimate arbiter of what constitutes top rated coffee beans. Londinium hold a wide range of coffee beans and roast them fresh to try and ensure we have a coffee to suit every taste in the broad spectrum of public opinion on coffee.
We've umm'd and ahh'd for a couple of days over this 6th test roast. In the end we think it is too tangy so we ran a 7th test roast tonight & found ourselves in need of some inner warmth just now so we're into it already and of course its too early to be sure but it tastes very close to the mark. The tanginess in coffee is always more noticeable first thing in the morning than in the evening. In the evening we find the tanginess easy to live with, but in the morning we find it becomes a bit irritating as you work you way towards the bottom of the cup. The signs are good that this 7th test roast has just bought the scales to balancing point in terms finding a happy medium that is pleasant throughout the day. More soon as this 7th roast evens out over the next few days.
that's it, this roast estbs the baseline, with its tangy notes. this is more objectionable first thing in the morning than in the evening, so we will run a 6th test roast at 1F higher, and we will have a product ready for sale i expect. our evaluations have all been performed with the Swissgold filter. to our taste this isnt really suitable for the espresso process.
...its good, but we've not reached rock bottom & there's a sniff of soot lurking in the background, so in the name of science & the pursuit of excellence we've roasted a 5th test roast (1 Dec), another 5F lower again. we look forward to tasting it this weekend.
We tried our third test roast of this coffee today with an end point -5 degrees F on the first roast (the second test was roasted at the same time as the first roast, being +2F than the first and this 2nd test was quickly dismissed as being out of range). Now that we have a taste for this consignment we were able to fairly quickly conclude that even this third test roast is over done. The next test will be 8 degrees F less than this one (-13F on the first test) to probe low and see where the bottom limit is. We may then have to step back up but we dont feel we know where the lower limit might lie yet. More soon.
If you have not familiar with the term, 'peaberry' simply refers to a single seed pod mutation of the standard two half seed pod that you are familiar with. Or so I thought. This peabury is very dense, the only comparable coffee in terms of density being the single estate robusta that we have. Please do not read this to mean that it tastes like the robusta we have. I am purely noting the immense amount of energy this coffee draws when roasting, much like the Semeru Estate robusta we have in stock. The unique shape of the peaberry is clearly visible in the close up image, something akin to the shape of an Australian rules football, an elongated form with slightly flattened ends. If you are observant you will notice that there is a chip off the surface of one of the roasted coffee beans in the bottom image. In my book this chipping is symptomatic of taking the coffee to its roasting limit. You can get away with roasting coffee to the extent that chipping occurs where an espresso roast is sought, but for filter and vacuum use which is certainly the only way to enjoy a delicate coffee like this in my opinion, I feel that the chipping is an indication that we have taken this roast slightly too far. We tasted our sample roast 3 days after roast (first bag) and 11 days after roast (second bag). As always, it is easier to decipher what is going on in the roast after 11 days; there is a kaleidoscope of tastes dazzling the tongue when the roast is too fresh and it feels a bit like going over a waterfall inside a barrel; confusing. After 11 days we could tell much more easily that we have taken the roast a little too far, not by much, perhaps 3 degrees Fahrenheit. If time permits we will try again tomorrow, and report back with our findings in due course. At this stage we can confirm that this is a very delicate coffee, with light Jasmin notes. We just need to work on polishing up our roasting approach so a clear image of this coffee's taste potential appears in your cup. The clarity that a vacuum coffee maker brings to the cup will allow the true taste profile of this coffee to shine with the clarity of a diamond on your tongue.
Its finally here, the Jamaican peabury. Man in Australia hounding us all this time for it; you know who you are! This year has been a very poor season for Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee so we'll have to see if it measures up. If it doesn't we wont sell it. The more observant of you will have seen that one consignment of Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee has already suffered that fate this year. Hope to take delivery Friday, then give us a couple of weeks to play with it & see what we can get from it. Just in time to make a wonderful Christmas gift, hopefully :-!
Espresso machines selling for 4 times what we sell the Bacchi for will not produce an espresso as good as the Bacchi. You can also use roast and ground coffee, such as Illy, and get an acceptable result and still with excellent deep crema. Satisfaction or your money back. Nothing else comes close at this price point if its real espresso you want. Another piece of world class coffee equipment bought to your attention by Londinium. We only sell equipment that will provide you with excellent coffee year after year. Gimmicks, gizmos and fads are not welcome here.
We have been playing around with some new Honduran coffee as we are getting low on the Honduran coffee we currently have in stock. This new coffee, Cocaol, is fair trade and organic certified if that is important to you. It has that distinctive nuttiness that most Honduran coffees exhibit, although it has a lot more acidity than the Honduran coffee we currently sell.
We think we've managed to achieve a good compromise with the roast, taking it just dark enough to tame the acidity without killing it's personality and turning it all to soot. It makes a lovely piccolo, which we make with two 30ml shots of espresso and just 30ml of steamed milk.
You will also enjoy this coffee if you like an espresso with a little more bite, but please be assured that it does not exhibit the extreme acidity that is so prevalent at the moment.
