Animated by an almost effervescently dry, winy fruit elevated by hints of flowers. Sweetens slightly in the shimmers of the fruity finish.
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We found 754 reviews that match your search for kenya. Coffees are listed in reverse chronological order by review date. Older reviews may no longer accurately reflect current versions of the same coffee.
The bittersweet paradox is less intense here than in the Jeremiah's Pick French Roast, with a bit more emphasis on the sweet side of the equation and a hint of dry, pruny fruit. The smoothest body of the eight French roasts I cupped, suggesting that the roast drove fewer fats out of the bean.
A deep, resonant pungency envelops the Kenya dry wine and tart berry tones, giving them a sexy fresh-sweat twist. This odd, rough-yet-smooth pungency is a Peet's trade mark, and only occasionally found in coffees dark-roasted by competitors. Here it supports without obliterating the citrus and berry freshness of the Kenya.
Rich Kenya wine tones dominate, buoyed by shimmers of citrus and berry. A complex sweetness blooms as the cup cools and the dry wine tones soften. A fine coffee, although I missed the echoing dimension of the very best Kenyas.
Sweet, almost juicy, lemon-and-nut-tones carry exhilaratingly from aroma into the cup. Once there, they turn a bit stolid, then darkens toward tobacco in the finish.
The brightly assertive, sweetly fruity acidity that Kenya enthusiasts love is on full display here, cradled by a richly textured body. As a bonus we get the treasured Kenya berry notes, although the panel wasn't sure whether they were blueberry, blackberry, strawberry or just "berry." Berries and all, I found this otherwise splendid Kenya a touch shallow in dimension compared to the highest-rated Gaturiri.
A high score but a relatively low wow quotient. Apparently panelists valued this coffee for its rich balance and deeply matrixed fruit; the body was described variously as full, heavy, and thick. However, several panelists felt the cup was a bit faded, restrained, "past-croppish." Perhaps this is an instance when the mid-season timing of the cupping did prejudice the cupping results.
Bright but well-matrixed acidity, full body, and a complex cluster of grace notes elevated the score of this sample. "Good balance of flavors, excellent complexity, ... fruit, spice, ... tropical woods, cedar with some sweet dark chocolate. [But] fades when cool. Where did all that flavor go?" For me the flavor went too soon. I missed length and development, and found the smoky, herby notes a touch dissonant. But that's a minority opinion: Overall the panel very much admired this coffee.
Ambivalence. Most panelists noted a pleasantly fruity, floral sweetness, particularly in the nose, but as the coffee cooled an underlying baggy flatness emerged to drown out the pleasant memories. "This coffee is like a bitter wind," wrote one. "Cools to grassy flavors." Two panelists complained that the roast was too light to do justice to the coffee. Perhaps that accounts for the grassy notes, but I don't think that the overall flatness can be attributed to roast.
Most panelists found the acidity too dominating here and the rest of the profile too neutral, making for a sort of one-dimensional Kenya cup. "A test-tube Kenya," complained one. "Very bright acidity, but not able to pick out other threads," wrote another. Finally: "Very citrusy. I'll score it high for acidity, but would like to try a darker roast in hopes [that] more depth and sweetness emerge." I found the cup pleasant but underpowered.
The brightly assertive, sweetly fruity acidity that Kenya enthusiasts love is on full display here, cradled by a richly textured body. As a bonus we get the treasured Kenya berry notes, although the panel wasn't sure whether they were blueberry, blackberry, strawberry or just "berry." Berries and all, I found this otherwise splendid Kenya a touch shallow in dimension compared to the highest-rated Gaturiri.
This Kenya attracted the highest rating achieved by any coffee since Coffee Review began its panel cuppings. Judging from comments alone it would seem that its bright, vibrant acidity powered it to the top, but I suspect that the ultimate reason it prevailed over other samples in the cupping is its deep, echoing dimension. This coffee didn't just tickle or please the palate, it resonated on it like the stroke of a deliciously humming gong. Minority report: Despite the high score, two panelists felt the powerful acidity imbalanced and overly simplified the profile.
I liked this coffee. For me it displayed the typical strength of fine Kenyas: clean, bright, berry-nuanced fruit and tremendous dimension. Most of the panelists didn't taste it that way. They found the acidity a touch too astringent, particularly in aftertaste. One eloquently sat the fence: "good berry flavors, a 'juicy' cup, [but] finish a bit astringent. Needs balance." A darker roast might help achieve that balance by softening the acidity.
This was my personal favorite for its explosion of flowers and fruit and long, chocolate-toned finish. I wasn't alone. I counted two "wows!" scrawled on the cupping forms, a significant wow-quotient given the usually restrained disposition of the panel. Although most stopped short of wow, they did register their admiration for this coffee's bright, nuanced fruit and balanced matrix. Only one dissenter: "Bright, lemony cup, ... but I want more body and depth." Once again, a darker roast might go a long way toward developing that depth.
A high score but a relatively low wow quotient. Apparently panelists valued this coffee for its rich balance and deeply matrixed fruit; the body was described variously as full, heavy, and thick. However, several panelists felt the cup was a bit faded, restrained, "past-croppish." Perhaps this is an instance when the mid-season timing of the cupping did prejudice the cupping results.
Bright but well-matrixed acidity, full body, and a complex cluster of grace notes elevated the score of this sample. "Good balance of flavors, excellent complexity, ... fruit, spice, ... tropical woods, cedar with some sweet dark chocolate. [But] fades when cool. Where did all that flavor go?" For me the flavor went too soon. I missed length and development, and found the smoky, herby notes a touch dissonant. But that's a minority opinion: Overall the panel very much admired this coffee.
Ambivalence. Several panelists admired this Keny's understated but richly fruity sweetness, but judging from their scores, remained only mildly impressed by the whole package. "Sweet undertones; dances nicely on the palate, but with a weird, disjointed rhythm" wrote one, memorably. "Thin, lackluster," complained another. I found the cup pleasant but underpowered.
Pungent, full, deep-throated fruit dominates here. Several panelists called the cup balanced, which I take as praise for the way the acidity animates the profile from the inside rather than screaming off the top. Nevertheless, overall this coffee generated limited enthusiasm. "Decent," wrote one. "Not the big fruity notes, but drinkable," harrumphed another. "Lacks true East African character," complained a third.
Consensus found the acidity in this Kenya pleasantly fruity and sweet in the nose but disturbingly sharp in the cup and astringent in the aftertaste. Again, a slightly darker roast might help tame the sharpness. A few of us found solace in what struck us as a round, rather richly textured body.
It is a measure of this coffee's complexity that every time I returned to the cup it provoked new adjectives. Winy (the favorite), pungent and smoky, vanilla overtones, and in the finish sweetness, prune and chocolate. The body is rather full for a Kenya, and the cup almost shockingly rich. Like all great Kenyas this one keeps shifting and building complexity from first impression through aftertaste.