Blind Assessment: Big, complex but balanced dried-in-the-fruit profile. Honey, nectarine, fresh blueberry, hints of milk chocolate, fir and walnut in aroma and cup. Rich, lyrically sweet acidity; lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Juicy finish.

Notes: Grown near Neji in the Sidama/Sidamo growing region, this Ethiopian coffee is a dry-processed or "natural" coffee, meaning the beans were dried inside the fruit rather than after the fruit has been removed, as is the case with wet-processed or "washed" coffees. Blue Bottle Coffee started as the quintessential boutique coffee business: a micro-roasting operation in Oakland housed inside a space about as large as a suburban walk-in closet and a single retail location in San Francisco. Since its founding Blue Bottle has attracted a strong following in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond, and now operates two roasting locations: one in Oakland, California and another in Brooklyn, New York. Visit www.bluebottlecoffee.net or call 510-653-3394 for more information.

Who Should Drink It: Superb version of the Ethiopian dried-in-the-fruit or “natural” profile, with the complex, juicy sweetness of the type expressed with unusual purity and vivacity.