Blind Assessment:

Luscious, deeply sweet, sumptuous. Blackberry, lavender, marjoram, roasted cacao nib, grapefruit zest in aroma and cup. Rich, juicy acidity; smooth, syrupy mouthfeel. The long, flavor-saturated finish is zesty and sweet, offering a surprise appearance of tropical fruit notes (coconut) that resonate for a long while.

Notes:

This outstanding coffee was selected as the No. 1 coffee on Coffee Review’s list of the Top 30 Coffees of 2016. Produced from trees of the SL-28 and SL-34 varieties of Arabica. Despite grower discontent and urban encroachment on prime coffee lands, Kenya continues to produce some of the world’s most elegant and distinctive coffees. This sample consists entirely of peaberries, a kind of bean that results when the coffee fruit develops only a single, oval bean rather than the usual pair of flat-sided beans. Peaberries produce a somewhat different (often better) cup than normal beans from the same crop, from which they may or may not be separated during grading. Based in the San Diego area, Bird Rock Coffee Roasters is a retailer and wholesaler focused on organic and socially responsible coffees; it was awarded the “2012 Micro-Roaster of the Year” title from Roast Magazine. Visit www.birdrockcoffee.com or call 858-551-1707 for more information.

The Bottom Line: An exuberant expression of the classic Kenya cup: sweetly pungent, deeply rich, laden with berry and spicy floral suggestions throughout.