Blind Assessment: Evaluated as espresso. Intensely chocolaty, vivaciously fruit-toned. Dark chocolate, narcissus, pie cherry, molasses, sandalwood in aroma and small cup. Rich, syrupy mouthfeel. A resonant finish leads with cherry and narcissus notes in the short and sandalwood-toned chocolate in the long. In three parts milk, dark chocolate envelopes deeply stated fruit and floral notes.

Notes: This exceptional coffee was selected as the No. 18 coffee on Coffee Review’s list of the Top 30 Coffees of 2018. Southern Ethiopia coffees like this one are produced from traditional Ethiopian varieties of Arabica long grown in the region. It was processed by the wet or washed method (fruit skin and pulp are removed before drying). Southern Ethiopia coffees processed by this method typically express great aromatic complexity and intensity, with a particular emphasis on floral notes. In addition to his retail roasting operation, Aroma Roast Coffees, Simon Hsieh also operates Soaring Phoenix Trading, a business focused on purpose-built commercial espresso blends and high quality single-origin coffees. Visit www.facebook.com/4ArtsZeroDefectCoffees or call 886-0983-749876 for more information.

The Bottom Line: A dynamic trifecta of flowers, fruit and chocolate in both the shot and in cappuccino-scaled milk.