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We have published thousands of coffee reviews and espresso reviews since 1997. The reviews below appear in reverse chronological order by review date. Older reviews may no longer accurately reflect current versions of the same coffee. To search for a specific roaster, origin or coffee use the Advanced Search Function.
Sweet and round in the aroma, highlighted by notes of chocolate and aromatic wood. Richly balanced acidity, syrupy mouthfeel and layers of complex flavors combining the fragrant wood characteristics with hints of grapefruit. Long, dry finish, dominated by fruit-toned dark chocolate.
Sustained fruit- and floral-toned aroma and flavor, displaying notes of dried apricot, orange and honey. Tartly fruit-toned acidity and silky mouthfeel with flavor carrying deeply into the finish.
Honey-like sweetness in aroma and cup, with notes of flowers, citrus and stone fruit contributing complexity. Bright acidity, silky mouthfeel and a slightly simplified version of the flavor profile in the finish, along with a distant hint of astringency.
Richly sweet in the aroma, combining complicated layers of flowers, crisp lemon and a slight peppery note. A rounder version of the aromatic complexity carries into the cup, with deepening notes of aromatic wood. Medium body, delicate mouthfeel and floral-toned acidity. Toasty sweetness persists into the finish along with a suggestion of astringency as the cup cools.
A juicy fruit-toned cup, combining notes of black currant and citrus with honey and butter. Intense, penetrating acidity, syrupy body and long lasting flavors. The fruit flavors continue into the finish, taking on a tartly-sweet quality.
Evaluated as espresso. A complex small cup layered with notes of maple syrup, fir, toasted nut and dried fruit, apricot perhaps. Medium-bodied, but with deep, sustained flavor that carries sweetly into the finish. Flavor becomes even more nuanced in two parts milk: richly sweet caramel supports pungent fruit and aromatic wood notes.
Evaluated as espresso. Cherry and chocolate dominate in the small cup and linger deeply into the finish, with layered complications of flowers, aromatic wood and anise. In two parts milk the chocolate becomes deeper and the fruit slightly less nuanced, but overall flavor remains sweet, round and balanced.
Evaluated as espresso. Forcefully bright in the small cup: a berry-like sweetness supports tangy citrus and tart cherry. An impressively flavor-saturated finish combines chocolate, aromatic wood and concentrated fruit. A softer version of the fruit complex carries into two parts milk.
In the aroma sweet caramel and nut tones. In the cup muted acidity, full, rounded mouthfeel and a woody but rich flavor complicated by hints of nut and chocolate, all of which carry into the finish.
An essay in refined acidity: balanced, tartly sweet, nuanced by ripe tomato and apricot. Further complications of nut and perhaps milk chocolate. Particularly impressive finish: sweet, long, saturated with apricot-toned fruit.
Tartly fruit-toned in aroma and cup. Layers of apricot, blackberry and cherry; hints of tarter fruit in the cup: ripe tomato, black currant. Crisply bright acidity and lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Flavor fades rather quickly in the finish.
A bright-toned cup with an intense aroma. Flavors combine sweet and tart citrus, round toasty notes and hints of baking spice. Clean, crisp and softly astringent in the finish, with sweet citrus reemerging and lingering in the long.
Notes of pipe tobacco, cherry and pungent aromatic wood in the aroma. Simplifies slightly in the cup, with continued aromatic wood and hints of baker's chocolate and nut. Pungent, roast-toned, softly astringent finish.
(As brewed on a Keurig B70 Platinum single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce 6- and 8-ounce servings): Sweet aroma with hints of caramel, dark chocolate and fruit. In the cup soft, roast-muted acidity, silky mouthfeel and a continued caramelly dark chocolate and fruit, most pronounced at the stronger (6-ounce) serving size. The finish disappoints: woody astringency dominates the faintly lingering chocolate sweetness.
Evaluated as espresso. Smooth, quietly complex. Lemon and flowers in the aroma, with deepening notes of aromatic wood and chocolate in the small cup. Full, syrupy body. Very long, rich finish saturated with chocolate and flowers. Sweetens nicely in milk but simplifies a bit, though the lemony chocolate rings on, particularly in the finish.
Soft, sweet fruit tone in the aroma broadens in the cup, displaying distinct notes of blackberry, black currant and apricot. Bright-toned, fruit laden acidity and silky mouthfeel. Long lasting honeyed fruit flavors simplify only slightly in the finish.
Evaluated as espresso. Intense cedary, fruit-toned wood in the aroma; some acidity in the cup, with chewy, raisiny fruit notes leaning toward dark chocolate. A hint of flowers at the top. Strong presence in two parts milk: full mouthfeel, bittersweet chocolate, with the aromatic wood nuance rounding toward nut.
A sweet, well rounded cup. Cherry and citrus mix with chocolate, nut and cedar in aroma and cup, along with a distant hint of lavender. Perfectly balanced, sweet-toned and smooth acidity. Fruit diminishes in the finish focusing the flavor on unsweetened chocolate.
Evaluated as espresso. A solid, balanced blend with flowers, chocolate, and a hint of savory spice and aromatic wood. In co-taster Andy Newbom's (88) more colorful words: "sweet, fruity, caramel, spicy, balanced and soft, warm nuts and cocoa with a touch of fruit." That makes it sound a bit more than solid (Ken had it at 88 also), but a rather muted aroma and heavy finish dragged on its rating. In four parts milk, however, it held up with admirable consistency: tart chocolate, nut, and a continuing hint of flowers.
Evaluated as espresso. Particularly impressive aroma: sweet-toned and delicate: "flowers, orangy chocolate" (Ken, 89). Smooth, buttery mouthfeel. In flavor, lively but rather "tangy and sharp" (co-cupper Andy Newbom, 88); a little too much unripe lemon and licorice sensation perhaps. Chocolaty but simple in milk.