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The acidity is powerful yet subdued, slightly (and properly, given the origin) winy. Not much depth or resonance, but a nutty sweetness emerges in the finish that surprises, given the origin. The roast contributes some slight carbon tones.

One of the few coffees in the cupping with resonance and depth. You have to be patient with this coffee and wait for the heavy, pruny, dark-roast pungency to reveal itself in the finish, but it's worth the wait. If this coffee showed some acidity and top notes it might be a real winner. As it is, the attic is bare and all the fun is in the cellar, but that's probably as it should be in something called a French roast.

An unusual coffee, probably owing to the dry processing. The aroma is deep, rich, and powerful; the body full. In the cup, however, the power turns rather hard and herbal, almost peppery. Like so many coffees in the cupping, this one promises depth, yet won't let us past a hardness at the bottom of the profile.

Another coffee with a pleasing first impression. The acidity is deep, fruity, perhaps winy. But there's no cushion or bounce here, and little intrigue beyond the fruity acidity and a touch of carbon. The hard simplicity carries into the aftertaste, although the profile rounds a bit as the coffee cools.

The roast overwhelms the coffee here. The cup is carbon-toned and rather thin-bodied, with little nuance or dimension. Pleasant and without offense, but this Costa Rica's virtues and surprises apparently were left behind in the decaffeination vat and roasting smoke.

Little acidity and not much at the top, but balanced and complete in the middle ranges. Rich, particularly in the nose, although the rich impression doesn't develop beyond the first impression, and tends to fade in the finish.

A sweet-toned acidity, a sort of subdued brightness, enlivens this medium-bodied coffee. The sweetness reads with considerable complexity: as vanilla in the nose and fruit-toned chocolate in the cup. Once these nuances have pleased us, however, nothing further turns up. No depth, no teasing secrets. Still, the elegantly complex top notes make this coffee one of the standouts in the cupping.

The acidity is pronounced, although more fruity and sweet than dry and brisk. Distinct chocolate tones nuance the fruit. The chocolate turns darkly prune-like in the finish, and lingers sweetly in the aftertaste. An attractive and ingratiating coffee, although the rather heavy body remains curiously inert under all the sweetness.

This delicate coffee is the inverse of the San Rafael. Its virtues would seem to be softness, lightness, and buoyant top notes. Its weakness appears to be lack of power, and its faults failures of youth rather than age. Several cuppers detected floral tones. Others tasted notes ranging from spicy through herbal to nutty (the favorite, noted on three forms). Nevertheless, several cuppers were put off by shortcomings associated with immaturity: grassiness, rawness. Two detected sour notes.

Virtually everyone described this medium-bodied coffee as soft and sweet. About half of the cuppers reported nutty tones. Some stopped there. "Unremarkable!" exclaimed one. Several, however, also identified a light, high-toned acidity that balanced or complemented the sweetness. For example: "Pleasant soft, sweet acidity -- subtly snappy." Two cuppers detected slightly hard or woody notes in the nose of this coffee, but apparently tasted nothing to confirm the problem in the cup and chose not to push the issue in their responses.

Defects apparently consigned this rather heavy-bodied, low-toned Antigua to the bottom of the cupping-form pile. Some found its low-toned heaviness flat; others, however, liked it. Several called the profile "sweet"; another "solid." One cupper raved: "Great cup. Very good body and flavor." Another puzzled: "Aspects don't gel, even though it has good flavor." Three cuppers detected sour notes, one going so far as to call the coffee "oniony." Three others found it old-tasting or "baggy," which suggests conditioning or storage problems, a plausible hypothesis for a coffee that suggests power but doesn't come through, that seems oddly dulled or muted.

Most found this Antigua a bit underpowered, perhaps owing to its relatively light body (noted by almost everyone). Some found compensating virtues: chocolaty, spicy, nutty notes. Others praised a soft, sweet smoothness. Still others objected: "a bit lifeless"; "not so happening"; "thin"; and most Originsal, "straightlaced[!]". Only two found outright failings: a slight sourness. One delivered an inspired characterization of the subtle fragrance: "Dancing on fruity."

For most the acidity was the main act here. Some found it pleasantly bright ("nice, winy and sharp," according to one); others complained it was too sharp, throwing off the balance of the coffee, and perhaps astringent in the aftertaste. Supporting virtue: Most found this coffee substantial in body. "An excellent example of a Guatemala," according to one. But judging from the scores, the majority may harbor reservations.

A provocative coffee. Everyone had something to say about it, yet no clear consensus emerged. The majority read the body as full ("even and full; well-balanced," according to one), but a small but outspoken minority found it light or even thin. Surprisingly, almost no one came down in the middle. Reactions to acidity were similarly mixed: Several found the acidity pleasantly dry and winy; others criticized it as sharp or sour. I found it alive and vivacious at first impression but rather ragged and astringent in the finish. No defects were cited; on the other hand nobody carried on about grace notes either.

Judging by the scores, I was in the minority here. I loved this Antigua for its dimension and completeness -- the way it resonated on the palate and developed, stretching into the distance behind the initial impression. Some cuppers agreed: "nice complexity ... clean, lingering aftertaste"; "full [bodied], great structure." But others wanted more out front: "all the right characteristics, but very [much] in the distance, blurry." Four detected chocolate notes; only one found a mild off note.

A powerful but flawed coffee. Coffee professionals are familiar with the taste of ferment, caused when the sugars from the coffee fruit begin to go off while the fruit is still on the bean. The result is an odd, lush sensation that can register as ripe, overripe, or occasionally (particularly as the coffee cools) rotten. Cupper's comments reflect the ambivalence that mild ferment provokes. Almost everyone noted this coffee's luxuriant, wine-like fruitiness. Six cuppers detected a clear defect, however, and five of the six identified the defect (correctly in my view) as ferment, the shadow side of the fruitiness. Only one cupper dismissed the coffee on the basis of this defect, however, and in compensation several noted spicy nuances.

Almost everyone remarked on a complex sweetness in this medium-bodied Huehuetenango. Some characterized the sweetness as chocolate-toned; others as caramel. Two assigned the sensations to that tantalizing cusp between chocolate and fruit. Most found the acidity sufficient to enliven the sweetness ("bright, pleasant, intriguing"), but one cupper complained that the acidity was disappointing and another that it was "puckery." There was an unusually wide range of response to body. Assessments ranged from light to (emphatically) heavy, with a consensus somewhere between medium and full. Perhaps our palates were confused by the pervasive sweetness, which can read as weight.

The aroma is complete but fades quickly. The acidity is bright, clear, and classic, hovering on the edge of winy. Some resonance echoes under the acidity, but both pleasure and complexity are concentrated at the top of the profile.

Herbal tones in the aroma turn spicy and fruity in the cup. The fruit nuances in the acidity lift the top of the profile and keep it light and shimmering all the way through to finish and aftertaste. Enough bottom for resonance.

For a canned coffee, considerable aroma: full, complete, with a silky, slightly vanilla-toned sweetness that grows in power as the coffee cools. Enough acidity to keep the coffee from dying, and a solid if obvious bottom.