Blind Assessment: Pungent, spicy. Cinnamon, sweet spice, roasted cacao nib, a rounding hint of butter in aroma and cup. Rich, balanced acidity; lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Some cinnamon and spice notes carry into a drying finish.

Notes: 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. Haraz is a celebrated coffee growing region in north-central Yemen, west of the capital of Sana'a. Although Ethiopia is the botanical home of Coffea arabica, Yemen introduced the beverage to the rest of the world in the 16th and 17th centuries, and Yemeni coffee is still grown from ancient cultivars and sun-dried, usually on the roofs of stone houses. This particular Yemen is the result of a program aimed at improving the quality of this legendary coffee by drying on raised tables and processing only ripe fruit. CaféTaster is an aficionado nano-roaster of the style increasingly characteristic of East Asia countries like Taiwan and Korea, roasting very high-end coffees in very small volumes for a tiny clientele of passionate coffee enthusiasts, in the process selling coffee education as much as coffee itself. For more information, visit www.facebook.com/cafetaster or email roaster Jerry Huang at [email protected]

Who Should Drink It: Those interested in the taste of history; I suspect this is about how the best of the “Mocha” coffees of Yemen tasted when they first arrived in Europe to establish coffee as a luxury beverage, though they were probably brought to a darker roast. Those who enjoy the more spicy-sweet, savory side of coffee may enjoy this selection regardless of history.