Bourbon Reviews

Evaluated as espresso. Bright and juicy. Flowers, ripe citrus and stone fruit in the small cup with caramel undertones. The fruit carries into a clean finish, with sugary sweetness developing in the long. Two parts milk amplifies the caramel character and rounds the persistent fruit and floral notes.

Orange, bittersweet lemon, nut, aromatic wood in aroma and cup, with complicating floral top notes. Balanced, crisp acidity; silky mouthfeel. The citrus notes in particular carry into a rich, sweet finish.

Sweet and intense – stone fruit and honey complimented by silky milk chocolate. Fruit- and floral-toned acidity, medium body and a deeper chocolate-like sensation in a finish marked by a touch of drying astringency.

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.

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.

Sweet-toned orange and lemon aroma, with soft hints of nuts, cherry and caramel. A bright acidity is softened and rounded by a suggestion of fruit. The balance continues in the cup with sweet lemon and honey in front, fading to a pleasant nuttiness. Hints of chocolate and aromatic wood linger in the long finish.

"An absolutely mind-blowing coffee" for co-cupper Andy Newbom (93). "Utterly pure yet soaringly intense," for Ken (97). "Say fruit ten times," Andy reports, and then he does, mainly variations of grapefruit, apricot and melon with green apple and Bartlett pear thrown in for the finish. For Ken that entire nuance is wrapped up in the extraordinary, singular explosion of cedary, pungently sweet berry, the quintessential Bourbon character. The acidity is enveloped in sweetness; in Andy's colorful language it "startles and snuggles all at once." For mouthfeel Andy suggests "crème fraîche Meyer lemon chiffon"; Ken sticks with a pedestrian "syrupy." Ken awarded a perfect 10 to the long, balanced, deeply flavor-saturated finish.

Gentle, balanced, agreeably simple aroma, with distinct floral notes and a hint of milk chocolate. The floral tones carry into a soft, sweet cup with orange and a spice note that could qualify as cinnamon. Flattens a bit in the finish but remains sweet.

Cocoa and caramel aroma. Blazing acidity, dark chocolate and caramel, regal balance. A nicely conducted, relatively light roast makes this balanced but assertive coffee particularly well-suited for vacuum pot and drip brewing.

Low-toned fruit (peach?), semi-sweet chocolate and fresh-cut cedar notes in the aroma. The cup is delicate but lush, enlivened by a softly tart acidity and complicated by continued fruit (cherry, peach) and semi-sweet chocolate notes. The finish is simple but sweetly clean.