Central America Reviews

The roast turns the lemony acidity rich and smokily pungent. Not a lot of range or innuendo, but a balanced and satisfying cup.

A complex, shifty profile. When the cup is hot, explicit vanilla tones with a hovering suggestion of spice are balanced by a deep-toned, rather pungent tartness. As the cup cools the vanilla sweetens toward caramel and the spice turns vaguely fruity. Perhaps all of the spice and pungency adds up to the famous "smokiness" often attributed to Guatemalas.

Extraordinary aroma: powerfully sweet, enveloping and complex, with tremendous dimension. Almost as impressive in the cup: Full-toned acidity softened by peach or prune, resonant and richly dimensioned, with a sweet, full, almost sugary finish complicated by hints of dry chocolate or tobacco.

Extraordinary aroma: Nothing dramatic, but that may be the point here. Balanced and gently complex. Crisp dry tones keep the levitating sweetness grounded. Hints of smoke in the finish sweeten toward chocolate in the aftertaste.

The coffee is buried under the taste of the roast. To the roastmaster's credit, however, this is no thin, carbony super-dark roast. It displays a pungent heaviness, flirting with bitter, softened at the edges by an almost subliminal sweetness. The sweetness intensifies somewhat in the finish, pushing the pungency toward chocolate. It never quite gets there, however.

Ingratiating and open, this coffee makes the most of what it brings to the cup. Not bright but gently lively, nicely balanced between sweet and dry tones, with a pleasant supporting resonance. As the cup cools a slight, almost indistinguishable (storage-related?) hardness seems to shadow the sweetness.

A solid, no-frills Latin-America acidity dominates the cup. No fruit and very little nuance, although the profile sweetens pleasantly in the finish, rounding toward caramel and perhaps chocolate.

The acidity is light and bright with a shimmer of fruit. At the center of the profile a slight pungency is nuanced by dry wine tones. Not much range, but solid dimension and outstanding balance.

An unusually light-bodied, high-toned Guatemala, distinguished by a clean, bright acidity and sweet flowers in the finish. A hint of sweet spice or perhaps chocolate-toned fruitiness resonates under the flowers.

A natural, vanilla-toned sweetness distinguishes a low-key but lively profile. Nut and spice notes complicate the vanilla sweetness in the aroma, but by finish and aftertaste the vanilla gently (and pleasingly) dominates. Little range or dimension; the vanilla is the main act.

Floral, fruity tones dominate, modulating to a sweet spiciness in the finish. The fruit reasserts itself in the long aftertaste. The fruitiness flirts with the over-the-top lush taste called ferment, but to my palate remains on the fresh, pleasing side of the fruit-ferment line.

A fresh, clean, delightfully natural sweetness is balanced by a drier but still fruity pungency. A fine and distinctive coffee, though memorable more for what it gives out front than what it insinuates. The profile is immediate and pleasing rather than deep.

The superb oxymoron of this coffee, powerfully sweet yet sharply pungent, is at its best in aroma and in finish, when the pungent tones soften to a distinct and pleasing spice. Rich, clean aftertaste; medium to light body.

A quietly dramatic coffee with a long development, in which a clear if understated acidity gives way to a sudden sweet lift in the cup, and nutty, pungent (perhaps smoky) notes are balanced by vanilla sweetness. All of the complex gestures remain in balance, and a silky smoothness envelops even the potentially sharp pungency.

Like so many coffees in the cupping, solid overall but short on sweetness and nuance. In this case, splendidly rich, broad-ranged aroma, decent acidity with a hint of fruit, but generally pungent and rather opaque, with only a touch of sweetness in the finish. A trace of the vanilla-toned richness that dominated in aroma re-emerges in the aftertaste.

Impressive because, unlike many of the coffees in the cupping, it displays some acidy brightness. May not generate enough sweetness to round the acidity, however, leaving the cup just a touch on the sour side. Not much nuance but solid body.

Balanced, refined, exquisitely complete, though a bit underpowered. Mild pungent tones are softened and rounded by sweetness. Clean yet resonant straight through to aftertaste.

Pleasant though restrained aroma; outstanding cup. The acidity is floral, levitating, fresh, with the floral notes sweetening and carrying into the heart of the coffee. Pleasant nuance in the upper registers and a solid bottom with suggestions of richness. Medium body.

Whether deriving from the unorthodox roasting style or the coffee itself, a spicy pungency weaves its way through this rather soft, medium-bodied profile. At moments this flavor complex suggests chocolate, at others the earthy tones associated with some Indonesian coffees, at others a dark fruitiness-just-short-of-ferment. In the context of the overall sweet, intriguing, broad range of this coffee I tolerated this taste, even liked it, though purists may find it distracting.

Liveliest and most resonant of the dark-roast samples in the cupping: Less overbearingly pungent, sweeter, with a touch of vanilla in cup as well as aroma. The entire profile deepens, smooths, and balances in the finish.