Washed/Wet Reviews

Evaluated as espresso. Sweet, intricate, pungently floral. Baker’s chocolate, grapefruit, lavender, stone fruit in aroma and small cup. Lightly satiny, lively mouthfeel. A crisp, floral-toned chocolate dominates in the finish and carries with brisk elegance into three parts milk.

Light, intricate, zesty. Black currant, lemon, lilac, sandalwood, baker’s chocolate in aroma and cup. Brisk, juicy acidity; silky smooth mouthfeel. Flowers and berry carry into a gently drying short finish, sweetening in the long.

Crisply spicy and intricately floral; savory-sweet. Lavender, rosemary flower, honey, roasted cacao nib in aroma and cup. Sweetly brisk acidity; light, silky mouthfeel. Cacao nib and lavender carry into sweetly resonant, flavor-saturated finish.

Spicy, sweet-savory. Brazil nut, rosemary, dark chocolate, oak, a hint of honeysuckle in aroma and cup. Round, quiet acidity; full, syrupy mouthfeel. Flavor consolidates around bitter nut and sweet chocolate in the finish.

Sweet, delicately bright. Orange blossom, apple, turbinado sugar, walnut, a hint of tangerine in aroma and cup. Lively, gently bright acidity; smooth, velvety mouthfeel. Flavor-saturated, but richly drying, and bittersweet in the finish.

Quite sweet; gently bright. Honeysuckle-like flowers, tangerine, macadamia-like nut, roasted cacao nib in aroma and cup. Softly bright, quietly juicy acidity; delicately full, silky mouthfeel. Flower, nut and cacao notes all carry into a smooth, sweetly tart finish.

Tart, sweet, vibrant. Honey, orange, apricot, sweet flowers, a crisp hint of cinnamon bark in aroma and cup. Rich, gently tart acidity; plush mouthfeel. The cinnamon note intensifies in a quietly resonant finish.

Crisp yet lush. Bakers’ chocolate, orangy citrus, musk, a hint of grappa in aroma and cup. Rich, juicy acidity; syrupy mouthfeel. Chocolate and orange suggestions in particular carry into a gently drying finish.

Suavely and sweetly tart. Green grape, crisp roasted cacao nib, fresh-cut fir, sweetly spicy flowers in aroma and cup. Brisk, bright acidity; light but satiny mouthfeel. Cacao nib and a hint of flowers carry into a rich though drying finish.

Crisp, orchardy, intricate. Honey, jasmine, roast cacao nib, apple. Delicate, giddily effervescent acidity; very silky, lively mouthfeel. Sweet, flavor-saturated finish, gently drying in the long.

Distinctly brandy-toned, sweet yet briskly pungent. Cleanly expressed brandy, strawberry-like fruit, dark chocolate, night-blooming flowers in aroma and cup. Round, gently vibrant acidity; lightly syrupy, very buoyant and lively mouthfeel. Rich, deep, profoundly flavor-saturated finish.

Intense, exotic. Complex floral notes (jasmine, lily) lemon zest, roasted cacao nib, spicy aromatic wood in aroma and cup. Rich, brisk acidity; syrupy mouthfeel. Flowers and zesty citrus carry into a dry finish.

Deep, pungent, complexly chocolate-toned. Dark chocolate, hazelnut, apricot, hints of night-blooming flowers and black currant in aroma and cup. Tart, richly brisk acidity; syrupy, lively mouthfeel. Chocolate and flowers in particular carry into a richly drying finish.

Fruit notes are layered and shifting: tangerine, guava, strawberry, more, complicated by honeyish floral notes and a crisp, nutty roasted cacao nib. Juicy, lively acidity; silky mouthfeel. Flowers in particular saturate a long, resonant finish.

Big, sweetly pungent, complex. Brown sugar, dark chocolate, walnut, narcissus-like flowers, savory hints of mango and musk in aroma and cup. Rich, resonant acidity; lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Deeply flavor-saturated finish, drying but long and sweet.

Crisp, delicately soaring. Honey, apricot, orange, flowers, fine black tea notes in aroma and cup. Lively, buoyant acidity; satiny mouthfeel. Deep, slightly drying finish.

Sweetly bright, soaring. Juicy black currant, Concord grape, ripe grapefruit, crisp lavender in aroma and cup. Exhilarating, flawless acidity; silky, buoyant mouthfeel. Flavor consolidates but persists in a sweet, slightly drying finish.

Delicately intense. Very complex aroma and flavor: flowers (plum blossom), ripe lemon, watermelon, moist pipe tobacco, roasted cacao nib. Bright but balanced acidity; lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Long, flavor-saturated finish. Turns especially sweet and juicy as the cup cools.

Evaluated as espresso. Ken (91) liked this bright, zesty espresso; his co-taster (92) liked it even better. Both admired the citrus and floral vivacity of the aroma and flavor. Ken and his co-taster both accepted the smooth though rather light mouthfeel as an appropriate complement to the lively aromatics; both enjoyed the emergence of a lower-toned fruit (fig, roasted cacao nib) in the finish. Ken found the sweet-citrus impact in three parts milk a bit more pleasing than his co-taster did, though the co-taster offered an apt descriptor for it: “key lime pie.”

Evaluated as espresso. Crisp, finely structured, quietly distinctive. Dark chocolate and a shifty, anise-toned fruit (orange, blackberry, grape) dominate in aroma and small cup, with backgrounded complications of cedar and butter. Creamy, full yet buoyant mouthfeel. Berry and chocolate in particular persist in a rich, deep finish. Round, quietly balanced in three parts milk.