My favourite coffees of 2010

My favourite coffees of 2010

There have been some great coffees on offer in 2010. I have had the opportunity to taste a number of them, thanks to the speciality roasters and cafes of Sydney and Melbourne. Here are a few of my coffee highlights and ‘wow’ moments for 2010.

My first coffee ‘wow’ moment was at Market Lane Coffee in Melbourne. I know one of the baristas there, Matt. He asked if I was after “an insane coffee” – I was highly caffeinated by this time, but knew I should say yes! I had a coffee from Bolivia, called Café Palmeiras 3. I enjoyed this coffee as a pour over.

Café Palmeiras 3 entered the Cup of Excellence competition and finished 8th (out of all the coffees in Bolivia that entered, at least 30-40 farms) – an excellent result. In the cup this coffee was clean with plum and cocoa flavours and a creamy mouthfeel. A very enjoyable coffee.

Another of my favourites for 2010 was the Ethiopian Nekisse. This coffee comes from Sidamo region of Ethiopia. This microlot coffee received a great score when it was cupped (the term for a formal coffee tasting). I had this coffee a few times this year – at The Source Espresso in Sydney, and at De Clieu in Melbourne. The Nekisse tasted best for me via the Clover coffee machine. This coffee was very clean and sweet with berry notes (maybe blueberries, some think strawberry and some say musk!).

I only had it once this year but I clearly remember having the Kenyan Gethumbwini AA. I had this at The Source again via the Clover (one of the staff had actually brought in this coffee – but Russ offered it to me anyway – thanks Russ!). This coffee was very juicy, very viscous in mouthfeel, with clear blackcurrant flavours.

The last coffee highlight for me was the Costa Rican Las Lajas “Black Pearl” Micro Lot. I had this coffee at Monk Bodhi Dharma. This coffee is a natural processed coffee, and only coffee cherries of the desired size are picked. I had this as a double ristretto. It was really clean and vibrant with a lively acidity. There were great flavours of dark fruit and chocolate. Truly a brilliant coffee.

So…they were some of my coffees highlight for the year! What about you? Why don’t you sign in (or create a google account if need be) and add your comments. What were you favourite or most enjoyable coffees this year???

Christmas Coffee Gift - Video Production

Thanks to everyone who bought one of the Christmas coffee packs!

For everyone else I've made a video of the production process, of these packs being assembled by my wife.

Enjoy

Here it is

Monk Bodhi Darma

Monk Bodhi Darma

A very Melbourne experience – a café hidden down a lane way! Just like many great Melbourne restaurants and cafes, unless you are told by a friend and prepared to do a bit of hunting, you wouldn’t stumble across it!

I’m so glad I was told to check it out by two mates who I work with at my Sydney café. When we arrived, we were greeted warmly by some of the staff who rearranged a table to accommodate for us. It had a great atmosphere and real warmth about it with its timber tables (including a communal table) and distressed brick walls.

The first coffee I had was a Kenyan AA – served as a pour over filter coffee. It had some grapefruit and tomato flavours. The tomato flavour was only semi-sweet. It also had a pleasant acidity.

Once I began to chat to the barista some more, and our mutual passion for quality coffee, they suggested that I try the Costa Rican Las Lajas “Black Pearl” Micro lot. Wow… definitely one my best coffees of the trip, and one of my favourites for the year! These coffee cherries are hand picked – and only the ones that are the required size are selected. This coffee is a natural processed coffee. This means once the coffee cherries are picked off the trees, they are sun-dried with the skins still on. They are rotated regularly so that they don’t ferment. This process goes for two weeks!

I had this Costa Rican as a double ristretto. As I said, wow! It was really clean and vibrant with a lively acidity. It had some great flavours of dark fruit and chocolate. A coffee of high quality – well picked, processed and roasted.

On a side note, Monk Bodhi Dharma serves vegan food, including an amazing range of cupcakes. Excellent coffee and food, together with fantastic staff and a really cool fit out = a Melbourne stand out. Can’t wait to go back!

Dead Man Espresso

Dead Man Espresso

I was so looking forward to returning to Dead Man Espresso in South Melbourne. I went with my wife and another friend for breakfast. I had their French Toast, served with baby figs in a curry caramel sauce and a poached pear. The curry in the caramel sauce worked well, keeping it from being too sweet. Very enjoyable breakfast!

I then had a piccolo of the Seven Seeds espresso blend. For those of you who’ve had this blend, it was again delivering its dominant flavours of caramel and cocoa notes. Low acidity, good body and a pleasant sweetness.

Then I had an espresso of the Dead Man Espresso blend. The current Dead Man blend is comprised of Kenyan Gachami, Tanzian Songea and Ethiopian Nikesse. For me, this coffee was a good reflection of what some of the specialty coffee roasters are up to – coffees that are quiet bright with a good amount of acidity. When I had my espresso there were dominant grapefruit flavours, maybe some tomato flavours as well. It was lively in its acidity, bright and upfront.

Dead Man Espresso – well worth a visit.

Christmas Coffee Gift Packs - Pictures

Here are the photo's of the completed Christmas Coffee Gift Packs. For more details visit my Facebook page

For the order form click here

Christmas Coffee Gifts - Ordering details

Dear All

Thanks for all the interest I have already received in my new range – coffee gift packs for Christmas!

To the right you'll see a picture of the order form. This is available on my Facebook page.

I have designed a handy form which enables you to custom design a gift pack to your liking! Simply complete the fields in the form to indicate your choices, and then "Save as" with your name in the file name (make sure you click out of any fields in the form, before saving).

Once I receive your order, I'll create an invoice for you with details on how to pay. The gift packs will be assembled about a week before Christmas and ready for you to pick up in time for your festivities! Both the coffee and biscotti will be prepared freshly just before assembly so that they will be in prime condition for Christmas consumption :)

Please have your orders in by December 12th. A number of pick up times will be available from December 19th. Delivery may be possible for some of my loyal customers! Just contact me if you would like to enquire about that.

If you would like a smaller pack with just coffee and biscotti than email me, and I can work something out for you.

And a further special deal - if you order three packs or more, I will give you a 10% discount!!

Tenth Day Roasters (and my creative biscotti making friend) look forward to providing you with some personal handmade gifts for Christmas this year.

Cheers
Chris Fordyce

Christmas Coffee Gifts

As you begin to think about Christmas and the special time of year that it is, I’m sure you are also thinking about what gifts you might buy for your family and friends!

Why not buy them something handmade – and from someone you know!

This year, I will be making coffee gift packs – as always, roasted freshly to order. I will have two different packs on offer.

Starter Gift pack will include:

250gm of coffee (beans or ground)
Either two espresso cups and saucers (70mls in volume), OR two white cappuccino cups (170mls volume) and saucers OR two latte glasses
Some handmade biscotti, from another creative friend

Deluxe Gift pack will include:

500gm of coffee (beans or ground)
Two blue Rockingham cups and saucers (170mls)
Some handmade biscotti, from another creative friend

Please note:
• you are welcome to nominate which bean or blend you would like included – or if you don’t have a preference I will choose for you
• the picture above is the Rockingham cups. Check out my Facebook page for pictures of the other cups.

Coffee packs will only be made to order, and payment will be required before your order is put together. Contact me for an order form. info@tenthdayroasters.com.au

But for now, feel free to let me know if you’re keen, so I can work out my volumes (and also my friend who is making the biscotti for you)!

How to Store and Preserve your Coffee

Background

Coffee begins its life growing on a tree. From the moment the beans are picked off that tree, processed (having the outer skin and flesh removed), roasted and packaged for you, the goal at each step is to preserve its best qualities. Coffee is a living product, and just like the fruit and vegetables you eat, it has a limited shelf life. Your goal, like the coffee picker, coffee processor and roaster, is to join in the act of preservation – so that you get the best out of your coffee!

Storing your coffee

Once you have your coffee, store it in an airtight container, or the coffee bag it came in, if that bag has a one-way valve. The valve only releases carbon dioxide out of the bag and does not allow air to get in (Tenth Day Roasters coffee is sold in this kind of bag). Another alternative is to put your coffee into a valve pump canister. It works the same way, only letting air out. The main goal when storing coffee is to allow carbon dioxide to escape, but prevent air from coming into contact with the coffee, as it is air that speeds up the oxidization process. Oxidization causes the coffee to lose its complex aromas and flavours more quickly.

Preserving and using your coffee

Once your coffee is in a suitable storage vessel, store it in a cool, dark and dry place. If possible, store your coffee in a place away from other foods, as it is very absorbent of other aromas. Coffee has a limited shelf life and it should be used within a month from the date it was roasted.

Only put a minimal amount of coffee beans into your grinder. Do not store 250gm in your hopper! This will speed up the release of its coffee oils because the hopper is not an airtight environment. Thus your coffee will deteriorate much more quickly, shortening its shelf life for you.

Ideally, coffee beans should only be ground when required to make coffee immediately. This is known as grinding on demand. Once ground, coffee begins to lose its flavour much more quickly, because the surface area exposed to the air is so much greater. This is why using pre-ground coffee often tastes ‘stale’ compared to a freshly made espresso or cappuccino.

Follow these guidelines for looking after your coffee, and you should always have a fresh and flavoursome brew!

Culinary Delights - Pictures

Culinary Delights

Culinary Delights

Yes this is a blog entry that’s not about coffee! This time it’s about food and some great local cuisine I had while in the Cook Islands recently. It was a bit of a surprise how good some of the food was, especially the local specialities.

The Cook Islands is situated in the Pacific Ocean. To the west is Tonga and to the East is French Polynesia.

While I was in the Cook Islands, twice I had a local speciality called Ika Mata. Ika Mata is a traditional dish of the Cook Islanders. This dish uses local fish as its main ingredient. The fish is cut and diced and thrown into a bowl. Lime juice is added which ‘cooks’ the fish. The other key ingredient is coconut cream, which adds a beautiful texture and mouth feel to the dish. Then some red onion, coriander and salt and pepper can be added for seasoning and flavour. A very enjoyable and refreshing dish in a warm tropical country!

Another speciality of the locals is called Umu. This is their version of a BBQ, but in the ground. It is said to be similar to the Maori hangi in New Zealand. However, the hangi uses timber, creating a smoky flavour in the food. The umu mainly uses rocks as its heat/cooking source. The rocks initially warm the bed in which the cooking will take place, for three or more hours. We had a great Umu on a tour that we did. Lamb chops, chicken, kumera, taro and a local variety of spinach were added into the cooking tray. This was then wrapped in banana leaves (which release a natural oil during the cooking process) and then placed in the ground and covered with more banana leaves. Our tour guide told us that these banana leaves were ‘borrowed’ from a neighbour – if you know what I mean! So three hours after 4WDing up the mountains of Rarotonga, we returned to our Umu. It was delicious, though I think I ate too much! But the male tour guide was pleased and impressed with my apetite!

One other meal was so tasty that my wife and I ordered it the following night again from the same restaurant! It was a BBQ pork belly dish – which was very moist and juicy. But as impressive was the salsa! It was a green mango and paw paw salsa – it had a lovely sweetness and some coriander as well. Another enjoyable dish.

Your Guide to Making Plunger or French Press Coffee

Background Information

Making plunger coffee can be rather rewarding and satisfying, when it is done well. Like all methods of brewing coffee (espresso, filter, syphon) there are a variety of opinions and techniques on how to do it.

Some coffees that are not so suitable for espresso based drinks, may be more enjoyable as a plunger or drip filter coffee. This may be due to the coffee having a high level of acidity and brightness. Too much acidity and brightness is not normally overly desirable in espresso based coffees, but is a very positive and enjoyable attribute in a plunger (or drip filter style) coffee.

This guide is not meant to be seen as a set of absolute ideas – but to provide you a good starting point on how to make great plunger coffee. Always feel free to experiment with these variables: volume of coffee, volume of water, grind setting and steep time (or infusion).

Your Guide:

First, you need to start with freshly roasted coffee – but it should be at least 4 or 5 days after it was roasted.

Second, you will need about 2 tablespoons or 30 grams of freshly ground coffee. It should be ground coarsely. You will also need about 8oz of water or about 225-250 mls. Check out this clip from 49th Parallel Roasters.

Third, preheat your plunger with some hot water. Discard water. Check out this cool little clip from Ritual Roasters, even if it is a bit cheesy!

Fourth, put the coffee into the plunger. Boil the water. You may want to add more water, but this will make the coffee taste ‘weaker’ (unless that is your taste preference). Wait 30 seconds after the kettle has boiled. Saturate the coffee with the water. See that all the coffee grounds are now wet.

Fifth, let the coffee infuse (or steep) for 3-5 minutes. This is a step you can experiment with. If you prefer a coffee that doesn’t taste as bold (or strong) then plunge closer to three minutes. Or if you prefer to have a coffee tasting bolder and fuller, then wait closer to 5 minutes. Note, if the coffee tastes a bit sour it most likely hasn’t been infusing for long enough or if it’s too bitter/harsh then you have let it steep for too long! For a more detailed and technical approach, check out this great clip from CoffeeGeek.

Now, plunger your coffee and enjoy!

Coffee Tasting

I have just picked up the new coffees that I talked about in my last post.

Come along for a free coffee tasting of the new blend. This will be held at my place on Sunday 8th August at 2pm. I will also have the Guatemalan and Zambian beans available on the day to taste as single origin coffees!

At the tasting, there will be an opportunity to sample the new coffees in your favourite espresso based drink (latte, macchiato etc), as well as some other brewing methods such as pour-over filter cone and plunger.

It is fascinating to see how the same coffee brewed differently will highlight different qualities in the bean.

The tasting will be limited to 10 people so be sure to get in quick!
RSVP by 6th Aug. Email info@tenthdayroasters.com.au - and just let me know if you need my address.

New Coffees Ordered

Here are some fantastic beans that I am just about to add to my range.

Brazil Daterra ‘Villa Borghesi’ (RFA)
This coffee comes from an estate in Brazil called Daterra. Daterra subdivide the farms into microlots (microclimates) that have unique and distinct flavours and tastes. This coffee is described as having a sweet fruity aroma, a full body with plum-like fruit flavours and a sweet and clean finish.

Guatemala SHB ‘Nueva Granada’ (RFA)
This coffee is a washed coffee from an estate called Nueva Granada. It is described as having flavours of apple, roasted nuts and chocolate.

Zambia Terranova AA (RFA)
This is a recently available certified Rainforest Alliance farm. My supplier describes this as very desirable coffee! This coffee has a cocoa richness, orange flavours and a pleasant sweetness.

Recent Coffees

I have just finished drinking an espresso blend from Intelligentsia called “Black Cat”. While this blend is a stable espresso blend, the actual beans used change seasonally. The idea (for those of you who don’t know) is that coffee is a seasonal crop and different beans from particular farms/estate may be more available at different times than others.

The Black Cat blend was comprised of coffee from the Minas Gerais region in Brazil and another bean from Tarrazu in Costa Rica.

This espresso blend was great in milk based coffees – with a pleasant chocolate flavour and some sweet fruit. The body was medium with a moderate/slightly bright amount of acidity, due in part to a slightly lighter roast than is typical for an Australian espresso roast.

Recently I also purchased some Ethiopian coffee called “Nekisse”. I bought this from the guys at The Source Espresso bar in Mosman. I had this in store on the Clover coffee machine. This was a stand out coffee for me. It was very clean and sweet with some soft berry notes (perhaps blueberries, some say strawberry and others say musk!).

I brought some Nekisse home to use on my Expobar Minore III, but only ever had it via my pour over filter cone and Hario siphon! It was a light espresso roast, so it worked well filter style.

Very enjoyable!