Wednesday, June 23, 2004


cup of excellence winner & natural decaf

now this is interesting news: agronomists studying coffee trees in ethiopia have discovered a naturally occuring variety that's nearly free of caffeine.

it'll be interesting to see how this coffee actually tastes, and if it is suitable for cultivation. the article doesn't say if it is an arabica or a robusta. . . this has the potential to change the global coffee scene in a profound way.

my friend and colleague on the scaa consumer committee, frank dennis of swiss water, must be watching this development with a close eye. a good-tasting tree-grown decaf would markedly increase coffee consumption across the board, i think.

and in other coffee news, the winner of the recent el salvador cup of excellence coffee competition is one lya de castaneda's coffee.

i think it may be the bosque lya brand sold in the family's bakery chain.

readers new to bccy may not yet be well-versed in the terminology of coffee-tasting i'm about to use to discuss these coffees. don't be alarmed!

these terms mostly come from the official scaa coffee flavor wheel, created by scaa chief ted lingle to describe the full range of coffee flavors, the taste, and the bouquet.

in general, i call this way of talking about coffee "the great linglese" [lin-glaze-ay] in honor of ted. i also have a quick primer on coffee taste terms here.

the cupping notes describe the "bosque lya" as crisp or nippy tasting with a floral fragrance, and offering berry and citrus aromas. it's said to be a smooth and creamy-bodied coffee too.

you coffee lovers in europe will probably be able to buy this coffee online, since it was purchased for import by taylor's of harrogate. it doesn't seem as if it will be readily available in north america unless you want to spring for some serious international express shipping.

also placing highly is the well-known "las nubitas" coffee, already much talked about in the specialty coffee community.

the cupping notes describe the las nubitas as winey tasting, with citrus and caramel aromas that lead to a dark chocolate aftertaste. i suspect it's a somewhat bright coffee as well, since this competition has a reputation for favoring this kind of sparkly taste.

fortunately for us north american coffee lovers, it looks like we will be able to buy this prize-winning coffee easily online, since it was purchased for import by stumptown roasters in portland as well as long-time bccy pals doug zell and geoff watts of chicago's intelligentsia.

posted by fortune | 7:54 AM | top | link to this | email this: | | | 1 comments