Friday, November 11, 2005


elegant geishas, part iv

this morning i leapt outta bed to make up yesterday's fantastic gift from jessica & scott -- the batdorf "latitudes" prize-winning panama geisha, the esmeralda jaramillo especial.

as always, i ground it fresh in my saeco 2002, measured out 60 g. (about 2.1 oz) coffee, and vac'd up a full 1-liter (about 34 fl. oz.) pot in my trusty stovetop bodum santos, with a total brewing time of 4 mins. got your scaa flavor wheel handy?

as noted, scott crafted this to a standard/light city roast: lovely large beans without a speck of oil. the packaging of this coffee is lovely, presented in a handsome copper-foil bag, which carried a roast date of nov. 7.

opening the bag was a revelation in itself. frankly i've never smelled such delicious fresh whole beans outside of the gillies' vanilla-red currant norwegian wood.

the unusually narrow and long beans themselves immediately perfume the air with an amazingly strong vanilla-allspice aroma. frankly mouthwatering.

what a rich bouquet this coffee offers at 4 days old! the fresh dry grounds were quite a surprise -- was that a berry i was smelling?

when the water in bodum hit the top globe, the coffee bloomed furiously, and there it was again, a clear but light strawberry scent. but i didn't find this in the cup this morning.

instead, the first sip offers a hint of toasted coconut and more vanilla. wonderful. jim schulman found candied hazelnuts and apricot -- at least we agree on the nut and fruit!

the initial allspice feeling is echoed by a spicy, almost nutmeg-y aftertaste. yummy.

as promised, this is a sweet-tasting coffee, whose nippy/crisp brightness comes out from behind the fan, so to speak, as the brew cools. scott described the body as silky, and i completely agree.

this is just a beautiful, beautiful coffee. i liked it black, altho' i think a pinch of brown sugar enhances the coconut, while a little light cream boosts the vanilla but mutes the nippiness.

in short, it's a coffee that can be appreciated both black and with cream and sugar in the morning. the geisha fully lives up to its hype, imvho -- and long-time readers may recall that i don't even particularly like snappy central american coffees!

but i love this geisha. if you can't see buying it for yourself (your loss, if i may be so blunt), then i can highly recommend it as an excellent gift for your thanksgiving hostess!

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