Saturday, July 14, 2007


the kenya geisha

that's right. you've read correctly.

a kenya geisha.

that's what that beautiful and sneaky jessica included in my regular coffee shipment yesterday. omigod!

long-time readers know about the rare coffee variety called geisha. originally from ethiopia, in its panama terroir it's one of the planet's most sought-after rare coffees, one for which discerning coffee lovers won't think twice to pay US$50+ a pound for.

and here, without telling me, jessica pops a geisha from a kenya terroir on me, the "wild forest." i had no idea there was geisha in ruiru.

one of the things that distinguishes these geisha coffees for me are their unusual flavor combos. the panama had strawberry, passion fruit, pineapple aromas, clear as day.

this kenya is a raspberry coffee, an orange-blossom-honey and raspberry combo like i've never smelled before in my life. . .but i'm getting ahead of myself.

let me just say that at US$20 for 12oz. it is underpriced. coffee lovers, steal it now from batdorf because next year once this has caught on it will be double that, easy.

lemme do this right. roast-dated the 10th, i think the coffee's a full-city+, as many beans show slight patches of oil.

i brewed it in the vac pot at 1.75oz coffee to 28oz water for exactly 4 mins. round trip.

get out your scaa flavor wheel, 'cuz this one is a trip. just opening the bag, the beans smell of orange-blossom honey and molasses.

this becomes stronger as in the fragrance of the fresh grounds. to my mind the raspberry isn't so discernible until the coffee cools a bit.

then a somewhat puckery raspberry appears, along with a balsamic rice, honey, and molasses aftertaste.

while the vac pot tends to attenuate the body of any coffee while intensifying brightness, the kenya geisha emerges with a sparkle and a medium body.

i'm drinking this coffee black, without sugar, with ease. it's also lovely with milk, altho' you lose the raspberry then.

highly recommended. an absolute must.

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posted by fortune | 12:59 PM | top | link to this | email this: | | | 2 comments