Friday, April 17, 2009

Is a Blend really Supperior to a Single Origin?

Most people will say to make a proper espresso you must blend a variety of beans, possibly from different origins like a Brazilian for a base, Central Americans for acidity and sweetness and an Indonesian for some extra Body.

This is all True and works nicely, but is it possible for a Single Origin bean to have all those qualities and maybe even a bit more? Those same people will tell it cannot be done, but I think it's definitely possible. They probably just haven't tried enough "GOOD" Single Origin coffees to change their assumption which was probably handed down to them from another person.

Below are a few coffees which I think makes the perfect Single Origin Espressos.



Ethiopian Limmu, Floral, most Balanced and Clean Ethiopian coffee, chocolate aftertaste.



Sulawesi (Celebs) Torajah, Chocolate Heaven, Dark Chocolate bitterness is really an experience that's truly unique. Not the most flavorsome but it's got that "WOW" factor.



Oh... the Yemen Ismaili, what can I say... If you have never tried one of these YOU are MISSING out. Most Complex coffee I have ever tried, wild, chocolate. A bit intense as a Straight Espresso but when mixed with Milk it's hard to put the experience into words. Super Ugly and uneven bean due to the hand pick and process, also full of ROCKS... Beware when roasting.



If you think all Indonesian Region beans are earthy and heavy, think again! This Papua New Geunie Wahgi is balanced, good acidity, Sweet and is just great as both a straight Espresso or in Milk. One of the most balanced Asian region bean.

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Grinder Craze!

Just after picking up my Mazzer Kony grinder, I did a side to side comparison with Alan's Super Jolly. We found the Kony gives a brighter and more defined shot while the shot came out of the Jolly was more balanced and smoother. Both a top notch grinder and would work to its advantage depend on different origin/blend/roast.


the 2 Grinders side to side, together with Alan's VBM Domobar Super Lever... the dream home setup... OH YEAH!

Melbourne Trip... Nice Cafes

Having just came back from the Melbourne trip, I can report the place definitely has some nice cafes, we've visited The Maling Room, ST. Ali, Liar Liar, Atomica, Veneziano (that was closed too early) and Jasper Coffee (that was S**T coffee actually). Out of all of them I think I liked The Maling room the best, perfectly controlled temperature and a nice Rosetta on top. Below are a few pictures from the trip.


Yummy Breakfast from Maling Room:



Setup inside Atomica Coffee, very HIP...



Outside Maling Room, they used the old post office building



Latte @ The Maling Room, nice work!