Diedrich IR-5 Analysis by Doris Garrido.
It may sound ridiculous, but in my coffee career I have not had many opportunities to work with Brazilian coffee. I have probably cupped a couple, but this was my first time roasting one. I was looking for a Brazil drip on a recent trip to Portland, and I found a great one. Now it was my time to work with Cardo de Minas coffee from the producer Isidro Pereira. As Chris Kornman was responsible for bringing us this coffee, I know it was a good find.
Brazilian coffee is known for its low density. This was true for this coffee and based on that, I decided to take it easy.
I warmed the drum till I got the roaster stable to 397F and charged the coffee (5.5 lb. on the 5 kilos Diedrich) and added 70% gas. After 3 minutes, started lowering the gas setting to 60% then 45%, and finally 30%. I noticed that after this, the coffee stayed stable. This coffee is low-density and a natural process, which means I must slow down before it runs out of my hands. On the other hand, with the 10% moisture, I was sure I would be able to get the acidity evened out by stretching Maillard. Also, I was looking to avoid highlighting the acetic acid as little as possible as we usually do on natural processed coffees. It is mostly a personal preference; I know funky and fermented coffee is also popular. I spent 4:07 minutes in Maillard starting with 50% airflow at 367F and 100% at first crack. As I anticipated, the rate of rise did not decrease after the first crack which made me turn the burners off and finish the roast at 408F.
On the table, we got a clean and full round-bodied coffee, with notes creamsicle, strawberry lemonade, dark chocolate, ripe mango, yuzu, and kombucha notes. There is a slightly savory taste that reminded us of tamarind, and a little buzzy aftertaste.
Espresso Analysis by MJ Smith
Dialing in natural process coffees on espresso is always such an adventure. You may have a general idea of what they’re going to taste like, but you never really know what you’re going to get. This coffee from Luiz Paulo Pereira truly packs a punch! Lots of chocolatey and brown sugar sweetness, combined with some exciting citrus, stone fruit, and herbaceous notes. Let’s get into these recipes!
The first recipe I’m going to talk about was actually the last shot that I pulled. We’ve got a dose of 18 grams, a yield of 36 grams, and a pull time of 34 seconds. I had tried an 18g shot that pulled at 29 seconds and thought it had some exciting notes but was just lacking a bit in the sweetness department. After slowing it down, I was in love. The sweetness I was looking for was present and coming through in the form of milk chocolate and brown sugar. We were also able to pick up some mouth-watering notes of lemon-lime, raspberry, peach, and earl grey.
I tried shots at several other doses, but for my second recipe, I bumped the dose and yield up to 19g in and 37g out and dropped the pull time down to 32 seconds. This shot had notes from all over the flavor wheel! That chocolate and brown sugar from before as well as blood orange, watermelon, black plum, and sweet basil. I could sip on this all day!
Whether you’re looking for an espresso to appease the chocolate and brown sugar lovers or something to excite your taste buds, this coffee’s got you covered! Based on what I tried today, I would recommend a low-to-medium dose and yield, and a slightly longer pull time. Hope you enjoy it!
