Mindset

When I first started to explore the world of Specialty Coffee in the early 2000's, and we started visiting the places everyone considered to be the best roasters, coffee shops, and purveyors of espresso, I was delighted, and fascinated. And through it all, I had one mindset.
 

Whatever they were doing, whatever level of sublime tastiness they had achieved, whatever level of mastery they were showing in their craft -- whatever it was had already been done. That meant it was possible. And because I knew it was possible, and that someone had already been doing it at that level, then that was my minimum standard.

My minimum standard, my starting point for coffee excellence was measured by what the best of the best were doing. And until what I was doing was on par, or better than what they were doing, it never saw the light of day. Whether it was learning how to roast or understanding that siphon brewing has everything to do with philosophy first, technique second.

There's always someone who will be doing something great. And to whoever you are, I applaud your genius. Thank you for showing me that, now I'm going to do it better.

That's my mindset.

My Conversations with Coffee

When I started roasting a little more than eleven years ago, I knew that it would take some time for the coffee and me to speak the same language. There were secrets. Lots of secrets. And if I didn't become coffee's friend first, I knew that getting it to reveal its secrets would be difficult. So I took it slow.

I had a conversation with the coffee. We got to know each other, and slowly but surely, the coffee had something to say. The coffee gave me a little insight on how our conversations were going. I paid attention to what the coffee was telling me. And I knew I could improve our relationship by listening carefully, by learning about where the coffee came from, and what made the coffee I spoke with a little bit different. Sure there are similarities between coffees, but learning about what makes each coffee unique is where the best relationships are formed.

And after carefully listening, writing and reflecting upon our conversations together in my journal, I began to understand what the coffee wanted to tell me. I knew a trust had developed and the coffee was ready to share its innermost thoughts. 

Coffee can be brooding and contemplative, it can also be lively and jubilant. Sometimes coffee has a few simple ideas to share, but it's very clear in its statements. Other times, coffee speaks poetically and whispers softly in your waking dreams – playing the part of both devil and angel and telling you about things you never thought possible. And then, it will reveal its soul. These are the mysteries that must be cherished.

Coffee can be your friend. You can't force the coffee to be your friend. You can't bribe the coffee with shiny equipment and expect it to tell you everything. If you treat coffee harshly it will be bitterly disappointed. And if you try to move the relationship too fast, the coffee will laugh at you. But if you treat the coffee with respect, and you take the time to listen to the coffee, then maybe the coffee will share secrets with you too.

Single Origin Espresso: How to create a multidimensional experience

Crafting a great single origin espresso should be approached the same was as you would in creating any other delicious espresso. Separate roasts. Separate profiles. Separate flavors. And then a wonderful espresso.

  

Espresso is not a tiny cup of coffee. It should not feel like a “tiny cup of coffee”when you drink it. Espresso has a density, intensity, and viscosity (mouthfeel). Whether it's floral and light stone fruit or dense chocolate and dark berry, espresso should still have a definite mouthfeel and density. Properly roasted and executed espresso has a density that supports and balances the clarity. Creating density enhances the clarity, it does not take away from it. Espresso that is thin and bright without the proper amount of sweetness and texture is simply an unbalanced espresso. Bracing flavor notes are not progressive, they are merely a sign of an underdeveloped or improperly developed roast.

Every coffee (probably) can be used in espresso, but not every coffee can be used as espresso. Sometimes the flavors developed in a particular coffee are too intense as an espresso. But those same notes will often be a wonderful supporting note or highlight if the proper balance is achieved in a simple two or three bean blend.

Ok. That's all fine and dandy, but how does one properly execute a single origin espresso?

There are a handful of coffees that are amazing out of the gate single origin, single roast espresso. Many of these can be improved by profile layering, but it's really not necessary. That being said, the issues are rarely with the coffee, rather they are a result of poor execution of said coffee as a single origin espresso.

When a coffee has great flavors at City, City+, Full City, and Full City+, why ignore that potential complexity by utilizing a single roast? Multiple layers of flavor and an unmistakeable textural mouthfeel are what makes an espresso come alive.

It's not always about choosing light and medium or light and dark. Sometimes, it is about small differences within a certain darkness (City+ for example) of roast, but differing profiles. One roast might be more nut forward, one more fruit forward, and one more balanced. Not only should you think like a skilled chef or a world-class mixologist and weave layers within layers, you should take the same time to develop your craft as they did to develop theirs.

You can choose simplicity or complexity, but even within simplicity, there are supporting areas of sweet, savory or umami that give dimension to the espresso. To truly understand the flavor potential you need to explore the range of possibilities at your fingertips. There are as many ways to construct your espresso with a single bean as there are with two or three. Simplicity is not about taking shortcuts, simplicity is a focused exploration of what's in front of you.

Espresso: Building a Foundation

Roasting as a professional is a craft I do my best to approach in a thoughtful manner. There are too few coffee roasters who approach from the perspective of:  skill+knowledge+time = craft development. Most roasters seem to approach from the perspective of : green coffee+heat+time = brown coffee. brown coffee = "I am a roaster!" This distorted perception is not a reality, and is one of the most deceptive practices perpetuated throughout our industry.

I've been roasting for ten years now, and although we are a small roaster, we roast 40 or more different espresso every year, all consisting of usually 2-3 coffees, and we never repeat a blend. This is in conjunction with roasting about 50-60 strictly SO coffees throughout the year for whole bean and siphon coffee at our shop.

Many customers have said there is something unique to our espresso that they don't experience anywhere else, and I think that's true for every roaster who has found their voice and wants to communicate something to their customers. Espresso has a language of its own, it speaks to your senses and it speaks to your heart, but it has to start somewhere.

What coffees? What percentages? What profiles?

Those are all good questions.

The higher quality your green, the greater ability you have to construct a great espresso blend from a few components. I personally like blends more than SO espresso for two reasons, 1) not every coffee works as an espresso and 2) you will run out of said coffee too fast. As I mentioned before, I prefer using two or three component coffees for our espresso, more coffees than that and they start to get lost in the mix.

We do not use filler or commodity coffees for our espresso. All coffee we roast is above Specialty Grade, so as components they each have a wealth of complexity to draw on. I start with two different premises, one is a base component with highlights or accent notes from one or two other coffees. And the other is from a synergestic perspective of the component beans coming together to create a flavor (or flavors) greater than those of the individual beans.

Having a base coffee does not necessarily mean that will be the highest percentage in a blend, but it does mean that particular coffee will have the most dominant flavor. The greater familiarity you have with each coffee and how their flavors manifest in the espresso extraction process, the greater chance you have of creating a wonderful espresso blend.

This is how I would advise a new roaster to begin the active process of creating a great espresso blend: Start with five, ten, or twenty coffees. Roast, brew as coffee, and taste. Take notes. Now brew each coffee as an espresso and compare the differences in specific flavors to those from your coffee notes, paying close attention to which flavors have intensified from the espresso extraction method. This way you can understand how the extraction process changes, highlights, and reveals those unique characteristics. This is a starting point. Repeat the process for those same coffees with a different profile. Do this again and again and again until you have a feel for how each new coffee will act as an espresso.

Always roast components separately.

You will want to understand the tendencies of different bean densities and how they work together. What about SHB, maybe soft beans or Pacamara or Margogype, or peaberry? How does an Ethiopian peaberry roast compared to a Central American peaberry, and how do each work as a component of espresso? Continue building your knowledge base, know what profiles work best with what coffees, know how profiles should change for a Central American paired with a Brazilian vs one paired with a dry-processed Ethiopian.

Begin blending those coffees. If you started with twenty coffees, that will give you 380 two bean blend permutations and 6,840 three bean blend combinations. And quite a bit more once you factor in the varying percentage possibilities. That's a lot of tasting!

Do this for the next twenty coffees, and so on and so forth. Again. And again. And. Again.
After thousands of tastings, notes, profiles, and blend possibilities you will have a firm grasp of the basics. Now, with a solid foundation, you are ready to begin.

With each new roast, I seek to learn something new, and develop my craft. I hope you will do the same.

Happy roasting!