Category: Coffee Talk

[av_video src=’https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2rQs_3EZCM’ format=’16-9′ width=’16’ height=’9′]

I am absolutely chuffed to offer two new coffees from Antigua in Guatemala sourced through Gelpo.

Finca La joya Washed and Natural. These unique micro lot coffees are the result of new proceessing experiments on the farm. These coffees were an absolute joy to roast. The natural charged at a lower temp with a “softer” profile. There is less acidity, more body and earthier flavours. The washed has a beautiful spine of pleasant acidity. Full notes below;

(Natural)

A stunning natural coffee which is floral and sweetly spicy. Almond, vanilla and complex florals in aroma and cup. Juicy, balanced acidity; buoyant, lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Richly sweet finish carried by a mix of floral notes in the short, condensing to lavender and lychee in the long finish.

CM100: 59/78
Aroma: 9
Acidity: 9
Body: 9
Flavor: 9
Aftertaste: 9

(Washed) 

IN THE CUP : Citric nippy acidity, honeyed sweetness with pear and vanilla notes, dense body and beautiful chocolate aroma. A great all round coffee outstanding in filter or R16 extraction glass.

 

CM100: 56/80
Aroma: 9
Acidity: 9
Body: 9
Flavor: 8
Aftertaste: 8

What a week!! The World of Coffee has just wrapped up with Berg Wu of Taiwan winning, huge congrats to him and all the competitors. Also a special mention for Natalia Piotrowska representing Ireland who I’m sure will be back. I am still mystified as to how these guys do it. This week I had my own barista champion to cheer on, Martin Shabaya the Kenyan representative.

I met Martin last Monday when he casually approached the kiosk in Ballsbridge and asked where could he roast some coffee. It turns out Martin left Kenya with his coffee still in its raw green state with the hope of meeting someone to roast it. I was the first person he met, what a story!! I felt compelled to help him, as a strange twist of fate Vicky Fitz-Henry an all round legend had arranged to meet me at the roastery on Monday also. Vicky was on hand to advise Martin & when the coffee was roasted we went out for dinner and found a trad session for Martin to take part in (as you do on a Monday).

Tuesday saw the design/manufacturer of our roaster turn for a roasting consultation and information sharing session, that evening was the first of two masterclasses with Scott Rao hosted by the guys in CloudPicker. The brewing class was informative with Scott as engaging, informative and challenging as expected. His knowledge and ideas around grinding, pouring and brewing are extensively researched and verified but are also simple and easy to understand. Wednesday saw me actually do some work in the AM but we got to catch Martin’s performance which mirrored his laid back personality and friendliness.

I feel like I’ve made a friend for life. In the evening it was time for round two with Scott Rao and the roasting masterclass which is probably my most comfortable environment. Anybody who has read Scott’s book on roasting will know how comprehensive and informed it is. I actually left the class early due to prior arrangements and the fact Ireland were to play Italy in Lille. I spent the welcome party which was held in the “round room’ at the Mansion House in the company of friends and colleagues. We of course over did it and partied long into the night.

Thursday was my first time to arrive at the RDS and the awesome World of Coffee. The amount of exhibitors and new innovations were incredible. It was really nice to meet old and new friends alike. We decided to call it an early night Thursday. Friday the day passed by and I felt like the exhibit closed early but realised it was just a mark of how much I was enjoying it. We attended the Bernard Shaw on Friday and the coffee throwing championships, my good colleague Shane competed and tried to say “90 plus” as often as possible (it’s one of those you’d have to be there moments) There was a special mention for Rashel who I had never really had the pleasure to know but feel I should mention here. On Saturday I got to spend more time with Bobby and Yvonne from Twobeans and Tiago my good friend and see some of the finalists compete.

Of all the new gadgets and machines two really struck me as game changers, one I bought, the other will haunt me until I get my hands on it. The CM 100 from LIGHTTELLS colour meter is a serious piece of kit. It is endorsed by the SCAA and also featured on the Sinar stand which filled me with confidence, anyone who has used one of their measurement tools will know why. The second product which was in my opinion the overall stand out machine on display was not the new Slayer Steam (which is awesome) but the new Dalla Corte Mina. This machine allows users to run at constant 9bar water pressure while allowing control over the flow valve in literally hundreds of positions creating real control over pre-infusion and flow. Manual/automatic lever control profile storing, the ability to brew perfect filter coffee fromt he espresso machine. All this and controls from your smartphone make this machine a must for the roastery allowing you to tailor individual roast profiles to suit individual espresso machine pressure. As with all of these events you realise how much there is still to learn about coffee and how absolutely brilliant the people who work in this industry are.

Thanks speak soon,

Brian

Before the year is out I’d like to acknowlegde the award from JCI for customer care in the “Dublin’s Frendliest Business Awards 2015”. To win an award for coffee is one thing but to be recognised for customer care and then receive an award for it was a very very nice experience. Customer service and interaction is always something I have prided myself on and is a really important part of what we do. Following on from this we were shortlisted to the national awards where we got the runner-up prize to 3fe. You can find out more about this organisation and its amazing volunteers here http://www.jciireland.ie

I’d also like to mention a few coffees that are en route for the new year, I’m really excited about the new shipment of Cuban coffees. These coffees were really popular last year and didn’t hang around so I’d expect the same again. New Brazil (yellow diamond) New crop Colombian Sierra Nevada de Santa Maria along with San Marcos Guatemala (both fairtrade organic coffees) will also feature heavily in the new year. Throw into the mix the 4-5 El Salvadors and Costa Ricans and its shaping up to be a good first few months next year. One final thing the ever popular Christmas Hampers will return this week, please order early to avoid disapointment.

Cheers,

Brian

Next year marks my twentieth year roasting coffee and it is not an exaggeration to say I have wanted to open my own roastery since the very first time I fired up a roaster.

This year that wish came true with the opening of the new roastery on Blackwater Road Dublin Industrial Estate.

A critical decision was of course selecting which type of roaster to use. I am more than happy with the roasting system, drum & software on the new machine. Here’s a couple of reasons why.

A state of the art machine with a thermodynamic drum  “this is the most advanced drum in today’s industry. Built from two layers of mild steel with a middle layer of pure copper, it has extremely high thermal absorption and conduction characteristics. In contrast to standard drums, in which roasting is performed by direct, limited contact between the beans and the drum, the Ghibli Thermodynamic Drum displays a unique method of refined conduction applied to a wider contact surface between beans and drum. Heat is generated via a copper layer creating a 1.4mm gap between the heat and the beans, removing any risk of burn marks. This drum excels in producing an evenly-roasted batch of superb beans.”

Conduction Vs Convection
Heat conduction or thermal conduction is “the transfer of internal energy by microscopic diffusion and collisions of particles or quasi particles within a body due to a temperature gradient.”

As opposed to convection which is defined as “the concerted, collective movement of groups or aggregates of molecules within fluids (e.g., liquids, gases) and rheids, through advection or through diffusion or as a combination of both of them.”

An example of convection heating is to heat a metal rod at one end. The heat travels from one end of the rod to the other through high speed particles colliding with slower ones.

An example of convection is to put a heat source in water, heated fluid is caused to move away from the heat of the source.
This in my opinion is why the Ghibli stands head and shoulders above other roasters (in this price range). A high level of conductive heat particularly early in the roast produces a rich cup with caramelisation of sugars and fats. This is because the first two thirds of the roasting period are endothermic meaning the beans absorb energy this is crucial for inner bean development. Once this has been established the final stages of the roast can be achieved through convection a higher airflow or quicker drum speed . Coupled with a unique roasting software which allows us to predefine and program personal roast profiles. By recording the desired heating curves, endless roast profiles can be applied, again and again with the greatest accuracy.

Learning to use the roaster has been a lot of fun, hopefully you’ll see the results in the cup!

This is my first blog post on the new website I hope you like the look and feel to it. There has been some really positive uptake on the “coffee club” subscribtion service which is really pleasing.