Lo and behold, there are three new coffees today. Here they are: Kenya Nyeri AA Gichatha-ini with some plum/chocolate sweetness and could be considered for Single Origin espresso. Sumatra Lintong Blue Batak has been a big favorite in the past with hints of spice, molasses sweetness and versatile at a light to dark roast. Last up is another familiar, Costa Rica Don Mayo “La Ponderosa” Bourbon with nut flavors and a sweetness that varies in light to dark roasts. This is also good as a SO espresso.
We’re adding two decafs that were so great caffeinated, we sent them off to be de-caffeinated! Ethiopia Organic Guji Sidamo SWP Decaf and Guatemala La Maravilla SWP Decaf . Note also that Finca La Maravilla is in the Huehuetenango region, and Tom notes a more expanded body in the decaf version of the Guji in the full reviews. Click on through.. Switch to Decaf !?
New to Sweet Maria’s, we now have the Hario Skerton Hand Crank Coffee Mill. The grind quality is very good, and the mill grinds efficiently, fairly quickly, but not too fast. Like any manual mill, it takes some elbow grease to crank out a grind. But the work out is worth it! It is a conical burr design, so it can do a range of grinds from espresso to a passable French press grind (on the finer side of French press). It has a ceramic, conical burr set. It also makes a handy travel mill since it is so compact. I made a pretty interesting travel mill by combining the top of the Skerton with an aeropress (there’s a video if you follow the above link).By the way, this is not the Skelton or Skeleton … people have a funny way of getting the name wrong on this one. Can’t exactly blame them… -Tom
Adding more images to our library of macro shots of coffee. Here I photographed coffee flowers, the leaf, leaf buds, some defects in green coffee and roasted coffee, and …what the heck … some bubbles. -Tom
This coffee has entered 2nd crack, and the increased porosity is evident, as well as pockets of migrating oils. This and many more interesting macro shots I have taken of green and roasted coffee, as well as coffee cherry, are now posted on the SM site and Flickr. -Tom
It might seem silly, but I am really excited about this kettle, the PINO Digital Kettle Pro. I need a lot of hot water for cupping and brewing so having a kettle that works as well as this does makes a big difference in my day-to-day life. I have the bad habit of forgetting that I am heating water. On the stove, I will evaporate a full pan of water before I remember I had it on the burner … which led me to use the Bodum Ibis kettle. It’s a fine kettle, but I also forget about it, and then my water is cool and I need to heat it again.
So here is the pretty sleek the Pino Digital Kettle Pro, an electric kettle that will heat water to a temperature that I preset, and hold it there until I am ready for it, or remember it, whichever comes first. It has a 50 oz (~1.5 Liter capacity), and the electric base is separate from the kettle top. It is 1000 watts, a bit lower than some other electric kettles, but will heat a full 1.5 liters from tap temperature to 205 in 9 minutes, and will heat 16 ounces of water in 2 minutes. It is pricey, but this paired with a Clever Coffee Dripper makes a great brewing set-up.
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