Rwanda Rusizi Mushaka

The grinds let off fresh, sweet smells, like when cracking a bag of brown sugar, with warming spice notes. The wet aroma showed caramel-sweet notes, warm butterscotch sauce, with a delicate hint of cinnamon tea. In the brewed coffee, the cup sweetness was layered with notes of brown sugars, demerara and sucanat, creamy honey, and a burnt sugar aspect in the aftertaste. As you move through the cup, top notes accent the sweetness, English Breakfast tea, malted grains, with some candied citrus accents that connect to a bittering orange rind aspect. A light lemon effervescence comes through in this context, mingling with an aroma that's slightly spiced and herbaceous. We found roasts in the middle ranges to have very nice bittersweet tones yielding flavor profiles of extra dark chocolate bar, Oaxacan spiced cocoa, and a hint of vanilla in the finish. Acidity is much milder at this roast level, and translates to espresso shots loaded with syrupy bittersweets; 80% dark chocolate, cacao nibs, mildly bright accents, a spritz of lemon, and a finish spiked with chocolate beer grain, and sandalwood.