I was looking around for some new coffees to try, saw Aida's Grand Reserve at Counter Culture and it caught my eye. Obviously it's much more expensive than most beans, and I've had mixed results with El Salvadorian coffees before, so I'm not sure if I want to get 8oz and try to dial it in for espresso or not.

Anyone try it yet? Or have any thoughts about trying it as espresso?

I loved it!! Easy to dial in, tastes very clean with grapefruit tingle.

I roasted some of the lot being sold green at SMs three times

It did not strike me as an espresso coffee. Instead, it seems like a classic Aida Battle coffee, with flavors reminiscent of East Africa, but gentler, like most centrals. However, I think the blend idea itself is a failure, and should not be repeated. It does score in the low 90s; but to me, her straight Finca Kilimanjaro and Finca Mauritania have more character.

Well, I decided to go ahead and give CC's roast a try (which I believe is being roasted and shipped today). I've never tried one of these "super premium" coffees before, so it should be interesting.

If anyone that's tried it at home already has some tips on where to start to dial it in that'd be great too.

Pulled my first shots this morning, here's my thoughts, in no particular order:

1. All the shots were pretty good, even first couple dial in shots were tasty.
2. It seems to be pretty finicky on dose, a 1/2g change in dose will make a noticeable impact on flow and taste
3. If you're trying it, and want an idea of where to set your grinder to start out, just set it to whatever's the finest setting you've ever used for any other bean. On the PL53 it's significantly finer than I've ever used it before (maybe this is caused by some weird interaction of very small beans and very small burrs?)
4. The taste of cherries and red fruit is center stage, although there's a very nice citrus flavor too that's not as strong, lemon (or maybe grapefruit?)
5. The grinds smell very floral/vanillaish, but if that flavor's in the cup it's hidden behind everything else.
6. When I cut the shot has a huge impact on flavor, the first few drops are like cherry syrup, the middle is more balanced and the cherry/citrus are both there, than it blonds very quickly, and all the flavors cut out but there aren't any off flavors. If I wanted a punchier shot I would cut it early, and if I wanted a more laid back shot I would let it blond just a touch.
7. I haven't played around with temperature yet, I've got it set to 200f, which is pretty middle of the road for me.

When I go back to pull a few more shots I'm going to see if I can get the citrus to come out a bit more, and I was thinking that changing the temp might bring out some of the floral flavors too, anyone have any suggestions what I should try, hotter or colder?

I ordered the non-espresso prep of this on their last roast date, which was Dec 13'th. My decorative tin arrived with my 8oz of Aidas coffee on Wednesday the 15'th, and I dove in on the 18'th.

Ive since had 4 cups, and I am about to brew another.

I chose to brew this using my Hario V60 pourover, and I thought a coffee as highly regarded(by some) as this, deserved the simplest possible brewing method. Least thats what I told myself.

Anyway.. Each cup Ive had has been quite delicious. There is a very distinct syrup like quality to the coffee, both in texture and the way the brew looks. It smells very sweet, with a lemony/orangey acidity as the main aroma, with some hints of spice/pepper. The cup itself is much more complex, and I have a hard time identifying everything, but I definitely get Orange, Lemon, Pineapple, Pepper, Clove, Maple syrup and Molasses. To be quite honest, I like this coffee quite a bit. Definitely glad I grabbed some.. In my book, its worth the price they're asking.

The beans are all peaberry, and even roasted its easy to tell they are sorted with textbook precision. They're roasted pretty light, no more than City+, depending on your style. After the first two cups, I added 4grams to the dose, same amount of water, and the sweetness and fruit flavors become more noticeable. The syrupy quality is unreal, its not something you experience with many coffees, and certainly a first for me.

Id suggest trying some if you get the chance, Im glad I did.