Metropolis Redline rest period

[portamento]

Post-Christmas, I was stuck with a couple pounds of Starbucks, so after working my way through them, my trigger finger was itchy to try a new micro-roasted blend.

My pound of Metropolis Redline arrived yesterday. They also included about a 1/3 lb free sample of Organic Samba blend, which was packaged in a brown paper (plastic-lined) roll top bag vs. the Redline's ziplock one-way valve bag.

First impression was that the beans were not quite as aromatic as the Black Cat I ordered last month. The open bag of Black Cat could smack you in the face from 6 feet away (in a good way.) Looked like a similar degree of roast, though - beautiful milk chocolate colored beans with no surface oil.

I'm 3 days out from the Jan. 22 roast date, but I think these beans still need some more rest. I'm pretty dialed in (Zero+6 on the Rocky), but I'm getting fast bubbly pours. The pour starts slow and restricted, but after the first half ounce, the shot accelerates and I get a ton of airy crema that quickly collapses.

The flavor is pretty nice... definitely more top notes than the Black Cat, although I'm not sure to what extent I'm just tasting the acidity of the too-fresh beans.

Any opinions on when the Redline should hit its prime? I'm a relative newbie so there are still a lot of variables in play and I'm not always sure if I'm hitting the mark or not. I mostly stick to very short milk drinks with little or no sugar, but I always give the shots a quick diagnostic sip before mixing.

[cappadoc]

I've been drinking 95% redline for over a year. I find the sweet spot at 5-7 days post roast. I usually order 8# at a time. I vacuum seal and deep freeze all but 1#. Freezes quite well, but the first pound is the best.

Definitely gets tougher to get a good pour at day 10, but a pound never makes it past six days in this house. It gets thinner and a bit less body and mouthfeel when past it's prime.

Now I've got a Behmor and I'm roasting greenline myself with really good results. Not quite as good as Metropolis, but it's easier to manage green inventory than stale. REALLY interesting results with varying profiles. I'd love to try it in a HotTop sometime.

BTW, try pulling at 93-94 degrees C. That's 199-201 F. I've never tried lower, but it may be good, too.

Jeff

[popeye]

In my experience, redline needs to rest for 4 days. I've had other espressos peak at day 5 but they were definitely drinkable by day 2. With redline, it seems to be a waste to try it before day 4. It still peaks around 5 or 6, but it really needs that rest. I also have been pulling at 202-203 on day 4, and dropping about a degree every day or two. By day 7-8, i'm pulling around 200. Of course, keep in mind that i'm working with greenline, roasted on a behmor.

[cappadoc]

After a lot of RedLine, and quite a bit of GreenLine, I must say there are differences.
Tony's version needs a lower temp than Spencer suggests, home roasted is best at 95-96C.
Tony's version is easier to get consistent pulls with, but as I noted, it deteriorates with age. Some of this may be a result of my gasp stepped grinder and it's non-tweakability. (I'm considering the Cimbali MAX or MACAP conical).
I'd also suggest grind finer, tamp less for Redline and dose less compared to Black Cat.

Jeff

[popeye]

yeah, I guess temps aren't too meaningful when i probably roast mine differently than tony. I've actually had to adjust my decaf blend (donkey) by about 2 degrees from roast to roast, depending on the degree of roast (and this is just with FC+ roasts, too. (i roast lighter, but it's usually FC+ for espresso)

[portamento]

I'm sorry to say I haven't had too much luck pulling a good shot from the Redline. Perhaps this blend is not for beginners (or small boiler Gaggias).