9Sbeans wrote:Bummer, I was always late.

I closely followed the 93.0 Kenya Nyeri Hill AA and 92.6 Ethiopia Yirga Cheffe Buufata Konga but didn't pull the trigger, and they were long gone. Couple days ago just placed the order, 93.6 Guatemala Acatenango Gesha and the 93.0 Kenya Othaya Kamoini AA, 10# each, and I haven't received them yet. But now I know that you are not fully satisfied with this Gesha (this batch is .4 d/300gr, not .2 d). Oh, well, they were intended for gift, and hopefully their receivers won't be as picky as you.

I think SM has their own cupping score metric system. As long as you compare apple to apple, I fund them consistent.

The 93 point Kenyan was exceedingly beautiful, literally the day it was roasted. The finish on it is lingering and complex in a pleasing way, but since day 1,2,3,.... after roasting it, it's sweetness is hard to find and tastes predominantly tart cranberry. I also brought some with me today that I'll brew again shortly. It tends to need a coarser grind.

TomC wrote:Sipping it right now. Day 5 or 6, I've tried every extraction tweak possible, updosing, grinding coarser, decreasing vs increasing BR, all leading to rather insipid cups. It's a little lemon, little jasmine, and mostly black tea. Black tea is much, much cheaper.

This is why, when I see tasting notes that reference tea, I dont buy. If I want tea, Ill buy tea.

There ARE occasions when there will be a wee touch of bergamot ("Earl Grey") essence in an African coffee, or even in a Panama...
I really don't mind that, if the citrus is complimentary, and the body balances things. A washed Panama Elida green from a couple years back comes to mind. It was an awesome Kalita cup.

Even after all these years, I sometimes have to remind myself that coffee begins as a fruit.

TomC wrote:It's a little lemon, little jasmine, and mostly black tea. Black tea is much, much cheaper.

Just received mine today, roasted it an hour ago and drinking it now. The realization that I've paid for gesha like this from roasters at 5x the price of this green is a bit hard to swallow (this is my first time roasting a gesha)

His scoring is so odd. His new Colombian Timana Principales Lotes wipes the floor with the rest from his current offerings. It's incredible, complex, intense and perfectly balanced.

https://www.sweetmarias.com/product/col ... lotes-5024

IMAWriter wrote:There ARE occasions when there will be a wee touch of bergamot ("Earl Grey") essence in an African coffee, or even in a Panama...
I really don't mind that, if the citrus is complimentary, and the body balances things. A washed Panama Elida green from a couple years back comes to mind. It was an awesome Kalita cup.

Even after all these years, I sometimes have to remind myself that coffee begins as a fruit.

I find the best way to explain "specialty coffee" to people is to remind them that coffee is a fruit. You would be surprised that most people don't know this. This week I had a Zimbabwe Smaldeel Estate AA and the tasting notes were "peach, lime zest, rhubarb, and a tea like body." Descriptions like this actually turn some people away from getting the coffee; even though it's delicious, and definitely has all those traits when drinking it black. The point is, reminding people that coffee is a fruit bridges the gap most of the time. It helps people understand how a coffee can have a flavor profile of peaches, or blueberry, or be tea like in mouthfeel. It's an important point to drive home when it comes to specialty coffee. Excellent point Robert, great post.

On topic and to the point of geishas, James Hoffman wrote a great blog post (IMHO) on geishas if you haven't read it.

http://www.jimseven.com/2016/07/18/on-geisha/

Ellejaycafe wrote: On topic and to the point of geishas, James Hoffman wrote a great blog post (IMHO) on geishas if you haven't read it.

http://www.jimseven.com/2016/07/18/on-geisha/

One day last year I set up a blind cupping:
-- Colombian geisha
-- Colombian sudan rume
-- Two yirg kocheres
-- Washed ethiopia jipat
-- Rwandan bourbon

Geisha was by far the most expensive one, yet I discovered I ranked it not even in the top three on the table.

What took the top spot? The sudan rume

I feel like I've been burned by geishas, yet continue to pony up the cash. Sort of like buying espresso in a shop-- it could be life-changing, but it's a gamble.

All said, I'm enjoying the guatemalan geisha

TomC wrote:His scoring is so odd. His new Colombian Timana Principales Lotes wipes the floor with the rest from his current offerings. It's incredible, complex, intense and perfectly balanced.

https://www.sweetmarias.com/product/col ... lotes-5024

Thanks for the tip - just ordered some of this today.

After a bit of searching, I've found that bodhileaf is selling the Mexican single origin greens that ipcoffees has. I just want to plug Vera Cruz coffees of which I think they have 5 in addition to several coffees from Hidalgo and Puebla. I ordered 2 pounds of each Vera Cruz, if anyone's interested I'll rate them post roast, though my cupping notes tend to be along the , "This one here's real good" lines.

http://www.bodhileafcoffee.com/collections/mexico-green

bean2friends wrote:This is why, when I see tasting notes that reference tea, I dont buy. If I want tea, Ill buy tea.

I'll amend my faint praise by saying if one were to let the cup cool completely down to body temperature, the nice delicate florals and sweetness finally emerge. Still way overrated however. If it's even remotely hot, all those delicate notes are imperceptible and the sweetness is absent. This is my second roast of this Gesha and I probably won't buy it anymore moving forward. And that's not something I've ever said about anything from Sweet Maria's. I love them dearly. Great people and they do excellent work.