cmin wrote:Just had a couple bags in recent months from Verve and they honestly have all been mehhh. From Sermon to single origins. I remember Sermon years ago being straight berries and chocolate, last two bags on different orders have been like generic flat coffee and one order was pretty ashy flavored, neither had a hint of any fruit. And SOs same. Couldn't get anything like tasting notes even on V60 let alone 'Spro. Used to love their stuff years ago so that was disappointing to have that happen on like 4 or 5 different bags.

I second everything said here. My sibling was also a big Verve drinker and no longer is for the same reasons. What's happened? IDK but a former go-to is now a "rather not" for me. Shame. Sermon was reliably the (blueberry) bomb for me once upon a time.

Has anyone recently tried Olympia's Sweetheart Ethiopia Worka Natural Flavors of strawberry, blueberry, and chocolate? They change the blend frequently. Last time I ordered (sometime end of last year), they had limoncello, bergamot & floral in it which literally I despised, weak & sour at the same time. Yet, prior to that, it was cherry & chocolate which I really enjoyed--had stone fruit (which I prefer over citrus) blending beautifully with the chocolate--so not one-dimensional. This time with the strawberry & blueberry with chocolate sounds very interesting.

chanty 77 wrote:This time with the strawberry & blueberry with chocolate sounds very interesting.

Not recently but that sounds delicious. Thought I just had a order with them but checked a couple weeks back and it was Victrola whome I always liked.

Is Victrola whome a blend? Thanks

Lol no, meant whom as in whom I always enjoyed. Victrolas offerings have always been good.

What blend would you recommend? Have you ever tried Olympia's blends?

Yeah but I haven't had Olympia in a awhile.
Both the Tribourough and Streamline are great, they have a Colombian Pink Bourbon right now that looks good.

I'm trying to wrap my brain around the 'pine & cedar' notes. Don't know about sprucey woody flavors.

I am not able to taste the blueberries myself (my wife can, and didn't like the beans immediately for that reason). But, Harrar is my ultimate, favorite coffee. I love the full body and great mouthfeel.

I haven't had their latest offering, but I will soon. I just received a new order of beans and need to wait a little bit.

I have bought from them before, at least 5x. The last order was a little disappointing due to it having more quakers than I am used to. The beans were still good and the cups delightful (pour over only).

This must be the new crop, as it is on sale and they have the organic in stock too. They haven't had organic Harrar for a very long time,and they do now, so they have new stock in.

The reg. Harrar is on sale for $45.00 for 5lbs. The price is great. They only sell 5lb minimum, unfortunately.

https://www.kaldi.com/ethiopian-harrar? ... MAIL_ID%5D

Ethiopian Harrar
On Sale, 5 lbs. for $45
Use Code: HARRAR

They do charge shipping, but when you create an account they send a coupon too. I will be trying their organic Harrar, so as soon as I can get through the 2lbs that I just got in today, I will be buying some.

I'm sorry that I don't have a taste of this before I posted, but I am just to excited. They always have good beans at great prices.

I just ordered 5 lbs of the organic Harrar, so I will be able to give my opinion shortly.

Two recommendations:

Birch Yirgacheffe has nice chocolate and a great strawberry flavor.

No. 6 Depot Ethiopia Amaro Gayo's blueberries will blow you away. I had to dial it down, increase the chocolate and acidity to balance it out. Before I did that it tasted like I'd added blueberry syrup.