Thoughts on Andy Town Roaster (La Marzocco Roaster of the month)

Discuss flavors, brew temperatures, blending, and cupping notes.
larscoffee
Posts: 15
Joined: 2 years ago

#1: Post by larscoffee »

What is everyone's thoughts on the AndyTown Coffee Roasters Indonesian Natural? I just finished my bag and wanted to here some other thoughts. I brewed with my 15gram basket. I found it really tart and muddled at first but towards the end of the bag really enjoyed brighter notes of pomegranate and cherry. Maybe not my favorite origin, but certainly an interesting cup. I didn't try it iced, but I believe it would've been fantastic.




chipman
Posts: 1169
Joined: 16 years ago

#2: Post by chipman »

Absolutely love Andytown Cafe's. Without a doubt the best coffee joint in San Francisco. (fantastic in house baked goods also) Sadly, at least for me their beans are a little to bright for my liking.

jpender
Posts: 3861
Joined: 11 years ago

#3: Post by jpender »

I saw that one in the store this afternoon. It smells so wonderful. So I bought a bag despite misgivings. My past experiences with Andytown's natural coffees have taught me to expect disappointment. We'll see....

jpender
Posts: 3861
Joined: 11 years ago

#4: Post by jpender »

...well, I tried it as espresso. I tried it in my Aeropress. I tried it in my cezve. Most of these coffees were pretty tart. I haven't been able to figure out how to get rid of that. The best I managed was to dampen the tartness somewhat. That left me with a general muddiness without any distinction.

The coffee smells fabulous but tastes mediocre at best. Not sure what I'm supposed to be doing. I like their Shore Leave Hook blend. That works well for me.

danny31292
Posts: 88
Joined: 7 years ago

#5: Post by danny31292 »

I was really surprised to see a lighter roast natural process Indonesia. It was better than expected but nothing too exciting. I was pleasantly surprised by the Hook Shore blend. I was expecting it to be way too dark but it was incredibly sweet with no over excessive roasty flavors. Still not my preferred roast but an excellent darker roast for sure.

larscoffee (original poster)
Posts: 15
Joined: 2 years ago

#6: Post by larscoffee (original poster) »

I agree with you all. The Indonesian was a peculiar batch. It was definitely interesting, but do you take interesting for interesting sake over good taste and reliability? (I really prefer Ethiopian and African coffees in general.)

I am currently drinking through the ShoreHook Blend. The recipe of 30 seconds for 23 out is interesting, but the roasted peanuts aren't my favorite flavor either. For being a Brazil and Colombian blend, I wish there were more chocolate notes to round out the acidity...

jpender
Posts: 3861
Joined: 11 years ago

#7: Post by jpender »

larscoffee wrote:I am currently drinking through the ShoreHook Blend. The recipe of 30 seconds for 23 out is interesting...
How do you get those recipes? The bags they sell always have a boiler plate recipe printed on the side, the same one for every coffee. I've never seen the type of label you posted above for the Indonesian. And I can't find it on their website either.

I used to love everything Andytown roasted but not so much in the last several years. I'm not sure if they changed or I did or both.

Pre-pandemic I could easily get very fresh Andytown coffee at a number of local markets. Then in 2020 I tried ordering directly from them and they sent me coffee over a week old. So I went back to just buying it in markets but now it's much harder to find anything less than 2-3 weeks old. At my local store it's typically 1-2 months old. So nowadays I only occasionally buy their coffee: a few bags a year instead of dozens.

They're only a few miles from my house. One of these days I'll have to visit them.