Those close to me have surely heard me rant about the phenomenon of small micro-roasters that have popped up across the lower Midwest and the southern United States in the last few years. They have outstanding packaging that makes me say, \”Well there is just no way that the coffee is NOT going to be good… I mean look at the subtle off-white lettering\” etc. and so on. Somewhat annoyingly, the owners of those tend to be people with little to no experience in specialty coffee, but do know that a beautiful bag of coffee sells itself. I am super upset about it obviously. Anyway, Little Wolf is not one of those companies, despite how adorable the packaging is. The owners Chris and Melissa are fantastic business owners and coffee experts. In my opinion, they are possibly one of the top 5 roasters in the U.S. The coffee they roast is clean, complex, and sourced with focus. Their dedication has earned them dozens of awards and on the shelves of the top multi-roaster cafes in the country. I am excited to share these coffees with you in this absolutely fucked yet hopeful month of January 2021.
1. Ecuador Lugmapata
Finca Lugmapata is everything to me. This is a farm owned by Enrique Moreno, the producer that convinced me that the most excited coffee producing country in the world is Ecuador. Other countries use rare or transplanted varietals, however other countries do not have the terroir of Ecuador. This specific lot is 100% Bourbon Sidra, one of my favorite varietals of coffee grown in one of my favorite coffee producing nations. Normally Sidra is much more expensive, so it is a miracle I was able to bring it to everyone. This coffee was everything I wanted it to be. Clean, fruity, floral, perfect. I tasted honeysuckle, mango, kiwi, and dulce de leche on the finish. I\’m surely going to use the rest of this coffee as an espresso because of the complexity, and I recommend anyone with that option should take advantage of it. I brewed this coffee with a 16.5:1 ratio and a slightly coarser grind with two pulses. My second pulse finished around 1:45 for a 2:35 total brew time.
2. Colombia Las Perlitas:
This Colombian coffee was grown in Huila, a region celebrated by specialty coffee for it\’s progress in creating clean coffees that do not need to be thrown in to a blend. Las Perlitas is a co-op, meaning local smallholder farmers bring leftover coffees on site to sell, that will be mixed. This one specifically, reminds of a classic coffee shop house blend (of green coffee varietals, not roasted coffees from different countries). Caturra is the base making up the majority, Pink Bourbon for sparkling acidity, and lastly a small amount of Gesha to add a little… exotic. I tasted plum, raspberry, sparking lavender tea, and honey; one of the jammiest Colombian coffees. It was easy to brew and I am predicting a lot of different methods will make this coffee shine. Personally, I used a 16:1 ratio and used my go-to starting v60 grind setting with three total pulses. I finished my last pour at 1:55 with a 2:50 total brew time. I might try two pulses with a finer grind next time to get more brightness out of the cup.
3. Ethiopia Demeka Becha
The Demeka Becha site is located in the Sidama region of Ethiopia, owned by a man named Ayela Tulu. This is a project created to modernize the way Ethiopia does coffee production. Tulu is said to be inspired by the global specialty coffee community, and the way it is able to connect throughout different cultures and nations. This coffee ended up being a tad more sweet than bright, which is unusual for Ethiopian coffees. However, it is honey processed, which leads me to expect a balance between sweetness and brightness. I tasted ripe peach, jasmine, and a nutty praline-like sweetness. I initially used a 15:1 ratio as it looked like a lighter than light Ethiopia but the cup was earthy and heavy, so I extended my next brew to 16.5:1. This brought out more fruit and cleaned the cup up. I ground this one a couple clicks coarser than usual and poured two pulses. I finished my second pulse at 1:45 for a total brew time of 2:30.
4. Peru Oropel
At this point I\’m realizing I might as well have called January the Andes mountain edition (minus the Demeka Becha of course). I don\’t think I have ever had a Peruvian coffee that fits the words \”exotic\” or \”intricate\”, however they are so damn good. I actually wrote a super embarrassing blog post several years ago about my love for Peruvian coffees you can find HERE. Oropel is a 2190 MASL Typica/Pache varietal. The \”Oropel\” part of this comes from the Santiago de Oropel community this coffee belongs to. The farmer is Vilcopoma Camargo Hugo. Hugo is one of those producers that inspires all of us to be better – better at what we do, and better for our communities. I even hear he is planting Gesha, unheard of in Peru. This coffee was amazingly sweet. It initially tasted like a warm caramelly hot chocolate. In the finish I tasted a dried fruit/raisin note that lingered long after the last sip. It also has the SILKIEST body of any coffee in recent memory. It is a fairly simple coffee but something I could drink every day, and will probably be the best coffee to brew in a larger format. I brewed this with a 16.2:1 ratio, and ground it slightly finer than usual starting grind setting. I poured three total pulses with my last pour finishing at 2:10 for a 3:00 total brew time.
I hope everyone had a great holiday, and just wanted everyone to know how much I appreciate the support and wisdom received throughout the process of starting this group. Since I started the subscription in May, I have not yet repeated a roaster in the rotation. I will begin reusing the valued roaster partners I have grown to love and developed relationships with. I really feel it is important to maintain strong relationships with the roasting partners. The value of roasters knowing what I/you will like and knowing their skillsets benefit all parties. However, because the Coffee Club has grown so much, from now on I will be ditching the single roaster showcase model and everyone receiving more than one coffee per month should be expecting coffee from two different roasters.
Stimulus Coffee Club 