CASA - Single Origin Espresso Blend - 100% Arabica
60% Brazil: Cachoeira (Rainforest Alliance Certified) 40%: El Salvador: Casa de Zinc
We've worked hard to perfect our iconic blue label Casa. Given that speciality coffee is all about seasonal harvests, we can confidently reproduce our taste profile with Brazilian and Central American Arabica beans.
We use for the base the incredible red catuai Arabica coffee varietal from the Cachoeira farm. We source this coffee from Danilo Barbosa, the owner, so we can be assured of the high quality of the coffee. (Read more about them on the "NERD ZONE" tab above). This Brazilian bean has an amazing sweetness, yet the punch needed to cut through milky espresso-machine based drinks. So, its the ideal base for our Casa Espresso blend. It's also ideal as a stand alone single origin, for those of you who like extra body in the cup.
SCA Score - 86
As its bezzy mate, we've chosen the typical chocolaty flavours of an El Salvador Arabica. It's a Red Bourbon varietal, a favourite of ours and a delight to roast. Honestly, we're spoiling y'all with this unbeliveable house blend. (Don't take my word for it though ... just look at what you're saying on the REVIEWS tab above!)
So what's our objective? We want...
- A coffee that's got the boldness through an espresso machine as an unadulturated espresso, yet has the body and punch to compliment all milky drinks - A blend of 100% single-origin Arabica beans that tastes amazing, without any hint of the astringency you'll find with Robusta coffee - To remain committed to using farms whose produce is fully traceable. With this provenance, we can rely on an excellent crop from each harvest. And in this way, we can reproduce a consistent roast profile and keep you smiling - A taste profile that has good balance, a full-mouthfeel, with nutty and dark chocolate notes and a refreshing berry finish
Brew Method: Made to measure for an espresso machine. If you have a home espresso machine, then our "blue label" is an essential companion. It's also absolutely cracking to use with a stove top - see our range of Bialetti - a great way to start the morning that keeps to a tight budget. And because we roast fresh at least once a week, you'll get the very best our of this amazing 100% Arabica blend. As we say in Cumbria: “Champion”.
For more information about the beans, click on the "Nerd Zone" tab about ... you geeks, you!
Sweetness – 10 Excellent sweetness with more sugars being absorbed from the pulp
Uniformity - 10
Clean cup - 10
Sweetness - 10
Body – 8 - 8.5 Medium to full body
Balance – 8 Good balance
Defects - 0
Character – Caramel sweet, chocolate, nutty with a slight citrus note
Family History
Danilo is the owner and manager; his first harvest was in 79/80 crops. The success led him to develop the activity and growth of the explored area, acquirement of new farms and introduction of new harvest technologies. Nowadays the producer counts with 490 hectares of coffee plantation, which are carefully assisted by him, his son and the quality control team.
The producer is associated with cooperatives which, in many ways provide information on the coffee market, quality, and courses. For the past two years, the farmer has concentrated countless efforts on the improvement of the production processes and management. Danilo has always shown concern for the environment and has always taken care of nature, today he adds more than 186 hectares of nature reserve.
At the present, plans are been executed in order to certify the properties, to learn more on how to preserve the environment and to produce a 100% sustainable coffee.
The tradition of coffee production has been in the Family since the twentieth century. Mr. Barbosa ancestors, his great-grandparent Elias Barbosa passed it on to his grandparent Claudio Barbosa de Paula and from him to his father, Jairo Barbosa de Paula and now Mr. Barbosa works with his generation, his sons Vítor Marcelo and Sergio Ricardo.
When I say family business, I mean husband, wife, father, son, and daughter in law all working together, so the office is like a big home where everybody shares the same dream, supports each other, learn and grow together, the office is located in Carmo do Paranaíba, Estate of Minas Gerais, where the team is composed of ten people, cooperating to deliver the best coffee.
QUALITY AND CERTIFICATION DBarbosa is Rainforest Alliance certified. Every stage must be monitored and recorded to allow 100% traceability of the coffee. The farm is a member of the Brazilian Specialty Coffee Association. The importance of the certification is for both environment and social reasons. Recycling is encouraged in all farm buildings and the correct use of safety equipment is a further requirement of RFA.
Producer: Mapache Farm Name: Casa De Zinc Farmer: Bodo Kurt Alfred Handtke Region: Apaneca Llamatepequec Farm size: 79 Ha. Growing Altittude: 1400 masl Processing: Honey Altitude: 1400 masl Screen Size: 16+ Varietal: Bourbon Certification: Cafe Practices Harvest: December - March Soil Type: Volcanic SCA Score: 85.5
Cup Profile: Dark chocolate, lime, red cherry, sweet honyed finish.
The Region
Apaneca Llamatepequec is a mountain range in western El Salvador near the border of Guatemala. While montainous, altitude rarely exceeds 1400 meters, but nevertheless, the region exhibits a number of attributes that lead to high quality coffee production. Notable landmarks include the beautiful town of Concepción de Ataco and ‘El Imposible’ national park. El Salvador is an origin that has a natural tendency to produce sweet, versatile and sought after coffees from small, and generally progressive producers and was an early darling of the current specialty coffee movement. However, in 2013 the county was perhaps one of the hardest hit in Central America by the roya (leaf rust) outbreak and many farms produced negligible to nil coffee volume. However, diligent and progressive producers have generally rebounded well and are coming back with improved volume and quality.
The Honey Process
A means of coffee bean processing which may some confusion amongst roasters and consumers due to the many different forms that it can take dependent on the country of origin, it is therefore a sort of ‘hybrid’ process that is very much open to interpretation depending on the aim of the farmer.
In Brazil for example, research was carried out to try and find a processing method that would use less water than the washed process, but that would be less susceptible to defects than the natural process. The ‘Pulped Natural’ process therefore came about whereby cherries are depulped to remove the skin and much of the mucilage from the cherry, but rather than being washed to totally rid the bean of any mucilage, they are immediately dried on patios. This results in a coffee that has much of the sweetness and body expected from a natural processed bean, but there is also a rounded acidity in there too which contributes towards better clarity in the cup.
Central American countries such as El Salvador and Costa Rica have more of a focus on experimentation and therefore revert to the true ‘Honey’ process whereby ripe cherries are depulped in a controlled manner to determine exactly how much mucilage is left on the bean. It is in this way that different flavour profiles can be created due to the varying influence of fermentation. In this instance, the drying process is extremely important as there is more of a risk of mould growth and defects so it is essential that the sticky beans are turned regularly and are protected from insect damage. You may come across terms such as ‘yellow honey process’ or ‘perla negra’ which refers to either the amount of time the bean spent in the cherry before it was depulped, or to the amount of mucilage that was left on the bean before it was dried.
