- Jun 25, 2026
- 176
- 16
This is a local roaster in Asheville, North Carolina. It was roasted on Sep. 28, 2026, a little over 3 weeks ago. Single origin from Huehuetenango, Guatemala. Washed process. Claimed flavor notes: lemon, cherry, almond syrup.
I obtained this bag at Earthfare in Asheville and it wasn't cheap, $18. I'd seen other Cooperative bags at French Broad River Co-op and West Village Market, but both of those small stores had really old bags of stuff, for anything that declared a roast date on them. West Village Market is also noticeably humid every time I've been there, and that can't be good for coffee storage. I'm done with those 2 smaller stores. Earthfare did at least have this 1 thing, if not quite as recent as I might have liked. It's a larger store and I don't think there's a lot of competition in the "roasted by" segment. I did notice some Larry's products, but those are readily obtained in Winston-Salem NC so I didn't bother with them. On this trip I didn't happen to go by Whole Foods, which is generally the most reliable grocery store for regional coffee with a roast date that's actually turning over product.
When opening the bag today, I immediately put 16 fl. oz. of coffee beans into CO2 Mason jar storage, per my other thread on that subject. Perhaps 1/3 of the bag remains to be drunk. It will be enough to dial in and also figure out cold brews. My last bag, I didn't notice any spoilage problems over the short time to finish the bag.
I'm back in Winston-Salem so I have my better brewing equipment. Hario Buono Made in Japan gooseneck kettle, no cheap metals. Kalita 3-hole dripper, Hasami district porcelain, so nothing sketchy about that. Mellitta oversized #4 bleached filter. KINGrinder K6 hand grinder. Digital probe. Filtered water from the refrigerator, although filtered water isn't hard to get for free on the road either. 12 fl. oz. hand thrown mug.
I used 2 tblsp of beans. Grind 80 clicks. Bloomed 95*C for 2 minutes. The grounds were puffy and the bloom caved in a strong sinkhole shape. They also turned from reddish to greenish as I applied hot water to them, a phenomenon I've never seen before.
After bloom, my first few dribbles were just knocking the grounds down into a bed. The next pulses I was keeping the lake low, and it was draining rather slowly. I figured the quantity and grind was gonna be pretty cloggy so I raised the lake more, but still not to the rim of the funnel. I suspect that high wide lakes lead to bypass, although perhaps I get it anyays. Checking the mug's fill level, I added the final amount of water and waited for it to draw down. It again was slow and had that finer grind "muddy" bed thing going on. Bed was even because I did rotate between pulses to prevent pouring bias. Did not stir at the end, to better diagnose the strata in the mug.
My 1st sips were watery, suggesting either bypass or just not enough coffee. This doesn't seem to be particularly strong coffee, and perhaps that can be expected after 3+ weeks from roast. I'm not feeling that much of a caffeine hit, and I don't think it would be unreasonable to try 3 tblsp instead of 2.
Quickly though, I got effervescence in the coffee, which I consider a feature. I don't know about the claimed flavor notes, none of those seem especially prominent to me, like "here's your lemon or cherry" or whatever. But the flavor was interesting. It's a good coffee, a solid Guatemalan with some complexity to it. There's nothing wrong with the grind, it's neither sour nor bitter. The mug was pretty consistent for the rest of it, just slightly stronger at the very bottom.
I obtained this bag at Earthfare in Asheville and it wasn't cheap, $18. I'd seen other Cooperative bags at French Broad River Co-op and West Village Market, but both of those small stores had really old bags of stuff, for anything that declared a roast date on them. West Village Market is also noticeably humid every time I've been there, and that can't be good for coffee storage. I'm done with those 2 smaller stores. Earthfare did at least have this 1 thing, if not quite as recent as I might have liked. It's a larger store and I don't think there's a lot of competition in the "roasted by" segment. I did notice some Larry's products, but those are readily obtained in Winston-Salem NC so I didn't bother with them. On this trip I didn't happen to go by Whole Foods, which is generally the most reliable grocery store for regional coffee with a roast date that's actually turning over product.
When opening the bag today, I immediately put 16 fl. oz. of coffee beans into CO2 Mason jar storage, per my other thread on that subject. Perhaps 1/3 of the bag remains to be drunk. It will be enough to dial in and also figure out cold brews. My last bag, I didn't notice any spoilage problems over the short time to finish the bag.
I'm back in Winston-Salem so I have my better brewing equipment. Hario Buono Made in Japan gooseneck kettle, no cheap metals. Kalita 3-hole dripper, Hasami district porcelain, so nothing sketchy about that. Mellitta oversized #4 bleached filter. KINGrinder K6 hand grinder. Digital probe. Filtered water from the refrigerator, although filtered water isn't hard to get for free on the road either. 12 fl. oz. hand thrown mug.
I used 2 tblsp of beans. Grind 80 clicks. Bloomed 95*C for 2 minutes. The grounds were puffy and the bloom caved in a strong sinkhole shape. They also turned from reddish to greenish as I applied hot water to them, a phenomenon I've never seen before.
After bloom, my first few dribbles were just knocking the grounds down into a bed. The next pulses I was keeping the lake low, and it was draining rather slowly. I figured the quantity and grind was gonna be pretty cloggy so I raised the lake more, but still not to the rim of the funnel. I suspect that high wide lakes lead to bypass, although perhaps I get it anyays. Checking the mug's fill level, I added the final amount of water and waited for it to draw down. It again was slow and had that finer grind "muddy" bed thing going on. Bed was even because I did rotate between pulses to prevent pouring bias. Did not stir at the end, to better diagnose the strata in the mug.
My 1st sips were watery, suggesting either bypass or just not enough coffee. This doesn't seem to be particularly strong coffee, and perhaps that can be expected after 3+ weeks from roast. I'm not feeling that much of a caffeine hit, and I don't think it would be unreasonable to try 3 tblsp instead of 2.
Quickly though, I got effervescence in the coffee, which I consider a feature. I don't know about the claimed flavor notes, none of those seem especially prominent to me, like "here's your lemon or cherry" or whatever. But the flavor was interesting. It's a good coffee, a solid Guatemalan with some complexity to it. There's nothing wrong with the grind, it's neither sour nor bitter. The mug was pretty consistent for the rest of it, just slightly stronger at the very bottom.
