So the weekend was Jairo Arcila (decaf) - Colombia from Foundry (to note, that @LeefromFoundryCR provides fantastic email communication as standard - huge props there).
I’m hitting two walls with this, my first real attempt at making decaf espresso:
This bean is possible the hardest I’ve ever tried to hand grind. Most mediums are fairly smooth, with perhaps a slight occasional ‘halt’ using the C40. However, when grinding this, I will constantly ‘halt’ and have to restart as the beans are just so tough. Whereas hand grinding is normally fine for me, this has me completely wrecked after each cup. I believe this is more likely, due to decaf having a higher bean density, but it still surprised me.
I cannot get a cup that is not sour - having gone from a more coarse grind, all the way down to just before clogging, tried short to long ratios, tried temperature up to 97 degrees…
Even with a coarser grind filter, it’s exceptionally ‘bright’ (I’ve never tasted sour filter) and not something I would drink. The beans have only had a couple of days rest (so I’m leaving them another week now) but it’s not something I’d expect from trying too ‘early’ with decaf. Again, reading up doesn’t seem to give me any answers.
All I see typically for decaf espresso is ‘needs a finer grind’ but I’ve hit the limit on that.
I’d welcome any thoughts on how to proceed. None of this is a reflection of Lee, who I know will read this, but more my inability to pull a decent shot. I know my taste is also a mess at times, but this bean is so far abstracted from all of the previous ones I’ve tried, I’m honestly at a loss as to how to move on.
So in my cup, in reality today, is just some water 😅
