Your current favourite bean

dfk41

I am sure this has been discussed many times before, but here goes. A friend visited me over the weekend and bought me some of this:

https://www.forthcoffee.com/collections/freshly-roasted-coffee/products/indian-monsoon-malabar

It is a bean that over the years I have drunk many many times……but not for 3 or 4 years. I started on it yesterday and it was like greeting an old friend! That got me thinking about other beans that I used to drink and for one reason or another have forgotten about. Coffee Compass used to be my go to roaster and I always found their offerings consistently good. My favourite used to be this:

https://www.coffeecompass.co.uk/collections/india/products/java-jampit-estate-500g?variant=10066907725867

and I have had kilos of the stuff! CC also do a couple of blended varieties using both the Malabar and the Jampit as the base. They are a slightly darker roaster but well worth a visit if you are not a shandy drinker!

Raja123

dfk41 Java Jampit is one of the only well-known Coffee Compass offerings I haven’t yet tried. Just ordered a bag to check out. The flavor notes seem compelling enough to try as an ultra-ristretto.

HarveyMushman

Nice! We’ve gone back to slightly darker roasts lately having been disappointed by so many (not cheap) coffees the past 12 months even from roasters we’ve historically been impressed with.

Rave Chatswood has been a staple for years.

mkelly789

HarveyMushman very similar situation Harvey! Rave and Horsham have been pretty consistent for me- Chatswood and Nova

BlackCat chocolate point has never disappointed either.

dfk41

Raja123 compelling enough to try as an ultra-ristretto.

That is exactly the way I used to drink them! Ask @Systemic !

Tal

Good to see tradiionalists in here! I too am a medium/dark roast fan.

I’ve tried to enjoy lighter coffee and so much of it ends up going stale or sitting in the freezer as I struggle through it. I get the odd epic shot as espesso, but it’s rare. On the lighter roast shots I pull I always taste them first, then decide whether they need milk to become palatable, or just need a bit of water as a short black.

I tend to cycle between roasters now and I’ve settled on the following which I really enjoy:

Rave mocha Java - amazing with milk as a flat white or cortado

Rave Chatswood - ace for black and pretty good white

Coffee compass jampit hit and Malabar hit are both great. I usually buy their taster packs, think it’s 3 × 500g bags, and I’ll throw in a bag of sweet bourbon or Brighton lanes.

When in a bind I’ll buy Clifton coffee from my local (very good) coffee shop Fawns in Clevedon, or go to Wyvern coffee in Cheddar (shop outlet for Wogan coffee in Bristol)

Edit: I didn’t answer the question, I’d say Chatswood for being such a good all rounder.

MattH

Oh this one is easy for me.. Compass Coffee. Hill and Valley is the firm favourite - though we have enjoyed some of the other darker roasts.

But Hill and Valley just hits the spot.. dark and chocolately - in fact another 1.5K landed only a a few days back….. A Joy!

matt

Tal

I gave hill and valley a go, punchy!

Apcreek

Extract Original but for value Black Cat signature blend! :)

dang2484

Late to the party but for me;

Rave - Italian blend

but now also

Rave - Tusk African blend

dfk41

How long do folks stick with a bean? I find after 4 or 5 months I find something else to move on to. I have a pal I speak to once every couple of years and he has drunk nothing but old Brown Java for 20 years!

MWJB

dfk41 4-8 days, or once the bag (125g-200g) is finished. If a coffee is still on the bench after a week or two then it starts to feel like it is squatting/overstaying its welcome.

I often have some Illy red, or Ethiopian around in case of shortages/back up. Can’t tell you how long ago I first tried Illy…

dang2484

dfk41 I think I go around my preferred roasters and come back to my favs maybe a month or 2 at the max and then I’ll go somewhere else as I like find new roasters like bay coffee roasters and unorthodox roasters etc.

mandalorian92

dfk41 Every month I try a new roaster. I’ve had a mix of good and not-so-good experiences, but some of my favourites so far have been Sweven, Assembly, Crankhouse, and Colonna.

HarveyMushman

dfk41 How long do folks stick with a bean?

We’ll get through about a kilo of beans for espresso in a month and then maybe rotate round some of the staple favourites (Chatswood etc).

For filter I like to try something different for every 225-250g bag so usually buying at least one a week. The exception being if I know it’s a small batch of something we really enjoy where we might do two or three bags back to back.

Apcreek

I buy a different kilo every 3 weeks or so rotate between a new bean/blend and ⅔ favs.

20 years of the same is nuts! :D

ST30B

Hard Lines - Colombia El Carmen

I like strong medium that’s not dark really.
Continually finding it difficult to achieve this with
many roasters, it’s either too dark or too light and won’t cut through the milk for a small flat white.

I’ve actually never ordered from Rave - looks like the most popular ones are too dark for me.

dang2484

ST30B they do have some lighter roast options too and they’re dark roasts aren’t that dark other than a couple.

Tal

dang2484

Agreed, I find that Coffee Compass offerings are a lot darker than Rave Chatswood and Mocha Java.

dfk41

dang2484 Try cworks.co.uk

They are not as dark as their descriptions. Go for something like this

https://www.cworks.co.uk/products/beginner-home-barista-collection?variant=44215324999917

where you get 4 × 250gms. Free postage over £10 and if you are a first time visior I think you get 20 or 25% off

Adrianmsmith

dfk41

Im probably going to order another kilo of

https://www.cworks.co.uk/products/cherry-caramel-brazil?variant=43293054501101

Cherry caramel brazil

I tend to like any i have tried that mention Honey process even though its most likely placebo!!

Anyways, to the point and please don’t start the response “it doesn’t matter if you’re adding milk” 🤓😘 what do you suggest trying for a 250g bag for something different.

P.s. i did order the free bag of Exhale. They send enough for 4 cups. Totally free. Not my cup of tea though .