First dial of Django Mexican Decaf
The expected flavours are : Mandarin, Baked Apple & Caramel.
The fruity notes are going to make the coffee with milk (even flat white) on the milder side and caramel bringing some life to the cup milk. That’s what happened to the coffee as a flat white. As a black, mandarin comes out straightaway with a moderate acidity of the apple.
The bag does look light / medium light. I have been grinding light / medium light on my hand grinder for espressos. The light / medium light does make hand grinding a little difficult than medium; I neither struggled nor had to take the support of my body to grind the light / medium light roasts in the past.
This Mexican decaf made my hand grinding very difficult. I was forced to support it against my torso. The decaf greens are typically brittle than the standard ones. I was surprised how hard it was to grind. My suspicion is this beans is probably (deliberately) underdeveloped. They are offering the decaf for the first time. I just don’t see why I should struggle other wise. Perhaps, @DavecUK might be able to throw some light on my observations. I would also ask the roaster.
Here is the picture of the beans taken in natural light and the video of the first dial. 17.6g:44.2g lasting 22s. Considering the roast, I had straightaway pulled it at 92C / 98C for the group and brew respectively. The pour is faster. I am going to require either a tighter grind or lower the temperature to get the shot in the 25-30s area. I am going to find it impossible to grind this bag any finer. This is an unusual situation as I never struggled to grind a light roast before.
The coffee is ok. It can’t compete with the extract coffee eta or smith street’s carbonated. Even Neighbourhood ETA was better, although I wasn’t impressed. I will probably give this 2 out of 5 - neither like nor dislike.
If you want to cut with milk, dose more or make a cortado or a shortened flat white (2 portions of milk) or better drink as a black!