Etnia – La Esperanza

It was a long time ago I reviewed Etnia, so it will be interesting to see how it differ from last time.

La Esperanza from Etnia is actually one of the coffees I have a history with, it’s something I always go back to and something I always enjoy. However, let us go to the reviewing part of this post.

At my cupping of Etnia – La Esperanza,

I tried it without any information on what the roastery had in their description of the coffee. This is something I always do, I just want to clear that out, and later on, I try to feel the notes they do describe.

This has a darker roast than I normally prefer, it has that deep body flavor that is good to combine with stronger sweets like a cinnamon bun or rich flavored cookie. Sometimes light roasted coffees will get completely destroyed by the sweets on the side. The coffee is high in sweetness and low in acidity, it has the aroma of sweet cherries and a hint of jasmine. Usually, the bag has some kind of taste picture that will give you the hint of which taste profile you’ll get. This bag is all about the mystery! Which I actually prefer. It makes me play coffee detective even more.

I would also like to know how good this coffee would be with “fika”. I tried it with dark chocolate with sea salt. I understand that this can be a weird thing to try out, as almost all coffees are well-matched with chocolate. But there are those who really don’t, and that may mean they are only enjoyed on their own. For example: Do you like green tea with dark chocolate I don’t. In this case, because of the darker roast, the coffee is more appropriate with sweets on the side, like cookies, cake and of course dark chocolate!

When I do a cupping I do the following:

1) Grind 11 g coffee in a medium-coarse grind, I’ll remember the coffee’s fragrances now when it is dry to compare with the let grounds later.
2) Pour 180 g of water at a temperature of 93 degrees Celsius.
3) Let it sit for 4 minutes.
4) Stir 3 times and try to find as many scents.
5) Remove all foam that’s formed on the top.
6) Wait for 6 minutes so the coffee cools down and to let the coffee grounds fall down to the bottom, then I’ll take my first slurp with a deep spoon. The idea is that you will spray the coffee inside your mouth. That way you will be able to easily recognize the tones contained in the coffee.
7) Wait for 6 minutes and do the same procedure, the reason behind step 7 is that it’s the most optimal time for tasting coffee. If the coffee is still good after 12-15 minutes, then it is a high-quality coffee!

Cupping notes:

Sweet cherries and jasmine.

Information and recipe for the coffee:

Origin: Colombian
Variety: Caturra
Producer: Finca La Ezperanza
Region: Huila
Process: –
Altitude: -.

Pour Over:

20g coffee coarse grind
300g of filtered water
40g bloom 45 seconds
92 degrees Celsius

1) Pour 40g water for blooming for 45 seconds.
2) 45 seconds in, begin your second pour of 80g of water.
3) 1 minute and 30 seconds in,  begin your third pour of 60g of water.
4) 2 minutes and 15 seconds in,  begin your fourth pour of 60g of water.
5) 3 minutes in,  begin your fifth pour of 60g of water.
6) Stop the dripper at 3 minutes and 30 seconds

*Always rinse the paper filter with filtered hot water, don’t forget to wash the coffee server with clean water afterward, because the taste of the paper might linger.

Review: 

Etnia is as I wrote at the beginning not a first for me, not even their La Esperanza is a first for me. I try to buy a bag every year or so, just to try it again and feel how it tastes. It’s a good coffee and it always makes me happy. I ‘ve actually given this as a gift to my brother several times and I think that brings a more positive feeling to the table.

If you brew it according to the recipe you will get a sweet cup, and that’s what I like in a low acidic coffee. Bring that sweetness up by pouring 40 grams of coffee in your first pour and keep your second at 80 grams. The rest of the 180 grams of water you can play with, maybe you’ll find a recipe that will suit your palette more.

In conclusion, this is a solid coffee that will suit your everyday need for coffee. It’s good, it’s sweet and it’s hard to get bored of. This is a coffee where you can choose every brewer you like, the darker roast helps you with playing around with your brewers as well, but I like it as a pour-over or Aeropress since their my oldest coffee tools and so is the La Esperanza.

The chocolate I ate was dark chocolate with sea salt.

Rating: 6.5/10

The rating is only based on taste and quality and is not based on price.