KaffeBox March 19 Box – Kafferäven Per Nordby – Don Gerardo

Part 1 for KaffeBox March 19 Box, in this post I’ll only write about the Costa Rican coffee from Don Gerardo from the coffee roastery Kafferäven Per Nordby. In the previous post, you’ve been able to read about the coffee and also what I expect from the coffee. In this part, I’ll share my recipe for an awesome pour-over and Espro travel press as usual.

At my cupping of Kafferäven Per Nordby – Don Gerardo,

I tried it without any info of 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.

It’s very easy to drink. The acidity is pretty low and it has a very sweet taste.  It has a very earthy feel to it, It’s a coffee I like for sure. It’s better than most Washed-processed coffees and that says a lot! The ones on the bag were: “Soft, creamy, lingonberry, apricot & butterscotch.”.

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.  This was pretty ok!

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 caramel with an earthy aftertaste.

Information and recipe for the coffee:

Origin: Costa Rica
Variety:  Red Catuai
Producer: Gerardo Arias
Region: Tarrazu
Process: Washed
Altitude: 1 200 – 1 600  masl.

Pour Over:

20 g coffee (grind setting 26B at Baratza Sette 270, medium)
300 g filtered water
40 g blooming 30 seconds
90 degrees Celsius

1) Pour 40g of water, stir with a piece of bamboo (like chopsticks or a stirrer), for 10 seconds or until all coffee is evenly saturated.
2) 30 seconds in, begin your second pour. This time from 40g to 300grams of water. Never fill the water above the “coffee-line”.*
3) Stop pouring around 1 minute and 50 seconds in.
4) at 2 minutes and 15 seconds the coffee should be done brewing.

*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.
*Coffee-line: When you have saturated the coffee (blooming). The highest possible mark of coffee on your coffee filter is a coffee line. Think of a “max —” Line. That’s the highest level you should pour water. Keep it on that line and never surpass it.

Espro Travel Press:

19g coffee (grind setting 26B at Baratza Sette 270)
284g of filtered water
94 degrees Celsius

1) After pouring both the coffee and the water, stir the coffee 10 times. I suggest you use a bamboo stirrer. Avoid sharp objects.
2) Screw the press and let steep for 4 minutes
3) Press slowly, if the press gets stuck, just lift the press and try again. It is normal.
4) Serve or seal the lid.

Review: In Tuesday’s post, I wrote that my expectation was the following:

“The smell of this coffee was amazing, but yet again I’m here with a Washed-processed coffee from Costa Rica, it’s not bad in some way, it’s just that I love the honeys from Costa Rica, that’s the purest origin I know. I expect a good coffee none the less.”

I usually don’t like Washed-processed coffee from Costa Rica. The reason is simple, as I wrote above, I want the origin story from Costa Rica and that’s always honey-processed.

Anyways, this is a very good coffee and I’ve had a lot of good brews. Almost all styles of recipes works, but the one I wrote was very good!

If you have an Espro and a Pour-Over… What should you choose to brew with? Do you want a more balanced cup, go with the Espro, you also get a great result every time as it’s impossible to make mistakes. I like to brew this in any way, it’s really soft and simple as a coffee. It’s perfect for any kind of brewer, try to find your favorite!

The chocolate I ate was dark chocolate with sea salt.

Rating: 7.0/10

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

If you want to buy your very own KaffeBox and go through my recipes and reflections, be sure to order it so you can be ready for next month’s KaffeBox. Click here to order from their website. Use “kaffenytt” as voucher code, you’ll get 20% off your first purchase and I won’t get anything, this is only something I requested so I can give something to you readers!

Do you want to read all of the reviews on KaffeBox monthly boxes? Click here!