(no subject)
I know I've said it before, but I love the Ethiopian Harrar MAO with a burning passion. It is such a beautiful coffee, so complicated and wonderful. Full of brightness and character, from the moment you receive the first wiffs of the aroma you become enraptured, overcome in by the ravishing deep indigo blueberry. And yet, it is so much more than just that. This is not just another pretty face, not a simple one trick show. This coffee is deep, complex and wonderful. Variable in the extreme, with so many wonderful taste profiles, each full of their own distinct life and merit. Deep, sharp baker's chocolate and musky blueberry liqueur. Light, sweet vanilla and buttermilk with blue bursting through the top, blue berry pancakes in a demitasse. Warm, smooth milk chocolate and honeyed berries, a blueberry chocolate candy bar. Caramel and berry notes of all hues intertwining, drowning out any other flavors. Truly a world-class coffee, full of surprises and yet comfortable familiar and friendly.
Nick was over at my house a while ago and I showed him both the Harrar and the Yirgacheffe. The first time he smelled the Harrar, I asked what he thought it smelled like, if he could smell any blueberries. He said, "Nope. Just smells like coffee to me." Then I had him smell the Yirgacheffe and then handed him the Harrar again and asked if he could smell the blueberries. It made me absurdly, irrationally happy when he stuck his nose in the bag and his eyes lit up and he exclaimed, "Wow! I really can!"