We hope to bring you coffees from some new origins we are exploring, sold by the producers in Direct Trade, and all fabulously delicious. It will take some time after the show to arrange to try these coffees in house. We need to perform R&D on different roast levels so we can offer you the optimal roast options (or blends).
In regards to the hype, here are the top hypes of the show, and in the industry at this moment:
Geisha (Arabica subspecies): Ever since a Geisha coffee from Costa Rica won a best of show at SCA, and Starbucks® featured the remainder of that specific lot in their New York locations at $7 a cup, producers have been trying to cash in. What are the facts?
1. Geisha: (currently misspelled due to popular usage, originally from the Gesha mountains in Africa) is a subspecies with unclear developmental history. It is likely another spontaneous mutation of an Arabica coffee, much like most unique variations we have today, and found its way across the globe, becoming popular in Central America. It is a delightful coffee with a smooth, low acid profile, and citrus tones. Is it inherently "better" or tastier than Bourbon or other subspecies? Depends entirely on your taste and whether the producer gave it special treatment and it grew at high altitude or not. For us, it is too light a profile, and appeals mostly to people with "front palate" preferences.
The SCA show featured a number of producers of Geisha coffee, who were trying to sell it at about 300% premiums over other species. Is it worth that? We don't feel so, and we don't think our customer base would enjoy spending $50 a pound to drink it.
Any species or subspecies of coffee can boast superior quality if it is coddled enough, and this is what wins awards. But is every lot of Geisha special? Well, think of the milk-fed 500-pound pumpkin at the county fair. It's a heck of a pumpkin. But not every pumpkin of that seed lot is going to be special.
Enough, already, on the hype about Geisha, please!
2. Microlots / unique origins: We saw a lot of people with lovely graphics and presentation trying to get ridiculous prices per OUNCE for coffee, because it was a remote region or subtype. When we sampled it, it was usually an excellent cup of coffee. But at retail it might be $120 a pound. Was it worth $120 a pound? Nothing we tried was. We'd gladly challenge all those microlots in a cupping contest with our best origins on Len's Coffee.
So, we passed on many of these hyped up coffees, and will pursue connections with honest, hard working farmers looking for fair prices on their wonderful coffees. Stay tuned for some great new origins!
