Australian Skybury Plantation Fancy

Australian Skybury Plantation, pics and logo

I thought that I would treat the australian viewers with a review of their famous national coffee bean Skybury Fancy. The australian beans should in general display a good body and fundamental sweetness but lack authority and complexity. I have been advised up front that this particularly bean is very sensitive towards heat when roasting, therefore it should be lightly roasted so the flavors aren't disappearing. In other words the Australian Skybury isn't a espresso bean, but I just got a new toy a Hario two cup siphon, which I will use for testing.

The price of this famous bean is for 500 gr. 99 DKK ($20), which makes it quite an expensive bean. It is certainly not a bean to experiment new roasting techniques on, so I will go the safe way and use a roasting profile of 15 min. at 245 degrees in the Gene Cafe. This specific bean is described as having a characteristic sweet taste with a velvety body and lovely chocolate and nutty flavors. The beans is as fresh as it can get and is packed from the local coffee shop the 19 of January 2012, see link.

The result of this brewed batch on the Hario Siphon was absolutely amazing. I must say its by far the best cup of filter brewed coffee that I have ever enjoyed. The taste was on the edge of sourness without being to much and the depth and body was stunning. The flavors went from chocolate to the darker flavors of nuts, especially a strong dessert taste of amaretto was characteristic.

If you are going to treat yourself with a good cup of coffee, I would certainly suggest these beans, but its a little to pricy compared to the taste and its a con that its not suitable for espresso brewing. Nevertheless I would buy these beans again for the taste experience, so if you can live with the price tag, go treat yourself.

// Hendrup

Uganda Budada AA Farm Mountain

Farm Mountain Project is located in Uganda, shown by the star.

Uganda continues to produce splendid, consistent coffee displaying a rich, powerful, fruit- and berry toned acidity energizing a cup of medium body and deep dimension. AA is the highest grade, but specific lots of AA sold at government auction differ, and one broker´s or exporter´s AA may be better than another´s. This AA green coffee bean is bought at my local coffee shop, kaffe-agenterne.dk, at a price of 95 DKK ($16,7) for 900 grams, which makes it quite an expensive coffee. The reason for the high price tag is because this bean is produced by a project, called Farm Mountain Project, where the exporter´s expect a superior quality and farm development and in return a committed price for the beans that is higher than the market price. This project is started by a danish entrepreneur, Lars Bendix and helps around forty different farms.

I bought three kilos from kaffe-agenterne.dk and have roasted several batches on my home roaster the Gene Cafe, the best batches are shown in the upper picture. The roast for press pot or filter was easiest and had a roasting profile on 15,5 min. and 241 degrees flat, after the 10 min. automatic cool down cycle, I had this stunning result.

City+

I have brewed this batch on my Bodum press pot, which gave an amazing taste experience. I have added about seven grams of coarse coffee at every cup of coffee, in other words the Bodum 8 cups press pot equals seven spoons (56 grams). The flavor of this particular beans was very rich with fruity notes and a had a great depth. The most characteristic flavor of the cup was a nutty flavor, more precisely a taste of hazelnut mixed with some citrusy notes.

Vienna

The rather darker roast for this beans was brewed on my Francis Francis X1 espresso machine, which was grounded to match the golden rule of espresso shots; 1 oz of espresso at 20-25 sec. I must admit that I thought that I had ruined this batch, but nevertheless the espresso shot was exquisite, not a single flavor of burned coffee, but instead a heavenly taste of amaretto! The shot had a long pleasant aftertaste with dessert notes.



If you seek a green bean with great depth and a sweet aftertaste, this is definitely what you seek. The price is a little high on the one, but I think its worth it. If you what to purchase some to try, click this link; Uganda Bududa AA Farm Mountain.

// Hendrup