ICYMI, I'm a huge coffee enthusiast. My obsession began with what was supposed to be a side job in a cafe in Northern Virginia. Upon going through the company's barista training and discovering that no two coffees are alike (shocker, I know), I've made it my mission to craft perfect brews and taste every single-origin coffee I can get my hands on. Why single origin? Blends certainly have their place, as do flavored cups (I did love the fall lineup from Bones Coffee Co.), but brewing beans grown in a single location really lets you get a fuller sense of their character. You'll find lots of wild tasting notes in single-origin coffees because the beans aren't diluted with those from another terrain.
That said, of course I jumped at the chance to try the full line of single-origin coffee beans from La Colombe (which you may know from having its draft lattes). Ranking single-origin beans isn't the easiest task — each is vastly different from the next, and everyone has their own tasting note and brew intensity preferences. Before going into this ranking, I'll clue you in to my own palate. I love bright, light-roasted coffees that boast ample fruity and floral notes. The best coffee I ever tried tasted like a blueberry tea. My own preferences will come into play when ranking the following, but I'll also take into account more objective views of the brew, considering which tasting notes come through and how each stacks up to other single-origin beans I've had from the country (where applicable). For more about how I'm approaching this piece, refer to the end of the article.
Some recommendations are based on firsthand impressions of promotional materials and products provided by the manufacturer.
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Given what I said above, you probably aren't surprised to see that the one "Darker Roast" coffee on this list takes last place. But this is a good time to give my overarching opinion of the beans — if you want to do your own single-origin taste test, you won't go wrong buying La Colombe's lineup. Though Waymaker (of Colombian origin) was my least favorite of the coffees I received, in terms of dark roasts, I quite liked it. If I were comparing this to other dark roasts I've had in the past, it would easily come in near the top of the list.
Yes, the coffee is definitely dark, but it's far more palatable than I usually find dark roasts to be. You don't get any burnt or bitter flavors here, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that the beans weren't at all oily (which you'll commonly find with ultra-dark roasts from big brands). I got ample cocoa notes. I often say it's a cop-out to claim chocolate and caramel notes in dark coffees — those notes will always come out the longer you roast any coffee, and they don't really indicate anything special, but they're apparent and tasty in this cup. It's rich and smooth enough that I could easily be persuaded to drink it black; at the same time, it wouldn't get lost if paired with cream. Congrats, La Colombe — you roasted a dark coffee I actually dig.
Were these Nicaraguan beans my favorite? No. Will I be brewing them again? For sure. I'd call this one of the most mellow cups of the bunch, but I don't at all mean that as a bad thing. It's very well-rounded and won't surprise any consumer, but still provides enough uniqueness to keep your morning interesting. I recommend drinking this cup black before adding anything to it — it's certainly smooth enough to not need accoutrements.
I got tons of fruity cherry notes in this cup, whereas the chocolate was more subtle. I really enjoyed the dark stone fruit appeal, which, combined with the slight toasty notes, gives this cup a lot of depth and character. It leans slightly more acidic in that it sat on the roof of my mouth with a sort of zing. Morning Magic is very fruit-forward and I did quite like it, but at the end of the day, the following beans just appealed to me more.
Ethiopia is my favorite coffee origin country (closely followed by Kenya and Rwanda — I adore African coffees), so, yes, my bias is showing here. But that's not necessarily a bad thing. I was actually less impressed with this cup than I typically am with Ethiopian coffees, which is why it's only getting the fourth spot on my list. However, I couldn't rank it lower because I think these beans would make a really good introductory cup if you're not quite ready for the bright, fruity acidity of a light-roast Ethiopian coffee.
Personally, I'd never go any darker than a light roast for a Yirgacheffe coffee. I've found that Yirgacheffes shine as light roasts, but I won't fault La Colombe for making this one medium — it'll allow the beans to appeal to an entirely different audience. That said, what I usually look for in a Yirgacheffe wasn't there when I drank this. It wasn't as bright and acidic as I expected, and I had trouble getting the lemon zest noted on the box. Peach (and stone fruit in general) did come through, and I got some warming notes reminiscent of vanilla. There's a full richness to this cup that gives it a lot of character while still remaining palatable, and it'll make an exceptionally good Yirgacheffe for those just branching out in their coffee journey.