Swings Barrel Aged Ethiopia




   Today I present another bean from the fine folks over at Swings Coffee out of Washington, D.C. Swings takes great pride in their sourcing. Their commitment to a sustainable, traceable and transparent supply chain ensures and encourages not only cup quality from the farm gate to their cupping lab, but ever-increasing sustainable livelihoods for all involved in coffee production and preparation. They commit a year-over-year percentage increase of their green coffee purchases towards importers, exporters and farms that work with family–farmed small-holder coffee, utilize sustainable growing and agronomic practices, as well as re-invest in quality and community fostering long-term relationships.

   This is their Barrel Aged Ethiopia bean. This is a naturally processed Ethiopia Micro Peaberry that has been aged in 11-year-old bourbon barrels from Jos. A. Magnus & Sons there in D.C. I brewed this at my 1:12 ratio. Another great barrel-aged bean for cold brew. First off, these beans were so super tiny! I've brewed peaberries before, with much success, but these have got to be the smallest beans I've brewed to date (see next picture, bean on the right is the Peaberry). I got these beans for my wife as a Christmas present, as she loves coffee almost as much as me, and I was able to procure her a bottle of the bourbon these said beans were aged in as well. And Neil over at Swings was able to hook me up with some of the non-barrel-aged variety of these beans as well. So this is a nice trinity; beans + bourbon = barrel-aged beans. Nice fruity sweetness from the beans, nice oak & caramel & vanilla from the bourbon. Awesome combo!

   Many thanks to Neil & Swings & Joseph Magnus for the tasty beans. Great teamwork.


Check them out here:  swingscoffee.com 

The bourbon is here:  josephmagnus.com


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Alamance Kaffee Werks Black Label Edition Rum Barrel Aged

Image
   Today I feature a tasty bean from Alamance Kaffee Werks out of Graham, North Carolina. Alamance Kaffee Werks was started from the enjoyment of amazing coffee by Daniel Krenzer & Kevin Jordan. Daniel's love of coffee came after visiting Corlesto Coffee Roasters in Billings, Montana. He's been to Costa Rica and Thailand, two totally different coffee experiences, and became enthralled with what these regions are offering the coffee world and how coffee is embedded in the culture. When not working with coffee, he works as a school psychologist in public education, primarily working on behalf of students with disabilities. And as such, part of his proceeds go towards non-profit organizations that provide mental health supports for children with Autism and brain injuries. Kevin's story started while on a mission trip to El Salvador. It has been through the introduction to roasting he has been blessed to experience once again a truly excellent cup of coffee. The tast
Read more

Alamance Kaffee Werks Mexico

Image
   Today I have another bean from the good people over at Alamance Kaffee Werks out of Graham, North Carolina. Alamance Kaffee Werks is passionate about custom roasted coffee, the right roast for the the right bean at the right value. The first thing that you will notice with AKW coffee is the aroma and vibrant flavor. These qualities come from a fresh roasted bean. Since AKW is a custom roastery, your bean is roasted to your preference. This means that the beans are roasted in small batches with precision and care. Once ordered, your coffee will be packaged and on its way to you quickly. If you'd like a personalized blend or roast, let them know and they can do that for you.     This is their Mexico bean. This is a washed bean grown within the Sierra Madre region at an altitude of 1600 meters above sea level. This coffee is certified Organic and Direct Trade. Some of this coffee is even grown in environmentally protected areas, as Chiapas' rainforests are home to th
Read more

Tony’s Chocolonely Milk Chocolate

Image
   I know I haven't done any chocolate bars for you guys in quite some time, but they don't come through my mailbox as often as the coffee (bummer, I know). But recently I reached out to Tony's (after seeing them in my local World Market store) and they have been kind enough to supply me with some of their bars for me to share with everyone.    In 2005 Dutch investigative reporter Teun (Tony) van de Keuken launched an investigation about the use of slavery within the cocoa industry on his consumer report show Keuringsdienst van Waarde. He was literally shocked to discover that most of the chocolate on supermarket shelves was harvested by slaves—worse, by child slaves. He decided to do something about it. On November 29th 2005, Teun decided to lead by example and make 5,000 Fairtrade chocolate bars. Tony’s Chocolonely was born. The very first Fair Trade Tony’s Chocolonely bars hit the supermarket shelves in 2005. In 2006 they became legit by registering with the
Read more