Hotbox SOULSHINE




   Here I have my first bean from Hotbox Coffee Roasters. Hotbox was launched in 2015 when Oskar Blues Brewery’s founder and craft beer canning innovator Dale Katechis bought and learned how to roast on a small roaster as a hobby in the back of the Longmont, ColoRADo Oskar Blues’ Brewery. Hotbox Roasters focuses on sourcing high-quality Arabica coffees from regions around the world. After sourcing, the beans are then carefully roasted by the Hotbox Roasters crew in Longmont to bring out the most unique and natural flavors. The whole bean coffee is then canned in infinitely recyclable Crowler® cans. The roasted beans are available nationwide in individual Crowler cans as well as tiered subscription services.

   This is their SOULSHINE blend. Hotbox notes flavors of vanilla butter, crazy raisins, and crystal clean nectarines. I brewed this at my 1:12 ratio. This blend is a 50/50 mix of Mexico & Ethiopian beans. While I typically prefer single origins, I think it all also depends on how well the blends are constructed. Proper ratio & roasting of beans to compliment each other in a blend really matters. Not just throwing in a handful of this and a handful of that. The result here is the Hotbox team properly dialing in each of the beans to create a superb blend. These beans made for a very tasty cup of cold brew. Nice sweetness of berries & stone fruits. Have some citric acidity & sweet nuttiness in there as well. So smooth; a great balance of fullness & brightness. These two beans definitely compliment each other well.

   HUGE shout out to Mike over at Hotbox/Oskar Blues. I was in Colorado a couple weeks ago, and we planned out a time to meet up and exchange some of their beans and some of my cold brew I made for him. And even though he had some unexpected car troubles, he still came up to the shop (even though they were closed) and showed me around the brewery & roastery. Talked shop for a few minutes & exchanged goods. Super rad dude. Thanks for the beans & cold brew & good times, sir! Stoked to share with you guys the other beans & cold brew I have from this place. Thanks again to Mike & Oskar Blues & Hotbox for the super tasty beans.

Go check out their awesome-ness here:  hotboxroasters.com


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