At it’s best, Kenyan coffee is quite remarkable with a quality and intensity rarely matched elsewhere.    Within Kenya, the Nyeri region continues to produce delicious coffees that achieve the stellar heights possible, full of bold, effervescent acidity and citrus fruit flavours. 

Gatomboya factory is always one of the shining stars of Nyeri.  Its’ farmer members live a handful of miles from Karatina town, their few hundred trees growing on rolling, red earthed hills under the shadow of Mount Kenya.  They deliver ripe red cherry from these trees into a central co-operative washing station, like Gatomboya, for further processing, drying and sale.

The roast of this large beaned AA micro-lot has been kept light with filter brewing in mind.  This approach helps to preserve the complex, almost effervescent, citric and apple like acidity of Gatomboya. This structure is supported with a sugar cane like sweetness that balances taste and enhances the fruit and caramel like flavours.  Stand out flavours of lemon citrus, molasses and stewed rhubarb lead onto undertones of black-currant, cacao nib, vanilla, and jasmine florals.   

We’d recommend drinking Gatomboya without milk to best experience the clarity and complexity of and on filter, aeropress or French press.  If you prefer milk with your coffee the flavours will switch to cinder toffee and citrus curd on a butter like mouthfeel.

Gatomboya AA

Speciality Coffee Roasters from Scotland.

Artisan Roast

A polished and charming honey processed coffee from an award winning farm. Rich treacle and orange citrus flavours meld with a chocolate and plum on a sweet, syrupy mouthfeel.

Producer: Jaime Guevara
Region: La Palma, Municipality of Chalatenango , Alotepec-Metapán
Farm: Finca don Jaime
Cultivar: Pacamara

Finca don Jaime is small eight-hectare farm owned and run by producer Jaime Guevara in the Chalatenango district of Alotepec-Metapán in El Salvador.  This high altitude region is known for producing some of the country's most exceptional, often award winning coffees.  The farm has four varieties and this micro-lot is a honey processed Pacamara, a variety born in the nearby Apaneca-Ilamatepeque region.

The farm is focused very much on quality and Jamie has installed raised drying beds, more typical of those found in East Africa to better control the drying phase after fermentation of his coffee.  These beds improve control over traditional concrete patio method and to help move Jaime’s coffee quality further Artisan Roast have funded the building of a shading system for the beds.  This helps the coffee to be cured at even lower temperatures, retaining more sweetness.

Sweetness is an attribute very present in this Pacamara cultivar micro-lot.  This year’s crop is full of moreish dessert like attributes led by a rich treacle and orange citrus flavours.  These are enhanced by a viscous mouthfeel and positive sweetness that lead onto further flavours of chocolate and plum.    The sweetness balances off the acidity with is medium to low in intensity, just enough to bring structure and support to the aftertaste.

Finca don Jaime

Effortlessly moreish flavours of blanched almond and milk chocolate combine with caramel sweetness and a long-lasting orange citrus finish.

Producer: Aurelio Villatoro Castillo
Region: Hoja Blanca, Cuilco, Huehuetenango
Farm: Villaure
Cultivar: Caturra, Bourbon, Catuai 

The immense beauty of highland Huehuetenango is characterised by dramatic lush, mountainous valleys rolling on and on into the distance.  Each valley has a unique micro-climate and the region produces distinct and diverse coffees that represent their terroir so well.

Finca Villaure has it’s own distinct and unique flavour profile, formed by the surrounding landscape and weather patterns.  The farm lies to the North-West of Huehetenango, almost within touching distance of the border with Mexico.  Cold nights and ideal soil make the location perfect for coffee growing and the farm, an acronym of Aurellio Villatoro’s name since purchase, has been a proven winner in many a quality competition. The farms supporting sustainability standards help complement Aurellio’s wholistic approach to coffee growing and commitment to quality.

Kept lighter in the roast Villaure is smooth and silk like in texture.  Blanched almond and caramel form the main flavours followed by velvet like milk chocolate notes, grape, and hints of delicate black tea.  Clean, sweet, and bright with an orange like acidity that adds complexity on the finish makes the coffee perfect for filter, aeropress or French press brewing. 

Villaure

A mouth-watering combination of rich muscovado sugar, red apple and candied citrus combine effortlessly in this supremely balanced Northern Rwandan treat.

Producer: Iyongera Musaruro Co-operative
Region: Rulindo District, Northern Province, Rwanda 
Cultivar: Red Bourbon

The soaring 1000 peaks of Rwanda’s highlands are home to a myriad of coffee washing stations, the centralised points for smallholders to process their coffee. Almost all of this coffee is the high quality and accessible Bourbon cultivar, or its local variants like Jackson and Mayaguez, so when flavour profile changes in Rwanda it does so as a result of local terroir.

There are three main zones of terroir in the country and the Bushoki washing station coffee is in the Northern zone. Here the coffees are known for their apple and molasses like flavours and for having a more pronounced zesty profile than the more Southern or Western coffees.

This is very true of Bushoki which processes coffee from around 800 smallholders in the more northerly Rwandan district of Rulindo. A rich muscovado sugar like flavour provides a delicious base for further flavours of red apple, candied citrus and dried dates to intertwine. Undertones of apricot and jasmine lead onto a dense, viscous mouthfeel with structure coming from an apple and citrus like acidity.

Because we’ve kept the roast more medium to light for Bushoki to bring these characteristics out best we’d recommend it as a coffee more suited towards brewing filter, aeropress or French press. However, if you have the option to increase brewing temperature on your home espresso machine to around 95 degrees then Bushoki will make a supremely delicious espresso too.

Bushoki

A stylish, go-to coffee born to be brewed and brewed and enjoyed.  Caramel sweetness combines harmoniously with a zesty citrus and creamy texture leading to a dried apricot finish.

Producer: Carlos Barrantes
Region: Cirri Sur, Naranjo, Valle Occidental, Costa Rica
Farm: Planada, La Perla Del Café Micromill 
Cultivar: Villa Sarchi

The Perla Del Cafe micro-mill in Costa Rica's West Valley sits at the top of a ridge overlooking the town of Naranjo, and has consistently produced some of Costa Rica's most exemplorary coffees over the past decade.  At around 1600 metres above sea level this is not the highest farm in Costa Rica, but a cool micro-climate slows the ripening phase and sugar development of the coffee cherries down creating the potential for delicious coffee.  

The mill's 17 hectares is split into a number of smaller farms to manage micro-lots and quality over the season.  This micro-lot comes from Planada, a plot sitting towards the highest altitude of the overall farm.  It has a number of cultivars sitting side by side and we've brought selected Villa Sarchi from the plot, the most planted cultivar in the block. Like the majority of Perla Del Cafe's coffee, is processed by the yellow honey method.

Owner Carlos Barrantes' hands on quality focus led to the installation of a brand new parabolic drying system in 2016 and this makes sure the coffee dries in a controlled and consistent environment over ten to fifteen days.  This control retains the sugar stability in the green coffee, giving Artisan Roast an exceptional raw product to work with in the roastery.

In this seasons Villa Sarchi microlot the sweetness is crammed full of dense and creamy caramel notes. Depending on the brew method there are then slight variations in the fruit like flavours present.  Brewed as a filter the flavours are more towards dried apricot,  pineapple with a medium intensity zesty acidity.  Moving towards aeropress and espresso look for subtle hints of hazelnut, vanilla and red berries as well.

La Perla Del Cafe

Sweet, succulent and equally delicious on many a different coffee brewer.  Creamy butterscotch like flavours lead onto orange citrus, stewed apple and roasted almond like flavours. 

Producer: 100 Members of the Grupo Asociativo Villa Esperanza
Region: Guadalupe Municipality, Huila Department, Colombia
Co-operative: La Virgen  (Grupo Asociativo Villa Esperanza)
Cultivar: Caturra, Colombia, and Castillo

The dramatic and lush green rolling hills of the Huila region in the south west of Colombia are home to some truly amazing coffees. They are also home to some amazing small farmers, almost always small scale with farms usually only one or two hectares in size. 

Working collectively has been one of the ways that these small producers have gained visibility and a repuation for producing delicious, consistent coffee. Grupo Asociativo Villa Esperanza is one of these co-ops.  Blossoming from the orginal four members of 2003 to just over 100 today they sell their coffee as 'La Virgen', recognition of their hometown Gauadalupe's original 18th century name.  Each micro-lot of la Virgen we roast might have a slightly different mix of the members coffee and this selection combines the coffee of nine neighbouring farmers.

The flavour profile of La Virgen personifies all that is delicious about Huila coffees.  Sweetness and orange-like citrus sit harmoniously with the ever appealing flavours of butterscotch, stewed apple and roasted almond rolling across the palate.  Hints of milk chocolate and cranberry add further nuance on the finish .  We've stretched the length of this roast to focus more on balance and caramelisation.  This raises the perceived sweetness, balances the citrus and opens up lots of options for brewing at home with different machines, or for serving with milk.

La Virgen

Massive chocolate notes, big body and caramelised cherry like fruity finish. The Artisan creation that shows milk who's boss. 

45% Aceh Province Sumatra
40% Fazenda Serra Rica Minas Gerais Brazil
15% Karisimbi Wet Mill, Gicumbi, Northern Province, Rwanda
Cultivar:  P88, Mundo Novo, Icatu, Yellow Catuaí, and Bourbon

Our house blend Janszoon has been around since Artisan Roast first started and remains one of our most popular coffees to this day. It's an oldie but a goldie and Janszoon version 2.0 is the latest iteration.

Its big, full-bodied and syrupy sweet and a coffee where a balance of taste and flavour to allow for delicious coffee whether brewed as a white or black drink was central to the blend. This makes it perfect either as an espresso, latte or for a full-bodied punchy filter to start the morning.

The current version has three speciality grade arabica coffees each of which has its own unique roast profile to develop the optimum taste experience. High altitude Sumatran coffees as ever are the central part of the blend and provide both deep chocolate bass notes and hints of heady tropical fruits. This chocolate-like character is enhanced by the milk chocolate, caramel and berry notes of the natural process coffee from Fazenda Serra Rica in southern Brazil. Milk chocolate flavours also are a characteristic of the final component, a high grown washed Bourbon arabica from Karisimbi washing station in Northern Rwanda. Karisimbi also brings some orange citrus structure to the blend and helps refine the mouthfeel into a smooth, dense, and syrupy experience.

Overall this gives a versatile blend with a wide sweet spot heavily focused on rich chocolate notes, underlying caramels and fruit sweetness.

Janszoon v2.0

A premium blend inspired by the cobbled streets of rural Latin America. Laden with caramel sweetness, berry fruit flavours and a roasted almond finish this seasonal blend changes through the year and the coffees are always fresh, delicious and Latino..

Blend: 57.5% La Virgen, Grupo Asociativo Villa Esperanza (Colombia); 42.5% Potosi (Colombia)
Cultivar: Caturra, Colombia, and Castillo; Colombia

Cobblestone is a fresh, juicy espresso blend with a medium body and harmonious balance of caramel sweetness, underlying berry notes and a bright citrus acidity. It's inspired by the beauty and diversity of Latin America, the ever changing landscapes, cultures and people, the seemingly endless range of coffee flavours to be found throughout the region, and of course Latin vibrance. Throughout this diversity, a constant that harmonises the coffeelands bringing a sense of cohesiveness to the region are idyllic rural towns, draped in history with brightly painted houses that line ever present cobbled streets.

Cobblestone is a fresh, juicy espresso blend with a medium body and harmonious balance of caramel sweetness, underlying berry notes and a bright citrus acidity. It's inspired by the beauty and diversity of Latin America, the ever-changing landscapes, cultures and people, the seemingly endless range of coffee flavours to be found throughout the region, and of course Latin vibrance. Throughout this diversity, a constant that harmonises the coffeelands bringing a sense of cohesiveness to the region are idyllic rural towns, draped in history with brightly painted houses that line ever present cobbled streets.

Version four of 2020 leans towards a luscious tropical fruit forward and caramel approach to the blend and is sourced completely from Colombia.

First up is a new coffee to the blend, a natural processed fruit bomb of a coffee from the Potosi farm in Colombia’s southern Cauca region. Potosi is one of a group of small farms owned by Rigoberto and Luis Herrera in the Valle de Cauca, and this natural processed Colombia cultivar showcases their complete approach to quality. It brings vibrant flavours of tropical fruit and strawberry to the blend along with a dense creamy finish.

Second is our ever popular ‘La Virgen’ from the Grupo Asociativo Villa Esperanza group of producers in Colombia's Huila region. It’s a coffee full of brown sugar, orange citrus and milk chocolate like flavours. Subtle undertones of stewed apple and cranberry add further complexity. This coffee is a high grown gem and adds structure, flavour and complexity to the blend.

This caramel like quality forms the centre point of the blend so we roast both coffees separately on a medium to light roast profile before blending after roasting. This allows the rich dense sugar browning and fruit like flavours of both the La Virgen and Potosi to come through without any roast flavours. When brewed look for a pronounced sweetness and flavours of caramel, tropical fruit, strawberry and orange citrus. Cobblestone takes milk very well and delivers a lighter style of cappuccino or latte where toffee, milk chocolate and a red berry notes come through with supreme balance.

Cobblestone V2020.4

Delicate fruity notes of blueberry and raisin are complemented by a digestive and ginger sweetness. Excellent black or through milk.

50% Ethiopia Yirgacheffe washed
30% Ethiopia Yirgcheffe natural
20% Brasil Serra Rica 
Cultivar:  Yellow Bourbon, Heirloom

These Brazilian and two Ethiopians coffees come together beautifully in this blend to give a robust and transparent brew that works as well for espresso as it does for a pour over.

Brazilian Irmãs Pereira is a high quality focused coffee farm lying in the heart of one of Brazil's most recognised and awarded growing areas, the Mantiqueira hills. Now in the second generation of ownership since it's planting in the 1970s the has been a beacon for quality and sustainability for many years. Before being renamed Irmãs Pereira (The Pereira Sisters) to represent the sisters' joint management, the farm won several awards in the Cup of Excellence programme under it's original name Fazenda do Serrado. The commitment to quality that led to these awards continues and the quality produced on the farm represents the very best that Brazil produces.

We've looked at a lot of Ethiopian natural coffees this year and this one really stood out as an excellent offering.  It was sourced through the large centralised EXC platform that deals with most coffee in Ethiopia, and is the first time Artisan have bought coffee from this zone, just to the south-west of Yirga Cheffe town.  We have kept the roast light to preserve the clarity of cup and let the ripe fruit flavours roll out, particularly blueberry, raspberry and mango.  Delicate floral aromas of elderflower begin to sparkle as the coffee cools and a black grape acidity balances this very sweet coffee together with a delicious, long lasting finish.

Trigonometry

Our Swiss Water process decaff is 99.9% caffeine free and bursting with flavours reminiscent of almond, molasses and cocoa.   

Producer: Sul de Minas, Brazil 
Farm: Various
Cultivar: Various

We use the Swiss Water decaffeination process for our coffee, a chemical free process developed in Switzerland, hence the name, that nowadays takes place in Vancouver.  The company are not only world leaders in decaffeination, but also very good in selecting green coffee suitable for decaffeination.  This is a skill in itself because the usual rules for selecting delicious coffee don't always work when when beans are decaffeinated. The coffee we roast is a special selection of the finest Southern Brazilian arabicas. Roasted a little fuller to a medium dark roast brings out a rich nuttiness and a sweet molasses like flavour that develops during the decaffeination process.

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