50% Colombia Cundinamarca
30% Brasil Mantiquieras de Minas
20% Honduras Finca Liquidambar

Our espresso blend is designed to be rich in body, heavy on the mouthfeel and clean on the finish. The combination of natural, semi-washed and washed coffees means the flavours and textures really bounce around giving a nice complexity.

We brew it to the following recipe: 18g of ground coffee producing 35g of espresso in 30 seconds. If facilities allow, adjust your water temperature down until any sharpness is eliminated.

Espresso Blend

We select outstanding coffees from around the world, roast them in the back of the shop and serve them as drinks or in bags to use at home. We aim to bring you the freshest coffee available. We have over 8 years of technical experience in coffee, from roasting and quality control through to sourcing, brewing and training. You can find us on Angel St, in the heart of Northampton’s Cultural Quarter.

Yellow Bourbon Coffee Roasters

The​ ​Swiss​ ​Water​ ​decaffeination​ ​process​ ​uses​ ​only​ ​water​ ​to​ ​remove​ ​the​ ​caffeine​ ​from​ ​the coffee.​ ​​ ​No​ ​nasty​ ​chemicals​ ​or​ ​gasses​ ​are​ ​used​ ​at​ ​any​ ​point.​ ​​ ​Sadly​ ​we​ ​are​ ​unable​ ​to​ ​trace this​ ​coffee​ ​back​ ​to​ ​the​ ​farm​ ​-​ ​a​ ​minimum​ ​requirement​ ​for​ ​all​ ​of​ ​our​ ​regular​ ​coffees,​ ​but​ ​the high​ ​price​ ​and​ ​convoluted​ ​logistics​ ​chain​ ​involved​ ​means​ ​this​ ​is​ ​beyond​ ​our​ ​reach. However,​ ​what​ ​we​ ​do​ ​know​ ​is​ ​that​ ​this​ ​is​ ​very​ ​delicious​ ​decaf;​ ​Deep​ ​cocoa,​ ​toffee​ ​/ butterscotch​ ​into​ ​a​ ​satisfying​ ​fresh​ ​tobacco​ ​finish​ ​means​ ​that​ ​if​ ​you​ ​can’t​ ​have​ ​caffeine​ ​for whatever​ ​reason,​ ​you​ ​don’t​ ​have​ ​to​ ​put​ ​up​ ​with​ ​horrid​ ​decaf,​ ​or​ ​worse​ ​still​ ​go​ ​without.

Producer: Swiss​ ​Water​ ​-​ ​Burnaby,​ ​British​ ​Columbia,​ ​Canada

Swiss Water Decaf

Vianí is a municipality located in Cundinamarca department in a region called Central Magdalena Province given that Magdalena river (which is the principal river of Colombia) runs through this area. The territory used to be occupied by the indigenous tribe “Buitimas” in the pre-Columbian period. It has been said that the name Vianí comes from the language of this tribe meaning “golden summit”.

Vianí enjoys a favorable location because it has all the thermal floors: warm, temperate and cold, which offers great possibilities in terms of agricultural production diversification and of land use in general.

The name of the department: Cundinamarca comes from the terms kuntur, kundur, cundur or condor of Quechua language, all of which refer to the Andean Condor. The suffix “marca” means region in the same Quechua language. The department is located in the eastern Andean mountain range that penetrates by the south forming the complex of Sumapaz and Cruz de Verde Paramos; it presents high plateaus, valleys and planes that correspond to Magdalena Valley and to some part of Llanos Orientales.

Due to the many microclimates and changing weather patterns, there is often fresh coffee cropping throughout the year, though generally this is split across the main and mitaca (or ‘fly’) crops. Global warming has seen a significant change across Colombia, bringing challenges to some areas and opportunities to others. Earthquakes and landslides have featured in the coffee areas, but the commitment to quality there remains high.

Cundinamarca Viani

A first for us at Yellow Bourbon: A honey process Yirgacheffe.  Famed for their delicate, elegant washed coffees and their bold, ripe, intense natural coffees, the processing mills of this famed region have in recent years turned their hand to honey processing their coffee, where the cherry is mechanically pulped and the sticky mucelage is allowed to sun dry before being fermented.  In the cup we get the big ripe blueberry notes of a natural but the finish tapers to a juicy, bright citrus, more reminiscent of a washed coffee.  A real experience, incredibly aromatic and sweet.

Producer: Koke cooperative
Varietals: Kumie, Diga, Wilsho

Koke

Finca Las Palomas is owned by the Monge García Family, headed by Jorge Adan Monge Garbanzo, his wife Flor Mayela García Valverde and their children Jorge Leonardo, Leandro Antonio, Daniel José and María Isabel. For a long time this farm has belonged to the family, the first owner was the grandfather named Adam Monge Picado, later inherited by his son Toño Monge Picado and he handed it down to the current owner Jorge Adam Monge Garbanzo.

Las Palomas spans six hectares and produces around 250 fanegas (approx. 46kg) of coffee annually. The farm is named Las Palomas because of the various birds that can be found in the region, his Don Jorge employs two full-time farm workers, and a group of 25 collectors visit the farm during the harvest season, moving between Las Palomas and the neighbouring farms.

Coffee is delivered to the nearby Association of Agricultural Producers of the Communities of Acosta and Aserrí (ASOPROAAA), who process coffee and citrus in the areas of Acosta, Jorco and Palmichal, as well as offering financial, commercial and technical support to its members. They have been influential in the revival of agricultural production in the region, and are unique in their offering as a processor of traceable, quality differentiated micro lots.

Cherry for this lot was delivered to ASOPROAAA by Don Jorge on the 18th of February and processed the same day. It was sorted before being pulped to remove the skin of the fruit and a portion of the mucilage. For the ASOPROAAA honey process, approximately 70% of the mucilage is left on the bean. It was then transferred to raised drying beds where it was left for six days until fully dry. The coffee is left unmoved for a period of time to impart some fruit flavours in the cup and then moved intermittently during the drying process to promote even drying and superior quality.

Producer: ASOPROAAA
Varietal: Catuai, Caturra

Finca Las Palomas Honey Process

Arbaca is one of the five original districts of the Canton Aserrí and has the highest altitude therein.  Characterized as an extremely green area due to the large number of trees and little population it has, it also contains the Cerro El Cedral in which there is a large number of water springs as well as being crossed by several rivers of the canton. This is where we find Familia Monge Garcia’s Las Palomas farm. Don Jorge Monge Garbanzo inherited Las Palomas from his parents and took over management of the farm in 1993. He now runs it with his wife, Flor Mayela Garcia Valverde and their children.  Jorge Monge Garbanzo himself is one of eleven children, all of whom continue to be connected to coffee in some way.

Las Palomas spans six hectares and produces around 250 fanegas (a fenega is approx. 46kg) of coffee annually. The farm is named Las Palomas because of the various birds that can be found in the region, his Don Jorge employs two full-time farm workers, and a group of 25 collectors visit the farm during the harvest season, moving between Las Palomas and the neighbouring farms.

Cherry for this lot was delivered to the mill by Don Jorge on the 29th of February and processed the same day. It was sorted to remove defective cherry and foreign matter before being transferred to patios for drying where it was left for seven days until fully dry. The cherry is moved intermittently to promote even drying and to avoid fermentation, and regularly sorted as drying progresses to ensure superior quality. Once dried to the desired moisture content, the cherry is collected and packaged into poly bags for resting. It is stored in cherry until the hulling process.

Producer: ASOPROAAA
Varietal: Catuai, Caturra

Las Palomas Natural Process

Cooperativa Dota have transformed agricultural methods in the Los Santos area. Prior to their arrival the farmers had to take their crop a large distance to the wet mill for their coffee to be processed and a large proportion of the crop would spoil on the journey. The formation of the co-operative brought the expertise and funding to build their own local wet mill, preserving the quality of the coffee and allowing a higher price for the producers.

Producer: Cooperativa Dota R.L, Dota Valley
Varietal: Caturra and Catuai

Hermosa Premium

Another farm we've had the pleasure of visiting, this time by Elle in May 2019. This natural processed coffee is sun dried as a whole cherry until the desired moisture level is reached to give the coffee its distinctive sweetness and weighty mouthfeel. A superb all-round coffee excellent in any situation.

Producer: COCARIVE Co-operative, Carmo de Minas
Varietal: Yellow Bourbon

Mantiquiera De Minas

We'll be updating the flavour note descriptors REALLY soon! You'll have all sorts of notes

So good, thanks Emil! Now I need to learn how to feel them :) 

@nastia-debowska there are some taste profiling courses or sets. I gotta do this myself as well. Tried one (remote) - didn't work quite as expected

@em would love to hear a recommendation from you!

Finca Las Palomas is owned by the Monge García Family, headed by Jorge Adan Monge Garbanzo, his wife Flor Mayela García Valverde and their children Jorge Leonardo, Leandro Antonio, Daniel José and María Isabel. For a long time this farm has belonged to the family, the first owner was the grandfather named Adam Monge Picado, later inherited by his son Toño Monge Picado and he handed it down to the current owner Jorge Adam Monge Garbanzo.

Las Palomas spans six hectares and produces around 250 fanegas (a fenega is approx. 46kg) of coffee annually. The farm is named Las Palomas because of the various birds that can be found in the region, his Don Jorge employs two full-time farm workers, and a group of 25 collectors visit the farm during the harvest season, moving between Las Palomas and the neighbouring farms.

Coffee is delivered to the nearby Association of Agricultural Producers of the Communities of Acosta and Aserrí (ASOPROAAA), who process coffee and citrus in the areas of Acosta, Jorco and Palmichal, as well as offering financial, commercial and technical support to its members. They have been influential in the revival of agricultural production in the region, and are unique in their offering as a processor of traceable, quality differentiated micro lots.

Cherry for this lot was delivered to ASOPROAAA by Don Jorge on the 15th of February and processed the same day. It was sorted before being pulped to remove the skin of the cherry and passed through the demucilager to be ‘washed’ and to remove the mucilage surrounding the bean. After washing, the lot was dried for six days on patios before being transferred to mechanical dryers for 30 to 36 hours to finish the drying process. Once the desired moisture level was reached, the coffee was packaged in poly bags for resting and sorted until the hulling process.

Producer: ASOPROAAA
Varietal: Catuai, Caturra

Finca Las Palomas Washed Process

Cocatu AA

El Penon

Haru Blend

Producer: Haru Washing Station, Yirgacheffe.
Process: Washed, Honey, Natural
Varietals: Local Heirloom varietals

Cupping notes
Complex, light, and crisp with the floral bouquet you’d expect over fresh gooseberries and Lime.

Description
Experience three coffees from The Hafursa Haru washing station is located close to Yirgacheffe town, Ethiopia. With Ethiopia being the genetic and spiritual home of coffee, the varieties harvested for this collection are heirlooms - original unmodified descendent of the first coffee arabica species. The manner in which these coffees are processed after harvest has a huge impact on flavour; here's what goes on:

Washed Process - Coffee cherries are mechanically pulped to remove the flesh from the bean, then the beans are soaked in water for anywhere between 18 and 36 hours to ferment the remaining sticky pulp away from the bean. The coffee is then air dried on patios for several days until it reaches the correct moisture level. Typically you can expect clean, delicate flavours with subtle to bright acidity.

Honey Process - Cherries are pulped as in washed process but instead of being fermented in water the beans are left with their sugary mucilage layer intact for a number of days until the desired sweetness is achieved. Expect more ripeness, less subtlety and more body.

Natural Process - The whole cherry is left intact to fully dry on the patio, over-ripening like a raisin transferring all that highly developed sugar flavour into the coffee bean. Typically you can expect heavy body and very sweet fruit, at the expense of some subtlety. 

Producer: Cooperativa Agraria Frontera San Ignacio
Varietals: Bourbon, Caturra, Catimor, Mundo Novo, Typica

We spoke to Cooperativa Agraria Frontera San Ignacio about developing a higher scoring microlot that would have a fruit forward, elegant cup profile that we could source year on year. The traceability of the microlot will depend on which farmers are producing the desired cup profile each year. Sourcing coffee this way means each member of the cooperative has the chance to be part of the programme and therefore get a higher premium for their coffee. It means that the coffee is produced and sourced in a way that does not conflict with the values of a cooperative, but also rewards small producers for quality coffee and provides incentives to carry on doing so.

El Gallito de las Rocas, also known as cock-of-the-rock, is a bird found across many of the higher altitude coffee producing areas, and is widely regarded as the national bird of Peru, so we thought it was a fitting image to represent them.

The Cooperativa Agraria Frontera San Ignacio was founded in 1969 and has 330 small-growers in 14 communities. They are located in the Cajamarca Region in Northern Peru where the Rio Canchis splits the country from Ecuador. The farms are located in the buffer zones of a protected natural area, and have many diverse species of animals within their borders. This means working with an organic methodology and certification is a strategic point because through these standards, a culture of protection of wildlife and species in danger of extension is encouraged and created.

Coffee here is commonly fermented in wooden tanks built from fallen Romerillo trees (regulations prohibit the chopping down of them.) This is because when coffee ferments it generates heat, and the wood is better at dispersing the heat and therefore ensuring an even temperature throughout the fermentation tank, whereas with concrete, heat would be absorbed and stored more easily in the sides, creating differences throughout the batch and inconsistencies in the final cup.

Coffee is processed fully washed, and the parchment delivered into the warehouses of the cooperative in San Ignacio town. Each batch is evaluated for physical appearance, tasted at the quality laboratory and separated according to quality and certification. It is then transported to the dry mill in nearby Chiclayo city. The export department is based there as well as another quality control laboratory with well-trained staff each under the control of certified Q grader.

El Gallito

Producer: Cooperative Coffee Rusiga Sector (KCRS)
Process: Fully washed
Varietals: Bourbon
 

85% of the growers that make up Cooperative Coffee Rusiga Sector (KCRS) have their farms at 2000masl or higher. An incredibly diverse crop production happens on these smallholder plots, legumes, beans, sweet potatoes and more can be grown in between the coffee trees. This is not always to the benefit of the crop, but does allow income to be spread over the year as well as producing food for their own consumption. Typically you’ll find very small family plots with on average around 6 other crops.

Washed process in Rwanda typically looks a bit different to that which we understand elsewhere as washed. Fully washed denotes the process of pulping the coffee and allowing a 24 hour dry fermentation period before undergoing more traditional wet fermentation, followed by the typical soaking for 24 hours afterwards, more in line with what you would expect in Kenya. This yields a syrupy bodied coffee that tends to hold up very well as it ages. It’s not uncommon for a Rwanda to still be tasting great at 18 months or more if stored correctly.

This coffee is produced by women farmers. There are some male members of the families but the women took over ownership and charge of the land. The support that a small holder farmer often relies on has found to flourish under this structure and it is often now used as a methodology to help improve the coffee on a farm if an individual is struggling. We source the coffee through Kinini and Jacquie has been active in helping them to organise themselves since some of the women supplied coffee to them.

As Jacquie herself says, “A few of them asked me for advice if I could help them form cooperative and get training from us. We then made different changes behind the scenes, got the necessary paperwork in place after few days the cooperative was registered. They then made 12 groups depending on [which] village is near to them making training and traveling much easy for all.”

“After all this was in place I promised them that I will market their coffee by the coop name. These women are now coffee expert farmers.”

Varietals are Bourbons Mayaguez and Jackson, as mandated by the government. The wet mill is centralised, and also mandated to a catchment area.

KCRS Women's Cooperative

Kigutha Estate coffee is a high grown top quality coffee from the slopes of the famous Aberdare mountain range, close to Kiambu town, north of Nairobi. The annual production of the farm produces roughly 60% AA and 35% AB each year, with a small amount of under grade sold separately.

Blue grass is grown in between the lines of coffee to reduce water loss and soil erosion, with rainwater collected from the processing unit and sent to the nearby run off collection dam, home to government protected hippopotamus. A number of differing trees are grown in the nursery to form shade cover which helped the farm gain RFA status back in 2009. Shade grown coffee is uncommon in Kenya and the bird life benefits greatly from a differing height of tree cover.

In the true Kenyan style, cherry is picked, washed and fermented before undergoing a soaking -an additional 24 hours under clean water that allows amino acids to build, and is attributed to giving the clarity of flavour and syrupy body we have come to know and love. The beans are then sun dried on raised beds until ready for dry milling and exporting.

Yellow Bourbon Coffee Roasters

3.0

Yellow Bourbon Coffee Roasters

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

Coffee Roasts

Cundinamarca Viani

El Gallito

Espresso Blend

Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Dumerso Grade

Kenya Kigutha AA Estate

Mantiquiera De Minas

Swiss Water Decaf

Coffee archive

Cocatu AA

El Penon

Finca Las Palomas Honey Process

Finca Las Palomas Washed Process

Haru Blend

Haru Blend

Hermosa Premium

KCRS Women's Cooperative

Koke

Las Palomas Natural Process

New Coffee Review