This time around, we joined Ben Put of Monogram Coffee Roasters in Calgary, Canada. Ben has reached the final round of the World Barista Championships on several occasions and has a distinct pedigree and reputation. One of the most innovative and dynamic competitors in the game, Ben has always brought something new and exciting to each competition he's been a part of. He's responsible for several coffee trends, at least within the competition format, and it was our pleasure to sit with him for the latest episode of Coffee with April.
]]>This week, we're revisiting our Q&A format answering another question from our viewers; 'Q&A: How Can We As a Roastery Maximise Efficiency?'
There are many different production models to choose from when building a roastery structure, and many variables to be aware of. We chose to build a system which sacrifices flexibility during production day but achieves a high level of efficiency, a focus on the quality of output and a reduction in human errors.
This week Patrik joined April Athlete Giorgio Visitacion in his coffee bar in Cebu, The Good Cup Coffee Co, exploring how to get the best out of the LilyDrip tool when brewing V60. This video features Giorgio's V60 recipe, brewed using a Tetsu Kasuya Hario V60, as well as his pouring techniques and interval times. This is the brew method most commonly used behind the bar at The Good Cup Coffee Co. Patrik and Giorgio also discuss the advantages of this brew method, as well as discussing their motivations for competing and their future plans for the Brewers Cup competition.
]]>This week, Patrik is breaking down our approach to modern espresso, displaying our techniques and featuring a recent recipe we were very happy with.
Espresso has seen many evolutions over the years, with some trends following on from the ever-accelerating technological advancements made within the industry, whereas other trends have been more closely related to processing methods or even WBC routines.
In this weeks recipe, Patrik describes his thoughts and feelings on the topic of modern espresso and provides a recipe for you to try yourselves too.
This week, we would like to start a discussion about a more recent trend we've seen in processing green coffee.
Anaerobic fermentation is not a new technological innovation, in fact, it has been successfully utilised in wine production for many years now. As the name suggests, anaerobic fermentation requires an oxygen-free environment, and in some cases, this method will include the technique of replacing the oxygen within the environment with carbon dioxide. The coffee fermented within these ideally hermetic environments can be pulped, or in the case of carbonic maceration processed as whole cherries.
We have observed that coffee processed in this manner can take on particular flavour attributes and distinct characters, however, there are many risks when processing coffee using these methods. Not only for the farmers and producers who attempt to replicate these processes with imperfect equipment but also for consumers who may pay more for micro-lots of compromised and questionable quality.
In this video, Patrik starts a discussion about anaerobic processing in coffee and hopes you're interested in joining the discourse too.
This week, Patrik joined Rasmus at the roastery to discuss our latest win in the Danish AeroPress Championships, unpacking Rasmus’ recent performance, recipe and technique. There are many things to think about when competing in an AeroPress championship, such as how to evaluate the coffee, choosing your style of techniques and recipes as well as controlling the variables you have access to such as water, grinders, and additional coffee tools.
In this weeks episode Rasmus discusses his approach, and demonstrates his recipe and techniques. We’ve tried to cover all of the bases during this discussion, but if there’s something that we’ve not explained in detail that you would like to learn more about, please write your questions in the comments and we’ll continue the discussion over the coming weeks.
]]>Our selection for this month, an elegant Ethiopian natural processed coffee, is interesting for a number of reasons. First off, this coffee is the first that we’ve sourced from a Single Farmer in Ethiopia. This is something that we wanted to achieve this current purchasing season, and thanks to our partners on the ground, METAD, we have been able to actualise this.
Secondly, this is the first Ethiopian natural that we have worked with in quite some time, but we have plenty of reasons for choosing it. Watch this weeks video for an explanation of what a Single Farmer supply chain means, and why we intend to purchase more coffee using this format in the future. You can also find a recipe suggestion for how to brew this coffee, as well as additional information on how we approached the roasting process when profiling.
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This week, the team met at the roastery to discuss our recent participation in the Danish Coffee Roasting Championships.
We were very pleased to secure 1st and 2nd place in this year's national championships, and we took a few moments to reflect on our successes and failures as well as putting together some key recommendations for anybody interested in competing themselves.
There were many things that we didn’t explore fully, so if you have a particular interest in a specific area of the competition feel free to leave your question in the comments below or contact us directly.
This week, Patrik was back behind the bar with Pinar Misirdal in Qatar for another session brewing Espresso together. Having competed at the World Barista Championships in Amsterdam last year, as well as participating in National Championships for the last few years, Pinar is more than knowledgeable about brewing espresso. We decided to set her a new challenge, dialing in different profiles of coffee during a 10-minute window, and we're sharing the session with you here. We hope that you find this collaboration interesting and informative, and make sure to leave any questions for Pinar or Patrik in the comments section below.
]]>This week, the full April team joined together at the roastery to present our latest monthly Subscription release. Our subscription members receive between 1 to 5 bags of coffee every month, and we're committed to providing them with not only the highest quality roasted coffee but also offering access to our roasting specifications and an approach towards brewing.
This month, we sent our members our latest Kenyan release, Gatamboya AA. This is the second year that we're able to work with this phenomenal AA selection from Karatina town, near the base of the impressive Mount Kenya. There are many excellent characteristics of this coffee, however, it is most commonly regarded for its distinct flavour intensity and consistently recurring berry notes. The local Gatomboya stream helps process this excellent washed coffee, with all traces of mucilage removed in the clean stream of fresh water. The cherries, collected from over 600 members of the
Barichu Farmers Cooperative, are delivered to the Gatomboya Factory to be sorted by maturity and quality grouping before pulping and washing. The coffee receives between 24 and 48 hours of fermentation, dependant on density, before drying on raised beds for and average duration of 10 days. We're really excited to be working with this coffee for the second year running. It's an incredible AA selection, and as our third Kenyan release this year it's keeping our summer fresh and fruity. You can expect to find notes of intense berries, pleasant florals as well as a distinct finish of black currant. We select different coffee every month to feature for our subscribers, watch this week's video to learn more about the kind of information we're providing every month.
]]>What can be gained from visiting a coffee farm? It is very common to see professionals from all sizes of a coffee business undertaking annual origin trips but for what reasons? At April we believe that knowing your farmer and respecting the partnership is integral to maintaining a healthy supply chain. There are many things to be gained from visiting a coffee farm, not just a greater understanding of the agricultural processes behind producing high-quality green coffee, but also a greater understanding of the operational scale of your partner's practices and how the terms you negotiate when conducting trade can affect these operations from the ground up.
There’s certainly a buzz around visiting coffee farms, and the lines between coffee production and coffee tourism can be blurry at the best of times. What benefits can coffee tourism bring to a producer, is this a potential revenue stream or a distraction from the core agricultural model? In this week's video, Patrik and Viktor discuss a recent trip to visit one of our partner farmers, Bruno Souza of Fazenda Esperança in Brazil, unpacking the potential benefits of visiting a coffee farm and witnessing coffee production first hand.
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There are now many different brewing devices to choose from when selecting your ideal coffee brewer, with new concepts and designs now released on a regular basis. One particular device which has seen an increase in popularity recently, the Origami Dripper, was recently utilised by Jia Ning Du in Boston as a part of her World Brewers Cup 2019 winning open service routine. This week, Patrik explores some of the potential ways to use this brewer and explains why the versatility of the brewer may be its greatest strength.
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On a recent trip to Brazil whilst visiting our partner farmer, Bruno Souza of Fazenda Esperança, Patrik filmed a short feature highlighting some of the practices that contribute to the eventual high quality of a specialty coffee. We believe strongly in working towards quality, and there are many factors during the agricultural and post-harvest processes that can determine the quality level of a coffee. In this video, Patrik explains what these processes look like, how they reflect our operational model and how we intend to maintain and progress this philosophy throughout future partnerships with partner farmers.
NB: Unfortunately the sound quality of this weeks’ video was compromised. We hope that the content more than makes up for the lack of clarity.
]]>This week, Patrik jumped back into the roastery to present our latest monthly Subscription release. Our subscription members receive between 1 to 5 bags of coffee every month, and we're committed to providing them with not only the highest quality roasted coffee but also offering access to our roasting specifications and an approach towards brewing. This month, we sent our members one of our first releases from our partner farmer in Costa Rica, Alejo Castro. The primary coffee this month, a Red Honey processed H1 varietal, is a beautifully balanced coffee with great cup quality benefiting from the excellent processing as well as the lineage of the varietal.
H1 is a leaf rust resistant varietal, produced from a combination of Sarchimor and Sudan Rume, and as a result the cup shares some excellent qualities with Sudan Rume however this particular lot has been both higher yielding as well as rust resistant. Two great attributes for the farmer, and we're very happy with the quality and complexity of the green coffee. You can expect to find notes of Caramelised Apples, Citrus and dense Florals. We select different coffee every month to feature for our subscribers, watch this weeks video to learn more about the kind of information we're providing every month.
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This week, Patrik demonstrates our latest release. A Filter Drip Pack we've introduced to make brewing on the go that little bit easier and more convenient. Created for all of you travelers and jet-setters, those that wish to explore the world yet expect a tasty cup of Filter Coffee wherever you go.
Our first release features two excellent Ethiopian coffees, a Naturally processed Surma Gesha from the Gesha Village estate as well as a fresh washed processed Ethiopian Heirloom from the Boji Processing Station in Kochere.
]]>This week, Patrik explains our approach to internal quality control as well as sharing one of the methods we've found particularly valuable recently. Cupping your profiles is a core practice of all coffee roasters, however, there are different ways to evaluate your profiles with some methods preserving more objectivity than others.
By implementing triangulations you can develop confidence in your profiling, as well as creating more certainty that you're moving in the right direction without unconditional bias.
]]>This week, Patrik explains the current Green Coffee purchasing model that we apply here at April. We believe strongly in paying coffee farmers the full value that they request for their products.
In this video, Patrik explains what this means, how it reflects our operational model and how we intend to apply this philosophy throughout future partnerships with coffee farmers. We're always interested in hearing what topics you're most curious to hear us discuss, and social media is a great way of reaching out to us if you would like to make a request.
We welcome your thoughts and feelings on the topics raised in this week's video, as well as other ideas you would like to see us discuss in the future. We really appreciate your feedback and support.
]]>This week, Patrik is replicating his roast profile designed specifically for the World Brewers Cup Final 2019. The Ikawa Pro is a small batch sample roaster that offers its user the ability to edit and customise their roast approach, whilst also creating highly replicable profiles that can be saved and shared between units and users.
Due to the versatility and small profile of the hardware, this roast machine can be an invaluable tool when competing. In this video, Patrik explains the philosophy behind his profile as well as why matching your roast profile with your brew method is integral to creating a quality cup. If you have access to an Ikawa Pro, you can use the following link to find and upload the profile yourself: https://www.ikawacoffee.com/pro-sampl...
]]>This week, Patrik jumped back into the roastery to present our latest monthly Subscription release. Our subscription members receive between 1 to 5 bags of coffee every month, and we're committed to providing them with not only the highest quality roasted coffee but also offering access to our roasting specifications and an approach towards brewing.
This month, we sent our members the only Bolivian coffee we've been working with this season. As a washed Gesha varietal, we were really curious about how the varietal would shine through the Bolivian terroir. It's been a really fun experience to roast this coffee. You can expect to find incredible sweetness for a washed processed coffee, more comparable to a natural coffee but still clean. We find lychee and white tropical fruit notes with a resounding jasmine finish. We select different coffee every month to feature for our subscribers, watch this weeks video to learn more about the kind of information we're providing every month.
]]>We're back with another video in response to your question, sent to us directly via our YouTube, Facebook and Instagram accounts. This is the third question and response, sent in by Tan, who asked "Is the bean rate of rise, after first crack, important to you and if so why?
What are your thoughts on development time and how do you determine the length per profile?" In this video Patrik addresses the question at hand, giving some further insight on our current approach to time after crack, as well as how this advice may differ depending on your roast machine and hardware.
]]>This week Patrik demonstrates the recipe and technique that he most recently used when competing in this year's Brewers Cup Final. We made a brewing device specifically for the competition, with the intention of producing a very distinct final cup.
The recipe and technique were then designed with the shape and function of the brewer in mind, and in this weeks video, we'd like to show you an example of the dosing and pouring structure we prefer. If you're curious about the April Brewer, make sure to check back to this channel and our website in the future as there is certainly more to come regarding this topic
]]>This week Patrik revisits one of our fundamental topics, how to optimise your approach to roasting coffee when using a Loring Smart Roaster, as we return with part 2. The design and operation of this particular roast machine is very different to the silhouette of a traditional drum roaster, and this week we're discussing the position of the cyclone in relation to the generation of thermal energy as well as the importance of getting to know your probes/thermocouples and calibrating to their response.
We'll be sure to return with more information and discussions about roasting shortly, feel free to request a part 3 if you've been enjoying the information so far. We're always interested in hearing what topics you're most curious to hear us discuss, and social media is a great way of reaching out to us if you would like to make a request.
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This week, Patrik jumped back into the roastery to present our latest monthly Subscription release. Our subscription members receive between 1 to 5 bags of coffee every month, and we're committed to providing them with not only the highest quality roasted coffee but also offering access to our roasting specifications and an approach towards brewing. This month, we sent our members the first of our Kenyan releases from the fresh harvest.
This is the first year that we're able to work with this phenomenal AA selection from the Gathiruini Factory, on the slopes of the Aberdare mountain range. This particular lot, a selection of SL28, SL34 and Ruiru 11 varietals, is our first Kenyan release from the recent harvest and is an excellent example of high-quality coffee from the Kiambu county. The cherries, collected from over 730 members of the Komothai Farmers Cooperative, are delivered to the Gathuruini Factory to be sorted by maturity and quality grouping before pulping and washing.
The coffee receives between 24 and 48 hours of fermentation, dependant on density, before drying on raised beds for an average duration of 8-14 days. We're really excited to be working with this coffee. You can expect to find notes of tropical fruits, delicate florals as well as a distinct finish of blackberry. We select different coffee every month to feature for our subscribers, watch this week's video to learn more about the kind of information we're providing every month.
]]>Patrik joins Tetsu Kasuya in his beautiful shop and roastery, Philocoffea Inc, experimenting with a new V60 method as well as brewing some espresso and discussing roast styles. As World Brewers Cup Champion 2016, Tetsu is more than skilled at brewing coffee, and it was great fun to test his recent brewing method alongside him on the bar. In this video, you can find information about brewing styles and preferences, a short explanation of Tetsu's current espresso philosophy as well as an insight into his approach to coffee roasting. It was a huge pleasure to join Tetsu at Philocoffea Inc and we thank him for sharing his knowledge with us.
]]>As you may know, if you've been following us for a short while already, we're very enthusiastic about competing in coffee competitions. We believe that competitions only stand to make us stronger and more competent professionals, and we're very aware that a large amount of learning and development can come during preparation and training for upcoming events.
April Athletes brings all of this together, inviting a select group of coffee professionals to share their learning and approach towards competing with open training logs and honest discussions about their thoughts and motivations. The initial group of competitors will be participating in multiple disciples such as brewing and roasting, and we look forward to sharing our learning and discussing our strategies and techniques.
]]>This week, Patrik is back in the roastery to discuss his thoughts regarding blooming coffee. It's a technique that the majority of coffee professionals are accustomed to doing when brewing, but what are the benefits to cup quality? As always, there are many variables to consider such as roast degree/freshness as well as brew method. In this weeks video, Patrik discusses the topic as a whole as well as providing his particular opinion on the subject.
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This week, Patrik joined Pinar Misirdal behind the bar in Doha, Qatar. Whilst Pinar begins to prepare for her upcoming competition in September, we thought we'd join the process and provide you with an insight into her espresso brewing preferences. Having competed at the World Barista Championships in Amsterdam last year, as well as participating in National Championships for the last few years, Pinar is more than knowledgeable about brewing espresso. In this weeks video we discuss the topics she finds most important to consider when brewing espresso and preparing for competitions.
]]>This week, Patrik jumped back into the roastery to present our latest monthly Subscription release. Our subscription members receive between 1 to 5 bags of coffee every month, and we're committed to providing them with not only the highest quality roasted coffee but also offering access to our roasting specifications and an approach towards brewing. This month, we sent our members the first of our Ethiopian releases from the latest harvest. This particular coffee is no stranger to us, as this is the second year in a row that we're working with it.
Grown at an altitude between 2100-2300 meters above sea level, and comprised of local heirloom varietals, this lot has been processed at the Boji washing station and is comprised of cherries delivered by over 500 smallholder farmers, often each with plots of 1 hectare or less. This coffee has been washed processed, with a total duration of wet fermentation between 36-72 hours and the water replaced three times throughout the process. You can expect to find notes of peach and citrus fruit, with a nectarine finish. Expect a clean but intense flavour structure from this exceptional coffee. We select different coffee every month to feature for our subscribers, watch this week's video to learn more about the kind of information we're providing every month.
]]>In this video, we're at the Volcan Azul Estate in the beautiful Alajuela Province of Costa Rica, this time joining Farmer and Owner Alejo Castro at his coffee estate for a conversation about our sister project Sustainable Profile. We believe everyone should know everything about the coffee beans they are working with, in their shops or brewing at home. Together with Alejo, using our
Sustainable Profile Project as a base, we are researching new and more Sustainable Varietals that will improve his yields, quality and minimize the risk of plant diseases. The aim of this project is to in the future involve more of the farmers we work with here at April. The farmers are the most exposed and lowest paid in the value chain of Specialty Coffee and we are here to change that. We'll be continuing our work with Alejo and Volcan Azul, so make sure to keep an eye out for future updates.
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