Description
Cultivated in the mountainous Andes blanketed with natural forest, it’s no surprise that the Colombia Org. RFA Kachalu has been recognized by the Rainforest Alliance Awards for the last 4 years as one of their top five certified coffees. The Kachalu producer group in the department of Santander takes full advantage of the naturally biodiverse environment for cultivating coffee in harmony with RFA principles of conserving forest, soil, and water resources. Kachalu is a tight-knit group with 110 producers cultivating coffee on farms that average 25 acres in size. Small enough for each producer in the group to manage their own micro-mill where meticulous care in cherry selection, depulping, fermenting, and drying coffee takes place.
The Kachalu group is very experience, having worked directly with the Federación Nacional de Cafeteros de Colombia (FNC) for more than two decades to gain better access to technical support for best agricultural practices. In addition to marketing coffee internationally, the FNC provides producers with financing, training, and technical assistance to improve coffee quality. The FNC also strives to improve the quality of life for coffee producers and their families through projects promoting income diversification and education.
Tasting Notes: Good from light to dark, a solid medium roast was our favorite. Medium bodied with low acidity, a creamy and smooth cup. Sweet edged with good depth of flavor. Classic and rich nutty/chocolaty tones with a hint of caramel. A cup anyone will love. Light roasts add a little hint of floral, darker roasts are stronger and more semi-sweet, we did not find a roast we didn’t like. A fun coffee to play with roast level.
Roasting Notes: Tasty at almost any roast point, right after first crack one can get a little grassy but anything past that will be very lovely, clean and defined. Light to medium roasting will promote the hint of caramel but also accentuate the floral edge to the cup. Darker roasts turn much more chocolaty and semi-sweet especially once you touch 2nd crack or get into it. A hint of walnut can be found at almost any roast point but is almost more in the aftertaste. Light roasts need a little more setup time, medium to dark shine fresh as can be.
Talvisota McSauna –
I took this about 5 seconds into 2C in a Behmor Plus AB, starting P2 profile with a mess of button slamming around 7 minutes countdown…because I made a duncely newb mistake with the machine (but recovered in 30 seconds!). Guess what? It came out wonderfully: mellow, solid, cocoa-nibsy, wonderfully dry without being astringent, a slight sweet note…and delicious both black and with good cream and local hive honey. A nice daily cup at a great price.