Thanks Simon. I DO enjoy this!! ;-)
Showing posts with label taiwan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label taiwan. Show all posts
Saturday, September 08, 2007
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
So that's what zero defect coffee tastes like...
We got a shipment of coffees from Mr. Simon Hsieh who is a roaster going by the moniker of 4-Arts zero-defects coffees in Taiwan. It's not just a fancy name when he says zero defects. Simon sorts his coffee personally to achieve a promise of zero cup defects in all of his roasts.
So you may be thinking about what zero defects means. There are obvious defects as pictured here via coffeeresearch.org. What we know is that Simon removes any obvious defects found but also sorts the coffee to a more even size and color consistency. This means cleaning a coffee up the hard way with some manual labor. When Simon says zero defects, he's not joking.
Simon can turn a bean up to five times sorting pre-roast and then once more post-roast to identify visible defects or what he determines as off beans that may ruin a cup. This is a very intense and dedicated way to get a better cup. As all searches for a better cup go, it's never easy. Sorting at the roasterie is something that would be cost prohibitive to almost everyone in our American industry beyond the fanatical home roaster. It is the home roaster who has little access to good green that this process is intriguing though because it appears that a little extra sorting could potentially clean up an otherwise funky coffee.
It is a very unique and somewhat extreme approach that at first you may be inclined to question. Rightfully so, but you should give it a go and see what he is looking at and attempt to contemplate the logic behind it a bit. There are two ways to do this. One, you have Simon do this for you and pay him well, plus shipping costs to achieve this. Two, you sit down and sort out some home roast. I suggest you do a high grade coffee like a CoE and compare it to a C-Grade Sumatra. Measure the throw away percent on both and report back to us on the results should you choose to accept this mission...
Image Courtesy of Jason Silberschlag
At first glance it would be easy to throw this out the window and say it's a bit crazy to do this. I think too many people in the industry are easily willing to ignore what others are doing without trying to understand the reasoning behind their choices. The logic may be flawed or it may be correct. Truth is, you don't know what the results are until you take the time and do the experiment for yourself.
Simon's exercise in sorting has a lesson to teach us. Sorting makes a difference. In fact, the simple exercise of sitting down and sorting a few rows of coffee will give you new perspective on exactly what defects are and how one bean can easily ruin a cup. Sort out the defects, roast them and cup them next to the sorted cup. You will then better understand what is causing each cup's components and then the mushrooms may not be so charming any more.
It's not a clean coffee rant today though. It's a question of what is in my cup and why does it taste the way it does? Can you identify the good as well as the bad? Equating input to output and identifying the causes of flavors in the cups is harder than you think.
Doing sorting is like an educational adventure. After a few episodes, you will appreciate the great lots which require less than 20% rejection rates while you will fall apart at the purchase of a green which has a 50%+ rejection rate. Something to think about next time you try any coffee.
As for Simon's coffees, we sampled a Nicaragua CoE#14, 20% CoE espresso Blend, and Idido Misty Valley Grade 1. That last one may strike you as odd for our crew but we have tried a few versions of this coffee in the US (though not Grade 1), so it was to be a comparison cup. It was a strange cup. Simon describes it as orange juice and that's pretty accurate. Not my personal choice of coffees though as I still cling to dreams about an aromatic washed Yirgacheffe that may someday resurface when our fermented Ethiopian naturals fascination ends...
All that aside, Simon achieved something I had not tasted before, previous versions of Misty Valley bordered on rank and pungent, almost rotten fruits at times ready to kick you in the face with their untamed intensity. This offering was balanced and persisted like a heavy perfume that weighed down my nostrils leaving a strong aroma and thick sweetness. It did not really resemble what we had tasted in our cupping sessions or varied trips to famous coffee houses. Shocking indeed.
The Nicaragua was a dark sugar cup, a balanced roast which came out well in the vac pot, being my pick of his offerings. The 15% at the bottom of the label is Simon's rejection rate for the Nicaragua.
The 20% CoE espresso blend was nice and very clean but I have such bias against earthiness in coffees, I would love to replace that Java Jampit component with something else. It was however, on the level with Stumptown's hairbender in that it was ripe and had good fruit in the cup and a defined sweetness. It was brewed in the low 190'sF and pulled very ristretto making for what was a lingering sweet cup with a winey aftertaste and lacking in pronounced bitterness. Again, it was balanced but complex with a heavy candied sweetness which seems to be Simon's signature style.
Go ahead and add meticulous sorting to our wish list along with fresher green and high grown coffees.
So you may be thinking about what zero defects means. There are obvious defects as pictured here via coffeeresearch.org. What we know is that Simon removes any obvious defects found but also sorts the coffee to a more even size and color consistency. This means cleaning a coffee up the hard way with some manual labor. When Simon says zero defects, he's not joking.
Simon can turn a bean up to five times sorting pre-roast and then once more post-roast to identify visible defects or what he determines as off beans that may ruin a cup. This is a very intense and dedicated way to get a better cup. As all searches for a better cup go, it's never easy. Sorting at the roasterie is something that would be cost prohibitive to almost everyone in our American industry beyond the fanatical home roaster. It is the home roaster who has little access to good green that this process is intriguing though because it appears that a little extra sorting could potentially clean up an otherwise funky coffee.
It is a very unique and somewhat extreme approach that at first you may be inclined to question. Rightfully so, but you should give it a go and see what he is looking at and attempt to contemplate the logic behind it a bit. There are two ways to do this. One, you have Simon do this for you and pay him well, plus shipping costs to achieve this. Two, you sit down and sort out some home roast. I suggest you do a high grade coffee like a CoE and compare it to a C-Grade Sumatra. Measure the throw away percent on both and report back to us on the results should you choose to accept this mission...
Image Courtesy of Jason Silberschlag
At first glance it would be easy to throw this out the window and say it's a bit crazy to do this. I think too many people in the industry are easily willing to ignore what others are doing without trying to understand the reasoning behind their choices. The logic may be flawed or it may be correct. Truth is, you don't know what the results are until you take the time and do the experiment for yourself.
Simon's exercise in sorting has a lesson to teach us. Sorting makes a difference. In fact, the simple exercise of sitting down and sorting a few rows of coffee will give you new perspective on exactly what defects are and how one bean can easily ruin a cup. Sort out the defects, roast them and cup them next to the sorted cup. You will then better understand what is causing each cup's components and then the mushrooms may not be so charming any more.
It's not a clean coffee rant today though. It's a question of what is in my cup and why does it taste the way it does? Can you identify the good as well as the bad? Equating input to output and identifying the causes of flavors in the cups is harder than you think.
Doing sorting is like an educational adventure. After a few episodes, you will appreciate the great lots which require less than 20% rejection rates while you will fall apart at the purchase of a green which has a 50%+ rejection rate. Something to think about next time you try any coffee.
As for Simon's coffees, we sampled a Nicaragua CoE#14, 20% CoE espresso Blend, and Idido Misty Valley Grade 1. That last one may strike you as odd for our crew but we have tried a few versions of this coffee in the US (though not Grade 1), so it was to be a comparison cup. It was a strange cup. Simon describes it as orange juice and that's pretty accurate. Not my personal choice of coffees though as I still cling to dreams about an aromatic washed Yirgacheffe that may someday resurface when our fermented Ethiopian naturals fascination ends...
All that aside, Simon achieved something I had not tasted before, previous versions of Misty Valley bordered on rank and pungent, almost rotten fruits at times ready to kick you in the face with their untamed intensity. This offering was balanced and persisted like a heavy perfume that weighed down my nostrils leaving a strong aroma and thick sweetness. It did not really resemble what we had tasted in our cupping sessions or varied trips to famous coffee houses. Shocking indeed.
The Nicaragua was a dark sugar cup, a balanced roast which came out well in the vac pot, being my pick of his offerings. The 15% at the bottom of the label is Simon's rejection rate for the Nicaragua.
The 20% CoE espresso blend was nice and very clean but I have such bias against earthiness in coffees, I would love to replace that Java Jampit component with something else. It was however, on the level with Stumptown's hairbender in that it was ripe and had good fruit in the cup and a defined sweetness. It was brewed in the low 190'sF and pulled very ristretto making for what was a lingering sweet cup with a winey aftertaste and lacking in pronounced bitterness. Again, it was balanced but complex with a heavy candied sweetness which seems to be Simon's signature style.
Go ahead and add meticulous sorting to our wish list along with fresher green and high grown coffees.
Monday, March 05, 2007
New Cultivar Taiwan No. 18
To most of the tea world, Taiwan is known for it's wonderful Paochongs and Bai Hao Oolongs and for good reasons. Focus on these styles of tea has brought the world some of the best and most interesting teas. While most of the tea produced in Taiwan has been Oolong, The Tea Research and Extension Station located in the hills surrounding Sun Moon Lake has also focused on the development and production of black tea. Producing 11 of the 20 new cultivars since 1969 suited for black tea, a peak was reached with the development of cultivar number 18. Released officially in 1999 this tea is basically unknown outside of Taiwan. Crossing an assam strain from Burma and a local wild tea strain, the Research and Extension station has created one of the most truly unique and quality black teas in the world.
One of the things that makes this tea unique is the fact that it is a cross between an Assam strain and a Taiwan wild strain. The Taiwan wild variety of tea is most similar to the China plant but classified as a separate variety from the two main varieties, Assam and China plants, because it is really a different plant. Number 18 is a strong bush with fairly thick leathery leaves and a purplish shine. It is of much lower yield than the other cultivars created in Taiwan for black tea and has large buds but no pekoe growths. The survival rate is 87.6%, it has strong heat resistance and has a fairly strong resistance to disease, making this cultivar ideal to grow.
Of course, none of this would matter if the taste was not there. This tea is known for its mint and cinnamon qualities and these flavors were certainly present when we cupped it. Not only are those flavors present but we also got rose, molasses, honey and lemon verbena as well. This time when we cupped this tea, we initially did not share tasting notes. Ben C. brought this back from Taiwan and made all of us taste the tea separately and without telling us what it tasted like. Jaime initially got cinnamon and mint, when he and Ben and Hong cupped it. Hong added rose to the notes and then they decided to test the palates of Ben K, Judson and I. Ben, after a long day of espresso shot tasting and barista-ing, still came through with the same tasting notes. That is how powerful and defined this tea is.
Originally when we cupped this tea, from a different batch/producer/farm that was sent from Taiwan, we were not that impressed. It is fairly generic with much more subtle notes and some off flavors. When Ben C. asked the Taiwan Research and Extension Station about this, they said that this was because of the inferior processing of the batch we had received. This just goes to show how important processing is in bringing out the flavor of the cultivar and the end result of the tea.
This is another in the line of many great steps towards the development of quality tea in Taiwan. The Taiwan Research and Extension station plans to further the development of both black tea and wild tea cultivars in the future. It takes them about 21 years to develop a cultivar to the point where it can be used in commercial production and from what I can see, this is time well spent. In the past, the black tea that Taiwan has produced was low quality and exported, and since 1999 one of the goals has been to promote it locally. Promotion for high quality exports of Taiwan no. 18 or Hong Yu (Red Jade) are also on the way.
One of the things that makes this tea unique is the fact that it is a cross between an Assam strain and a Taiwan wild strain. The Taiwan wild variety of tea is most similar to the China plant but classified as a separate variety from the two main varieties, Assam and China plants, because it is really a different plant. Number 18 is a strong bush with fairly thick leathery leaves and a purplish shine. It is of much lower yield than the other cultivars created in Taiwan for black tea and has large buds but no pekoe growths. The survival rate is 87.6%, it has strong heat resistance and has a fairly strong resistance to disease, making this cultivar ideal to grow.
Of course, none of this would matter if the taste was not there. This tea is known for its mint and cinnamon qualities and these flavors were certainly present when we cupped it. Not only are those flavors present but we also got rose, molasses, honey and lemon verbena as well. This time when we cupped this tea, we initially did not share tasting notes. Ben C. brought this back from Taiwan and made all of us taste the tea separately and without telling us what it tasted like. Jaime initially got cinnamon and mint, when he and Ben and Hong cupped it. Hong added rose to the notes and then they decided to test the palates of Ben K, Judson and I. Ben, after a long day of espresso shot tasting and barista-ing, still came through with the same tasting notes. That is how powerful and defined this tea is.
Originally when we cupped this tea, from a different batch/producer/farm that was sent from Taiwan, we were not that impressed. It is fairly generic with much more subtle notes and some off flavors. When Ben C. asked the Taiwan Research and Extension Station about this, they said that this was because of the inferior processing of the batch we had received. This just goes to show how important processing is in bringing out the flavor of the cultivar and the end result of the tea.
This is another in the line of many great steps towards the development of quality tea in Taiwan. The Taiwan Research and Extension station plans to further the development of both black tea and wild tea cultivars in the future. It takes them about 21 years to develop a cultivar to the point where it can be used in commercial production and from what I can see, this is time well spent. In the past, the black tea that Taiwan has produced was low quality and exported, and since 1999 one of the goals has been to promote it locally. Promotion for high quality exports of Taiwan no. 18 or Hong Yu (Red Jade) are also on the way.
Saturday, November 18, 2006
Tea and coffee: Can I afford the great ones?
Photo of very expensive tea by Ben Kaminsky
We typically don't drink good tea in North America. I know Americans don't drink very much good coffee either. The real question is do we have access to good examples of both?
If you want good coffee there are literally a handful of roasters in the US and then it becomes a roast preference to get those coffees roasted the way you like them. You will probably have to pay more for a freshly roasted coffee, spend more on the equipment to brew it, and put some energy into brewing it correctly, but you could find it and it would be affordable to most consumers. The most expensive coffees coming out of the Cup Of Excellence still break down to affordable per cup prices if you brew them at home. A pound of coffee produces a lot of cups making even a $20/lb bag steep but still affordable as a once in a while treat. Even as these microlots creep higher in price, we are still able to access them if we want to pay the price.
Pulling a double espresso for a milk drink(don't tell)
The problem with tea is it's a largely inaccessible market. Sure, we can all buy commodity grade tea bags or even pay a lot for a famous named tea, but those aren't the truly great ones. The great teas of Taiwan and mainland China don't make it to the American market. The price paid for them there is so high due to demand, we have little ability to buy them. What we do get is often stale or poorly processed remainders. Even if we had access, the top teas sell for such exorbitant prices, we would never even get a sniff! A competition grade tea in Taiwan of 300g recently sold for $15000. (yes, that's 15k) And to think we still complain about a $12/lb bag of decent coffee.
Photo of Oolong Tea by Ben Kaminsky
Right now, we can afford the great coffees coming out. Of course, all of this has little to do with your free refill diner coffee or that phony Starbucks black apron offering, but that Brazil for $50 a pound doesn't sound as unreasonable now. The truth though, is that good teas are much rarer than we like to admit. You can get great herbal teas but you get largely poor grade broken leaf teas for everything else.
Unless you've got a connection in Taiwan or China, it's going to be hard to get that mind blowing Oolong or high grade tea. Want a good coffee, browse the CoE buyers. Until someone truly taps the foreign markets for fresh picked high grade whole leaf teas, a lot for us will have to be content with cupping these CoE coffees. It's rough being a mouthwatering cupper.
Saturday, October 28, 2006
Cupping high grade taiwanese teas.
Checking the leaves after the cupping which were very intact, undamaged and pretty. Thy expanded with each brew until being fully unfurled.
Dha yu ling and a Pear mountain tea from taiwan. Each taiwanese tea was high grown and sells for $100 per 5.5oz. These teas were both at the base very sweet and intensely floral.
Fresh crop!
Flavor cuppa notes:
Pear mountain - pear, cinnamon, mint, honey, super creamy, and lemon drop aftertaste.
Dha yu ling - molasses, cinnamon graham cracker, clean cucumber, grape soda aftertaste.
Summary: We don't drink teas like this in the states! Silas needs more of these!
The sweet aftertastes linger in a super sweet clean flavor for many minutes afterwards.
-jaime
UPDATE: I realized that after this cupping we had to rethink everything one more time. If the tea industry is this advanced in Taiwan, then it means this is where the coffee industry should be or will be going. It's scary to think but maybe that's what it's about. The tea's were expressive, amazing, and complex. They were worth getting excited about. They were more complex than any tea I have had. Granted I have visited china and Japan but these blew down any of those expereiences by a long shot. It was strange how you could taste layers of flavors in the cups. Tea has this potential? That's something to think about.
Big cheers to Ben's dad in Taiwan for arranging them!
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