Week 4 of 5 with Klatch Coffee brings us Elida Natural from the famed farmer and producer Wilford Lamastus. This Catuai, Typica, and Bourbon varietal from Panama was touched on a few weeks ago in the look at America’s Best Espresso, mixed with the Honey Processed version of this coffee. The natural should be more embolden with stated flavor notes of “cherry blossom, guava, black currant, adark berry, and a juicy finish.”
Well regarded farmer Wilford Lamastus’ coffees are often offered by a number of roasters, with each roaster putting their own spin on the green coffee with their equipment and roasting technique. Klatch’s is a noticeably more developed roast, which is favors more of the roasty sweet flavors in place of florals or fruit.
As a brewed coffee, I preferred this in the Bonavita Immersion Dripper at a very coarse grind to really maximize the sweetness as much as possible. Using a 1 : 16-17 ratio, I do a good stir after the full pour, then do kind of wine glass flick of the wrist spin, around 1 minute, which helps bring any stray grinds off the sides of the filter. Opening the valve at 1:15 and allowing the coffee to run out to 4:00 or slightly more created a very smooth, sweet, good in a more traditional “thought of a good cup of coffee” way. It would definitely serve as a good gateway for someone used to drinking diner plate or worse burnt coffee, in that it is not acidic or floral to completely alienate them but it is very approachable and full bodied.
The berry notes are more pronounced as espresso, keeping brewing times and temperature down to maximize these fruit notes as much as possible. In the 18 gram VST basket I was using:
- 18.0 grams in : 32 grams out
- In 24-27 seconds at 197*F
In four out of five offerings from Klatch so far, all have certainly been good, but seem to favor the milk drink or more traditional roast profile palate, than someone seeking layer subtleties, nuanced acidity, and complexity. This is not unusual considering nearly all of these coffee were naturally or honey processed and blends. If this sounds like your M.O. be sure to check Klatch’s offerings. This particular one appears to be sold out, but the same coffee honey processed is still available for $19.95 / 12 ounce bag.