Best Caffenation coffees of 2018

    Posted by Robrecht Berghmans on January 19, 2019

    A yearly traditional for the blog. What have been the best beans the past year (a selection by me and the Caffenation staffers)

    TOP 5 FILTER COFFEES OF 2018:

    1) Kenya Nyeri GATURA AA: best Kenya in years. Classic bright and acidic notes, oily, sweet and tons of fruity notes. 

    2) Ethiopia Sidamo SUKE QUTO Washed. A yearly returning coffee. Major floral and tea notes, clean, elegant. X mas coffee of the year.

    3) Ethiopia Limu NANO CHALLA. Also great on espresso, but mainly outstanding on filter. A very chewy, fruity coffee with notes of melon and peach.

    4) Kenya Kirinyaga KANGOCHO PB. A very 'explosive' cup with lots of complexity and red fruit layers. Still on the menu for the upcoming months....

    5) Guatemala Huehuetenango RED DE MUJERES. Not the cleanest cup in the list, but very popular because of the big body and sugar cane sweetness. A crowd pleaser that worked really well in the Halloween LGB blend as well. 

     

    TOP 5 ESPRESSO COFFEES OF 2018:

    1) Ethiopia Yirgacheffe REKO: Voted as the best espresso coffee by the barista's and for plenty of reasons. This coffees was very easy to work with and it gave them lots of opportunities. Such a clean and versatile cup! Buttery mouthfeel, orange, honey, perfect after taste. 

    2) Rwanda Nyaruguru NYAKIZU (2017): This coffee was actually a late 2017 crop, but launched in March and continued till October, when the new 2018 crop took over. The Nyakizu became legendary because of its complexity. Tonloads of both acidic and sweet layers in combination with a smooth mouthfeel. Oh boy!

    3) Burundi Kayanza GAHAHE: End of the year coffee that was super clean and elegant. Works fine on both filter or espresso roast.

    4) Brazil Sul de Minas BOTA FORA: Not the cleanest of the bunch but really popular because of the big body/sweet combination. A crowd pleasure and with reason.

    5) Honduras Copan SAUL MOISES MEJIA: Perfect X mas coffee with that famous ginger bread taste. Very unique taste profile and great with milk as well. 

     

    Other great coffees that just missed the listing: Sasaba Natural, Finca San Andres Honey, Rwanda Macuba and the Limu Gera Farm, to name a couple. 

    No Costa Rica in 2018, which was a missed chance, and Ethiopia and Kenya again as the most liked countries. We know what to do in the new year!

    Back to blog