Colourful

Brew Guide:

Best Brewed with: Suitable for Filter and Espresso

Best Rested for: 2-3 weeks

Light Roaster Influence:
We roast this blend on the lighter side, with the view that it should still work as an all-rounder for both filter and espresso. Try a modern open recipe at 18g in, 45-50g out in 25-30s when brewing as espresso to really open up the flavour, or 60g/L when brewing on filter.

In combining the excellent agronomy and modern processing in these two lots, we’re tasting black forest gateau, mixed berry compote, strong brewed rooibos, apple & cinnamon, lime leaf, looong sweet maple finish - but with such complex coffees, there are more interpretations you can bring out through brewing at home.

Traceability (Version 8):

The Story:

Colourful was born out of another concept we wanted to play with, something we felt almost criminally under-explored. There is such huge potential in combining deeply fruity and fun coffees into a blend, yet so often it’s almost seen as sacrilege, that they must be a single origin special release, or else some green coffee buyer secret police will break in and confiscate the sacks back. 

Yet who amongst us has not occasionally chucked the remnants of a special bag or two into the grinder, and found the result to be more than the sum of its parts? So in the full rebellious spirit of  resisting pretentious coffee traditions, we've sought out the most uniquely fruity and fun coffees to feature in Colourful . There's no denying that the funky, wild profile of an anaerobic or experimentally processed coffee might not be for everyone, or the sort of coffee you drink every single day. However, we believe in their ability to surprise and delight, with the objective to showcase the vibrancy and full dynamic range that coffee has to offer. Like a mug full of pick n’ mix sweets, coffee in full colour (not just black and white!).

So here we have it - Colourful. It's a year-round celebration of colour and flavour, giving us the freedom to source, blend, or even to spotlight single origins under its banner. Colourful isn't dictated by its components; instead, its essence is its flavour profile and the fun we have in creating and selecting for it.

Version 8:

This might be one of the most bonkers Colourful version’s we've done yet...

This new version sees a suuuper sweet, clean fresh crop Rwandan natty - from the Cyesha CWS in Nyamasheke go toe to toe with an experimental Kenyan from the Rongo CWS. This anoxic natural has been inoculated with a lab-isolated coffee-adapted strain of the Koji fungus (A. oryzae). Koji is used traditionally in the production of sake, mirin, and miso; however it’s been transformed into a powerhouse modern gastronomy tool (especially through the fermentation lab at Noma).

Koji is packed with protease and amylase enzymes, that not only help create new flavour compounds - but also unlock more sugar and nutrients for the existing microflora inside the fermentation tank. If you make lacto-ferments at home, try adding some koji grains - it’s a game changer