The qualities and flavors of coffee form the foundation of our continuing curiosity—and likely yours as well. While discovering unique, complex, and novel flavors across various coffees is undeniably exciting, we encourage both ourselves and you to expand your tasting experience by exploring a broader range of flavors beyond coffee itself.
Throughout our launch preparation, when sampling numerous coffees, profiles, recipes, and variables, we identified a recurring theme in our questioning: the fundamental value of asking "how does it taste?" If you try a coffee and enjoy its flavor profile, do you purchase it again? When you see a coffee described with tasting notes of red apple—a fruit you particularly enjoy—does that influence your purchasing decision? Or if a roaster offers a coffee processed through an unfamiliar method, promising flavors of pomelo orange, dragon fruit, and papaya—fruits you may never have tasted—would you still take the leap? The truly curious among us embrace the unknown to expand our knowledge. When we encounter unfamiliar flavor descriptions, we see them as invitations to broaden our sensory vocabulary rather than barriers to understanding. Maybe you can relate– After careful deliberation over what feels like a significant decision, you purchase that intriguingly described coffee, even though you don't know much about what the tasting notes are like, and not much about the variety or processing method. After days of tracking updates showing "in transit," your package finally arrives after ten days of anticipation. You eagerly open the package only to find a card recommending: "please rest three weeks for best results."
Your shoulders drop slightly as you check the roast date—twelve days ago. After all this eagerness and excitement, you ask yourself: "Do I really wait another nine days, or do I try it anyway?"
More often than not, curiosity prevails over patience. You proceed with brewing—not out of impatience (though we're occasionally guilty of this too), but out of genuine curiosity. You methodically prepare: measuring your dose, selecting a grind size, heating water, rinsing filter paper, and preparing the coffee bed. Whether following your favorite recipe, dialing in espresso parameters, or using your Fellow Aiden or AeroPress, you're ready to discover what awaits.
Finally, it's time to taste.
"Tropical punch? Like those silver caprisun juice pouches?" you wonder, intrigued and wide-eyed, unable to precisely identify the flavor profile. "Could it be papaya?" Your curiosity leads you to the store to find a ripe, green-yellow hued papaya. You taste it and return to your now-cooled coffee—there's a resemblance you can't yet articulate, but the similarities are undeniable.
Then comes another revelation: you detect green apple—a crisp, bright acidity becoming more pronounced as the coffee cools further. You double-check the tasting notes on the bag; green apple isn't mentioned anywhere. Yet you're almost certain that's what you're experiencing. This moment of personal discovery represents the essence of the coffee journey.
As specialty coffee enthusiasts, consumers, and roasters, we continuously strive to deepen not just our coffee knowledge but our understanding of flavors more broadly. We invite you to join us in this exploration. By tasting, smelling, and exploring various fruits, foods, essences, extracts, and teas, we enhance our sensory capabilities and develop a richer vocabulary for describing our coffee experiences.
These explorations help us as roasters to communicate more effectively about our offerings while fueling your curiosity as a discerning consumer. Together, we continue growing, understanding, and—most importantly—remaining curious about the fascinating world of flavor that extends far beyond the coffee cup itself.
