Penrose (Espresso Blend)

PENROSE TEAM TASTE NOTES (v28)

nougat, almond paste, tobacco, malted chocolate, apple

 

PENROSE SOURCING & INTENTION

Penrose, named after the triangle, is our seasonal espresso blend. We feel the perfect espresso is an impossible goal, but we still strive to create it. Penrose is our ever-updated offering in the quest for the perfect espresso. While the seasonal components will vary throughout the year, it is always (nearly) perfect for your hopper.

Penrose seasonal espresso blend aims to:

• be a reliable and consistent offering
• be delicious with milk and without milk
• maintain seasonality and farm-to-cup traceability
• maintain a stable price point so it can be the main espresso on our bar and the bars of many of our wholesale partners
• be easy to dial-in on an espresso grinder

Penrose also does well in the brewer – look for notes of lasting sweetness and heavy body, with a subdued acidity.

 

SOURCING NOTES (v28)

Our approach to this iteration is old and new. We maintain our intention to find a balanced espresso that is great by itself and with milk. This time around, what’s new is how we’re approaching the coffees. Typically, we use a large portion of a very balanced and round washed coffee that isn’t too aggressively acidic. We add depth with a small amount of natural process coffee that is aggressive in fruity notes and texture. The result = Penrose. This year, we’re taking cues from our Penrose blends of past to make some tweaks. The large portion of v28 will be a washed coffee from our partners at Fairfield in Colombia. This “Fronterras del Cauca” is a blend from many small farmers in the El Tambo, Cauca area. We’ve found these high-grown lots often are brighter and more zippy than many of the coffees we use as a Penrose base. So, to balance this out a bit better, we’re using a natural Brazil from Fazenda Caixtas in Brazil to round it out. This coffee has that texture we’re after, but not as intense of a fruitiness as the naturals from Ethiopia or Honduras we often use.