Review #58: Declination Roasting Company

Name of Roaster: Declination Roasting Company Location of Roaster (City, State, Country): Soldotna, AK

Name of Roast: Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Kochere Type of Roast (Light, Medium, Dark): Medium/Dark Origin of Beans: Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia Price: $12 (8 oz.) Brewing Method (Drip, Chemex, AeroPress, etc.): Chemex Time Between Purchase and Brewing (Ballpark is fine): Twenty-One Days Aroma: Opening the bag, we noted deep dark chocolate, devil's food cake, cherry coulis, a slight licorice, and chocolate ganache. The nose on the grind was similar, if slightly brighter with respect to the fruit, lessening the dark chocolate and leaning more to a mid-percentage chocolate. A touch of orange marmalade also showed. On the pour, we found vanilla bean, caramelizing white cane sugar, and fresh light brown sugar.

Flavor Profile: The coffee had a high entry that hit the roof of the mouth first before taking up residence on the front half of the tongue. Medium in body, the first flavor is a surprising note of cream, filling the palate, followed by the roast note. Way beneath the cream you catch a glimmer of fruit - possibly wild strawberry, cranberry, and orange - but it almost immediately dissipates. The finish is slightly bitter, fixating upon the roast note. The sides of the tongue pick up a touch of acidity, with a sharp lime that appears and fades quickly, then lemon peel. Aromatics are of dark roast coffee with cream.

Overall Impression (What did you think of it? Anything else we should know?): This was an interesting coffee that was unlike any we had previously tried, given that the dominant note was that of pure cream, as though you had already added milk to your coffee. The coffee itself was unevenly roasted, resulting in a mix of dark and medium roast beans, which may have affected the flavor. The mixed roast may also have impacted the bloom, which was quite large. Mixing the coffee with milk resulted in the coffee taking on the flavor profile of a baked good, an unexpected but delicious result. This is a coffee that calls for pairing or mixing with milk as opposed to drinking on its own. That stated, we applaud Declination for bring craft roasting to Soldotna, Alaska, and strongly encourage folks who find themselves in Declination's neck of the woods to give this specialty roaster their support. Final Score (1-10, with 10 being the best cup of coffee in your life): 6.7 Where to Buy: Declination Roasting Company Looking to do a review of your own? Hop over to the Community and get to it!