Coffee is like a liquid hug for your brain.
So my brain was feeling very loved indeed when it (and the rest of me) was invited to be Campos Coffee's guest taster this month, for some single origin beans from Papua New Guinea's Barioda Estate.
I was lucky enough to try these special beans before they hit the shelves, and I also got schooled on what it takes to make a macchiato more moreish.
Does this grind really deserve its own 30 days of fame? Let's find out.
So my brain was feeling very loved indeed when it (and the rest of me) was invited to be Campos Coffee's guest taster this month, for some single origin beans from Papua New Guinea's Barioda Estate.
I was lucky enough to try these special beans before they hit the shelves, and I also got schooled on what it takes to make a macchiato more moreish.
Does this grind really deserve its own 30 days of fame? Let's find out.
I don't normally start with the verdict, but coffee has made me live life on the edge! Below are some notes which you may spot at your local Campos cafe.
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My exclusive coffee cupping experience was lead by Campos Queensland Director, John Ronchi.
John did really well in translating my wine tasting experience into the world of coffee so I could understand what I was getting into. Flavours change over time, terroir is important, and you can spit into a bucket if you don't want to get drunk.
Hang on, coffee doesn't get you drunk. I need to look at my notes again...
John did really well in translating my wine tasting experience into the world of coffee so I could understand what I was getting into. Flavours change over time, terroir is important, and you can spit into a bucket if you don't want to get drunk.
Hang on, coffee doesn't get you drunk. I need to look at my notes again...
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Before we got to the special beans themselves, I was given a quick tour of the facilities where green beans become that rich, earthy brown colour of roasted coffee that so many of us know so well, and rely upon to avoid divorce every morning.
There are so many extremely thoughtful touches throughout the process of getting the humble coffee bean to the perfect roast that I suddenly appreciated what effort was required to made an artisanal cup of coffee.
Shipping select beans from their source in special bags and roasting them at the perfect temperature (which is monitored to the nth degree) are just two ways to ensure we get to drink highly optimal cups of coffee.
There are so many extremely thoughtful touches throughout the process of getting the humble coffee bean to the perfect roast that I suddenly appreciated what effort was required to made an artisanal cup of coffee.
Shipping select beans from their source in special bags and roasting them at the perfect temperature (which is monitored to the nth degree) are just two ways to ensure we get to drink highly optimal cups of coffee.
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We then got to the tasting room to try out September's special Barioda Estate coffee.
John very patiently guided me through the process of a cupping session, which involves sucking coffee off a tablespoon quickly at top slurping decibel. This aerated the coffee to bring out all of the hidden flavour nuances. If you see me doing this down at the local cafe, you'll know I'm just checking for hints of hibiscus.
On the nose, I was definitely hit with scents of hazelnut, which is pretty up there in terms of my favourite nut hierarchy (peanuts be gone with you).
We then tasted the coffee at numerous times over the space of 30 minutes and the range of flavours in this ever evolving drink was really amazing. On first sip there were lovely dark chocolatey tastes which then gave way to a more fruity cherry flavour before finally exposing slightly savoury tastes of thyme and caraway seeds.
For anyone looking at that description with a quizzical face, I'm happy to admit that I don't think about all of these things necessarily when it's 6am and our coffee machine has just poured me a cup of anti-cranky-pants. But I do always know when I like a certain coffee and when I don't. It's all of these taste and smell and balance nuances that come together to create said really good cup of coffee.
I have to say that stopping to really think about the flavours in this little cup of goodness was a wonderful way to experience a bit of mindfulness and living in the present moment, and that's something I have tried to carry through to my first sip of coffee in the mornings.
I'm not quite at master zen level, but I'm getting there. Oprah would be proud.
John very patiently guided me through the process of a cupping session, which involves sucking coffee off a tablespoon quickly at top slurping decibel. This aerated the coffee to bring out all of the hidden flavour nuances. If you see me doing this down at the local cafe, you'll know I'm just checking for hints of hibiscus.
On the nose, I was definitely hit with scents of hazelnut, which is pretty up there in terms of my favourite nut hierarchy (peanuts be gone with you).
We then tasted the coffee at numerous times over the space of 30 minutes and the range of flavours in this ever evolving drink was really amazing. On first sip there were lovely dark chocolatey tastes which then gave way to a more fruity cherry flavour before finally exposing slightly savoury tastes of thyme and caraway seeds.
For anyone looking at that description with a quizzical face, I'm happy to admit that I don't think about all of these things necessarily when it's 6am and our coffee machine has just poured me a cup of anti-cranky-pants. But I do always know when I like a certain coffee and when I don't. It's all of these taste and smell and balance nuances that come together to create said really good cup of coffee.
I have to say that stopping to really think about the flavours in this little cup of goodness was a wonderful way to experience a bit of mindfulness and living in the present moment, and that's something I have tried to carry through to my first sip of coffee in the mornings.
I'm not quite at master zen level, but I'm getting there. Oprah would be proud.
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In an interesting experiment, I tasted the September bean against a standard supermarket coffee and the difference wasn't even as different as chalk and cheese. It was chalk and a talking Irish sheepdog with elbows.
It was very different.
By comparison, the supermarket coffee smelt like cardboard and tasted like smoke. To be honest, it was like what you have to drink when you're on a road trip and have no option but to pull into a McCafe. It was a no brainier that the care and effort put into the Campos beans paid off massively.
Apart from the taste, there's another reason I love this month's coffee of the month. Campos teamed up with the producers of the Barioda Estate to build a school for 68 kids at the estate itself, which gave back to the community in a direct way.
This genuinely makes me enjoy my Campos flat whites even more than I already did.
It was very different.
By comparison, the supermarket coffee smelt like cardboard and tasted like smoke. To be honest, it was like what you have to drink when you're on a road trip and have no option but to pull into a McCafe. It was a no brainier that the care and effort put into the Campos beans paid off massively.
Apart from the taste, there's another reason I love this month's coffee of the month. Campos teamed up with the producers of the Barioda Estate to build a school for 68 kids at the estate itself, which gave back to the community in a direct way.
This genuinely makes me enjoy my Campos flat whites even more than I already did.
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Campos' Barioda Estate beans have everything I look for in a coffee: organic, ethical, and a richly complex but balanced taste.
I'd love to hear anyone else's thoughts though. If you pop into Campos and try these beans, come back and espresso your thoughts in the comments below!
I'd love to hear anyone else's thoughts though. If you pop into Campos and try these beans, come back and espresso your thoughts in the comments below!
