Mantiqueira Collective #1 Decaf

We've always had the intention of seasonal rotation between Ethiopian and Colombian sugarcane decaf - but we got a little out of step with the seasons, so we're shaking it up and resetting back to schedule with this super interesting and surprisingly delightful Brazilian EA - our first ever! We spotted it on the Nordic offer list when it first appeared, snagged a samp and were quite happily delighted. We've always been big fans of coffees from the Mantiqueira de Minas region - with higher altitude and oft smaller farms than some of the other regions in Brazil, the quality levels are broadly pretty high; and it's only been a matter of time till we featured coffee from this region. Starting with a good solid high quality Brazil base, the EA decaf process tends to impart a slightly generic "taste of process" tropical acidity - but with the Brazil profile, it's very well received, and we find it's lead to a surprisingly (gently) fruity espresso when black. That fruity note gets a little washed out in milk, reverting to a really sweet peanut butter + milk choc cup - just like Reece's Brew Guide: Best Brewed with: Espresso, but can make a chunky filter Medium Roaster Influence: A low and slow approach is always our way to go for Brazil espresso - and it's no less the same for our decaf. Much longer stretched development but without a high end temp (so a very carefully managed rate-of-rise) leads a sweet and sticky dense cup. Best Rested: 2+ weeks Filter: We recommend a ratio of 65g/L and 90°C water Espresso: 18g in, 40g out, 28-32s for a classic style of espresso. We're tasting: Very rich and gently fruity in the cup with black espresso - we're finding yellow plum, dried apple, dried fig and pomegranate molasses, sitting on a rich base of biscuit + chocolate + nuts + a gooeyness that reminds us of Rocky road. In Milk, the fruity note is rounded off, and we think it tastes like peanut butter cups.