Do you have Espresso beans? It depends on what you mean.

We are often asked, "Do you have espresso beans?" or "I'm looking for an espresso roast." Any coffee varietal and any coffee roast profile(light to dark, city roast to French Roast) can be a great espresso if the following conditions are met: The coffee beans are fresh; the coffee is freshly ground prior to tamping that allows the coffee to be extracted between 25-30 seconds; the coffee is tamped down with about 30lbs. of pressure; the espresso machine heats the water to the proper temperature for that particular bean; 9 bars of water pressure is pushed through the puck of finely ground espresso; the portafilters and group heads are properly cleaned and finally, the espresso coffee produced has a tremendous aroma coming from its impressive crema, there is a balanced flavor profile with the proper degree of complexity, depth, mouthfeel, and interesting flavor notes.

Therefore, the best question to ask is: "What coffee would you recommend for espresso?"

Nicaragua and Coffee Mathematics

The 32lbs. of Nicaragua Maragogype Las Nubes (the Clouds) from the Andrea Castro farm from the Matagalpa region will arrive tomorrow!

Why is this coffee so special? There are a plethora of reasons. When we cupped the coffee, we tasted notes of banana, peach, chocolate, marzipan, salsa, and much more. In short, it was like manna falling from the heavens. We also bought the entire crop of 38 lbs. The Andrea Costra farm is owned by women; the coffee is picked and sorted by women. The coffee is sun-dried or dry-processed/natural processed which helps bring out the crazy fruity notes . The coffee is strictly high grown (SHG) which means that it is grown above 1200 meters above sea level. It takes high grown coffee a longer time to develop, therefore increasing the tremendous flavor. Strictly high grown coffee beans and extremely fertile soil is a great formula for amazing coffee.

Why were women chosen to be the president, vice-president, secretary, and treasurer of the Las Nubes Cooperative? They were believed to be more prudent! My 38 lbs. was so precious that they did not use machines to sort out the bad coffee beans, they didn't want the good coffee to be damaged.

Why did Andrea Castro have such a small crop of 38 lbs? Some coffee farmers are so poor that they cannot afford fertilizer for their crops. The lack of fertilizer causes farmers to produce lower yields. Andrea Castro works on other farms to help support her family and to help sustain her own farm. The partnership with Gold Mountain Coffee Roasters, Las Nubes, and Chazzano Coffee Roasters is allowing Andrea and other coop members to receive the highest return on their coffee. Chazzano Coffee is hoping to continue to help Andrea and other farmers of this coffee cooperative produce higher yields and bring more money home to their families.

Roasting Mathematics:

Did you know that every pound of coffee that we roast shrinks 20%? I need to roast about 1.2 lbs. of coffee to produce 1lb. of coffee. When I roast 132lbs. of coffee from those huge jute bags, it produces only 106 lbs. of roasted coffee. Therefore, the 32 lbs. of green beans from the Nicaragua Maragogype Las Nubes Andrea Castro farm will produce, after roasting, only 25.6 lbs. of roasted coffee!

Nicaragua Maragogype Las Nubes (Cooperative) Andrea Castro (farm) Matagalpa Region:

$40/lb.

Large cup of this coffee: $4.50

Small cup of this coffee: $3.25

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Brewing Temperatures

Have you ever had an incredible cup of coffee at Chazzano Coffee Roasters, brought some beans home or to the office, opened the coffee bag, were astounded by the fantastic fragrance, ground it fresh, brewed it, and...it wasn't as fantastic as the coffee that you had at the cafe? Well, it could be your brewing temperature.

French press, drip, pourover, and vacuum syphon must all be brewed within the sweet spot of coffee brewing, between 195-205 degrees fahrenheit. If it's below 195 degrees, you will experience an under-extracted brew, and above 205 (near boiling), you'll experience an over-extracted brew.

Here are some hints to brew the best cup of coffee. For french press coffee, boil water and wait 30 seconds for the temperature to reach 200-205 degrees. For the usual cheap drip brewers, use this secret method. After you place the ground coffee in the brew basket, fully wet the grounds in the basket with hot water. This trick will help the coffee "bloom" and begin the flavor extraction process. When you turn the machine on and brew the coffee, the grounds will already have a head start. This will mitigate the usual lower brewing temperatures that make drip brewers my least favorite method of coffee brewing. In addition, make sure that the coffee is finely ground for the drip brewer.

Finally, enjoy the process. Enjoy life. Drink fantastic coffee.

Guatemalan Trio

We (Frank, Klaire, and Talia) just cupped three coffees right now:

1. Guatemala FTO

2. Guatemala COMAL

3. Guatemala Finca Sabanetas

Guatemala FTO: This has tremendous acidity, creamy and milky mouthfeel, oatmeal and maple sweetness. When it cools down, there is an explosion of chocolate that takes over the fragrance and flavor.

Guatemala COMAL: This is a limited edition coffee that is a huge favorite at Chazzano Coffee. There is a pronounced honey sweetness, oak-like woodiness, chocolate bark, chocolate mousse smoothness. This is a crazy bright coffee where there is a great amount of dancing on your tongue.

Guatemala Finca Sabanetas: The fragrance while still hot has every winter spice imaginable: cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg. There is low acidity (brightness) in this Guatemalan. When it cools it you'll experience malted milk balls and licorice notes.

I just cupped the Guatemala FTO as an iced pourover. It has a Kahlua and milk syrupy sweetness. We're going to try a 12-hour Cold Brew of the Guatemala. Come in and try it tomorrow.

We're One Year Old!

I'm roasting Costa Rica Tarrazu Santa Laura now. It's truly bringing a tear to my eyes, because it is the first coffee that I roasted 10 years ago. My wonderful mother-in-law always sends a nice check every October in honor of my birthday. Ten years ago, with that act of lovingkindness, I bought a small Fresh Roast Plus from thecoffeeproject.com, a great home roaster's site. After roasting a small 2-3 oz. portion of green coffee beans, I immediately ground them for French Press and tasted a coffee that was syrupy, chocolaty, and nutty. It was the best coffee ever-just like a fine glass of wine. Thus began my journey and my passion for coffee roasting.

I want to thank you, our loyal customers, for helping us to reach this one year anniversary. There is a blessing that Jews say when we reach a special moment in our lives - Praised are You, L-rd, our G-d, King of the Universe, who gives us life, who sustains us, and brings us to this (special) time.

Please come in today and tomorrow and say hello. If you find the coupon on the website, print it out, and we'll take 50% off of all of your purchases on Thursday and Friday (21 and 22). www.chazzanocoffee.com

Thank you,

Frank

New "Frank's Late Night Special Espresso Blend"

We are introducing a new Espresso Blend that we like to call "Frank's Late Night Special Espresso Blend." "Late Night Special" is appropriate because anyone who knows me well, knows that drinking a few shots of espresso at midnight has no negative effect on my sleeping habits. This is an interesting blend of some awesome single origin coffees from Indonesia, Brazil, and India. I love cupping coffee and experiencing the surprise and wonder that comes from blending coffees with their own specific taste profiles. With this new Espresso Blend, you will enjoy a complex palate of dark chocolate and blueberries. Of course, there are many single origin coffees that are wonderful all by themselves as espresso. My favorites include- Mexico Chiapas and Sumatra Mandheling.

Chazzano Carefree Coffee Club has arrived

The Chazzano Carefree Coffee Club is here!

Every month, we will automatically ship fresh, delicious, expertly roasted Chazzano coffee to your door. Just tell us how many pounds, and if you prefer a specific coffee or would rather we surprise you, you will always have delicious Chazzano coffee on hand. Never again will you face that moment when you realize that you have just scooped out the last bit of coffee in the bag and may settle for someone else's coffee. With the Chazzano Carefree Coffee Club, there will always be more of your favorite, "singing good" coffee.

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