Coterra Coffee Roasters: Passionate Coffee Roasting and a Wealth of Information

Roastery

Feb 15

Coterra is a roastery that first got my attention during World of Coffee Dubai, now that I think of it. Their distinct green packaging instantly caught my eye during the event. This is also their running theme in the roastery based in Umm Ramoul.

They started operations only recently, in 2021. I now know why I haven’t come across them before because I used to frequent the very road they are situated on, a few years ago. I’m glad my friends from Fadbusters discovered them and I didn’t have to decide on our weekend coffee hangout spot for once.

Upon entering the Roastery, which is a very rare sight in Dubai, you will find a couple of gentlemen behind the bar dressed sharply - one in a waist coat and the other in a blazer, tasting and brewing coffee, keeping themselves busy.

I ordered a flat white by default although the barista did try to coax me into a V60 instead. I was firm on the fact that an espresso based drink is what I crave since I can’t make it at home.

This was an Indonesian; spices, vanilla, tobacco with a hint of red fruits to compliment the milk. On another occasion, I have had the Colombia Finca Veracruz, which I highly recommend.

They were brewing espresso on the Dalla Corte Zero. This is the first I have seen in the UAE, in black with refined wood finishing. It had some really interesting preinfusion settings that Dipesh, partner at Coterra, took his time to explain and demonstrate how they use with freshly roasted coffee.

He was also kind enough to invite me and my friends to their regular training and cupping sessions that are open to the public to attend, with a soul purpose of educating the masses in specialty coffee. They have some exciting coffees incoming, so take my word for it, visit them, you won’t be disappointed.

What else caught my attention? A Yemeni Matari from Rose & Cactus, naturally processed, the way it is supposed to be. Think wild tropical fruits, and throw some dark chocolate in there for a sweet finish.

This was complexity that my untrained palette did not deserve. I’m not complaining regardless and I told Dipesh to book a bag for me the next time they roast it.

One conversation that I love to discuss with roasters apart from producers is the science behind water. Like Scott Rao’s article in the 25th edition of Standart, Dipesh expressed his views why filteration and reverse osmosis systems are not always the best solutions for cafes and roasteries.

He clearly knew what he was talking about because his coffee was straight up delicious. There is 98 percent of water in a cup of coffee, hence it is important for you to use high quality water to make your coffee taste better. They use Oasis, which is mineral water locally available in the UAE. Other options for home brewers are Arwa, Al Ain and Masafi.

Next post, I’m brewing their Carbonic Macerated Colombia Quindio from Finca Puerto Alegre.