What I’m Brewing: Guatemala Huehuetenango by Hermoso Coffee Roasters
Guatemala Huehuetenango by Hermoso Coffee Roasters
Roast Level: Medium
Origin: Guatemala
Region: Huehuetenango
Farm: El Injerto
Process: Natural
Altitude: 1,710 masl
Varietal: Geisha Rubi Malawi
Taste notes: Creamy, Pomegranate, Honey, Plums.
There’s no shortage of local roasters in the UAE, there are many types of roasteries but my personal preference is based in a warehouse with a cafe setting. Last month, I visited Hermoso Coffee Roasters based in Abu Dhabi.
“Hermoso” means beautiful and that is exactly what I thought of their Guatemala Geisha, more on that later. I couldn’t help but ogle the Linea Mini on the counter, beautiful in black, as I was walking into the roastery. Just the way I imagine mine on my counter, God willing one day.
The coffee I tasted here was brewed by the one and only, Luisa, who you might remember placing third at the The Barn V60 Brew Down. We started off with the first course: espresso. This had a wonderful body with prominent notes of candied cinnamon and spice.
Second course: milk based. Luisa did a great job on the Piccolo, extra points the way the milk was steamed. This was also the Costa Rica, and with milk, it elevates the drinking experience. I made a note to myself that I need to get back to drinking Piccolos more often.
Now to get down to business, it was now time for the pour over course. Luisa’s choice of brewer was the Gem Series Dripper by Stefanos Domatiotis. This was my first time drinking out of this diamond shaped brewer, and I honestly can’t complain.
I could see Luisa employing basic brewing techniques. If there’s anything I learnt that day, it’s to keep things simple. Pour slow and be present, that’s her mantra. We tried four different origins on the pour over: Colombia, Brazil, Guatemala and Ethiopia. The differences between them were very noticeable and only one was coming home with me that day.
I preferred the Brazil over the Colombia surprisingly. This is the third Brazil I have tried the past month on pour over which I have really enjoyed. The Guatemala was a Geisha and Ethiopia was a Cup of Excellence. The Geisha was the overall winner for the complexity and notes of plums and cherries with a hint of Jasmine which I quite enjoyed.
The Ethiopia was roasted in May. This left me with scratching my head because it should have gone stale by now. Is it the roasting or the fact that it’s a cup of excellence. The credit might even go to Shah for brewing it with laser sharp focus and extracting the best bits out of the beans. I strongly think it might be a combination of all three.
Their head roaster is from Sweden, the name might right a bell, it’s Costas of Sweden. He has been working in this industry since the 90’s. He is a roaster, barista and also an innovator when it comes to barista tools. There was a pretty Loring, 15 kg capacity finished in silver.
Hermoso Coffee Roasters
I was also glad I got to meet with Osama, who is one the founders of Hermoso. He has a unique vision of capturing the UAE market focusing on precision and quality. You can also try their coffee in KawFee, this is a Specialty cafe based in Muwielah - Sharjah. I have tried the Ethiopian on filter here.
Luisa was kind enough to share her brew recipe:
Coffee: 20g
Water: 300g
Temperature: 88 Degrees C
Ratio: 1:15
Total Brew Time: 2 minutes 30 seconds
Three pours in total. Pour 60g of water, bloom for 30 seconds. The next two pours will be 120g of water each. Finish the first pour at 1 minute 10 seconds and second pour at the two minute 30 seconds mark. Simple and effective.
