Category: Green Beans > Indonesian & Asian

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Sumatra Iskandar Triple-Pick

Sweet Maria's Coffee

Iskandar is another coffee mill from the Lake Tawar region of Sumatra. Lake Tawar is in the North-central highlands of Medan-Aceh. The main town of Takengon is located on the shores of beautiful Lake Tawar, and it is a great base camp for exploring the greater Gayo region. Surprisingly, this coffee is handled and distributed exclusively by Hacienda La Minita, who acts as advisors to the farmers and mill in processing this coffee and preparing of this semi-washed coffee, and in their exacting preparation methods. The result is one of the most beautiful, large-bean Sumatras we have ever stocked and is Triple hand-picked after drying to remove defects. But more important than the appearance of the green coffee is, of course, the cup quality. The Iskandar has less earthiness and mustiness than the Grade 1 Mandheling, a more refined and lightly fruited cup overall. The preparation is even cleaner than the Lake Tawar we had earlier this year and the cup is cleaner too. The fragrance is caramel and milk chocolate, with just a bit of natural huskiness, while the wet aromatics turn sharply pungent; dark rye bread tones and herby hints. There's a bit of plum in the aromas too. The aromatics overall of are a greater intensity than the Mandheling and Lintong coffees. There are Sumatra coffees that are all bass note, that completely miss the front of your palate and tongue and pass to the back of your mouth. Iskandar is different than this, partly because it actually has some degree of balance in the cup, and mild acidity (grown at higher elevations than other Sumatras). It has a very thick mouthfeel, a kind of butterscotch sweetness that ends with more of a bittersweet, and there are dominant herby sage and basil flavors in the cup at the Full City roast I prefer (right at the cusp of 2nd crack). Allow the coffee to rest after roasting for min. 24 hours to enjoy the body in this coffee.

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For more information on this product, visit Sweet Maria's Coffee's website.