What We Are Brewing | Afficionado Coffee
Specialty coffee spans far beyond the trendy new coffee shop down the road, flaunting coffees from exotic lands and promising flavor notes of honeycomb, stone fruit, or toasted cinnamon. Specialty coffee is a process, one aiming for precision and care, sustainability and equity, resulting in fairness and excellence across the supply chain.
Coffee beans travel the globe, being analyzed and graded with a level of precision not generally seen in other plants. From there they make their way to a roaster that will roast them like an artform, bringing to the surface all of the delicious and delicate flavors appreciated by a trained palate, and ultimately ground up, brewed, and poured into your cup to enjoy. This journey of a coffee bean is likely not what comes to mind as you’re enjoying your latte, but it’s what makes your cup of coffee so unique.
Although coffee equipment is our specialty here at Prima, we too play a part in making sure the coffee you drink is brewed in a way that draws appreciation to all the hard-working people that made the coffee what it is. That’s why we are back with our What We Are Brewing series to highlight some of phenomenal roasters and the amazing things they're doing in the world of specialty coffee. So, like always, we’ll be sharing with you a new roaster, a new coffee, a great recipe and some additional insight into the world of specialty coffee.
In this episode we're higlighting Afficionado, a roaster with operations in New Jersey and Manhattan. Although they are well known as a wholesale supplier and just opened a beautiful storefront in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood, their true mission runs much deeper. Afficionado thrives on their values of cultivation, innovation, and purpose. They are actively forging relationship with farmers across the world, helping to ensure they have the tools and resources needed to thrive. Through this commitment, they’ve helped better the lives of those residing in the beautiful farming communities that provide us with coffee.
Our featured coffee is out of Rwanda where the team at Afficionado recently traveled to meet up with their good friend and business partner Emmanuel Rusatira of Baho Coffee. This coffee, Rwanda Fugi, is a Red Bourbon varietal that has been processed anerobic fermentation style. They have partnered with Emmanuel to ensure farmers receive fair compensation, but also to help develop resources that will postively impact people in the community. Emmanuel's three pillars are culture, people and coffee. He believes, “Our culture shapes us. People are the ones who make it happen. Coffee is the bridge. A good cup of coffee can help us understand each other.”
We brewed this coffee on the Hario V60, a specialty coffee mainstay that has helped produce delicious pour overs for almost two decades. Its 60 degree cone angle and swirling ribs help to provide excellent control over factors like flow rate and contact time. Additionally, they are available in a variety of color, material and size options to meet nearly any need. It has proven to be a tried-and-true addition to both cafes and home brewing setups, continuing to hold the standard of pour over brewing.
According the Afficionado, this beautiful coffee tastes of concord grape jelly, pound cake, and candied lemon. Here at Prima we got the fruity sweetness of the grape jelly and a beautiful acidity. Check out this great recipe the roaster, Peter, suggested! It does not disappoint.
| Roaster: | Afficianado Coffee |
|---|---|
| Coffee: | Rwanda - Fugi |
| Process: | Anaerobic |
| Brewing Device: | Hario V60 |
| Grind: | Medium |
| Dose: | 23 grams |
| Water: | 350 grams at 204°F |
| Time: | 3:15 |
Before you begin brewing, make sure you’ve done all the tedious work like heating the water, grinding the coffee, pre-wetting the filter, and making sure your scale is charged.
- Pour 23 grams of coffee into the Hario V60 and level the grounds. Pour 60 grams to pre-wet the coffee. Allow to bloom for 30 seconds. Don’t forget to swirl.
- Next, pour 70 grams of water and let draw down for 30 seconds
- Your next pour will be 100 grams of water, getting you to a total of 230 grams. Let it draw down for 45 seconds.
- Lastly, pour 120 grams of water at around 1:45, give it a final spin
- It should finish between 3:00 and 3:15
Now time for the taste test! Do you pick up on some of the flavor notes we did? If the coffee is not quite to your liking, try, try again. Afterall, it really is a matter of preference! Keep testing, keep tasting, and keep brewing!
If you’d like to access more exclusive content surrounding Afficionado and other brew guides, make sure to join the Prima Coffee Community!
