Tastes of an “Odyssey”

By far one of the most fun experiences during my tenure running Bar Nine was the “Odyssey” Home Subscription we launched. Originally called Bar Nine : Home and launching in 2016, Odyssey was a coffee experience that would feature a new coffee every two weeks, each carefully curated, profiled, and shared with our community - as well as often featured on bar for Pour Overs. I would write a card for each shipment, detailing either the story of the coffee or sharing fun educational content. I was so thrilled when Bill Addison at the LA Times featured this subscription in the LA Times 2021 Holiday Gift Guide that focused on supporting Local Businesses.

Here are a few of my favorite shipments from the past few years and their accompanying stories:

Dumerso (Natural) - October 2021

Everyone’s journey in specialty coffee is different. Whether an avid fan, a working barista, green buyer, roaster, or anything in between, we all have an individual view of why we love this seasonal fruit and its seeds so much.

Despite the individuality of each of our experiences, there’s often a singular moment that engages something in our brains when we realize there can be a whole world to discover in coffee. The fermentation and region of coffee most associated with this type of experience is a Natural from Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia. For many (us included), it’s the first coffee we tasted where we were able to discern a flavor note, often presenting as “Oooh! Blueberry!” We’ve tasted MANY beautiful Naturals from Yirgacheffe, and this 2021 harvest of Dumerso is as good as it gets.

The classic presentation of berries, lemon, and honey is on display in a pure and memorable way. Like a fine wine, it opens over time and is supremely elegant in its complexity, acidity, and body. We often liken the tastes of coffees from Yirgacheffe as being similar to wines from Burgundy or anything with a Pinot Noir grape - it really does have a similar complexion. It is refined and gorgeous, the type of cup we could drink every day.

Compared to last year’s harvest, it is even cleaner and more defined, with effervescent grape soda and bergamot florals. This cupped as high as many more expensive micro-lots did for us, and will be a main menu selection in the future. From the evenness of the green coffee and therefore its roasting, it is easy to get great extractions many different ways. Try something new and have fun with this one, we certainly are!

“Thermic” - January 2022

Well, this is truly an Odyssey in and of itself. Over the years we’ve had a few coffees that have challenged pre-conceived notions on what is possible with a taste experience. Usually this has come in the form of a Gesha or some type of unique processing applied to an expensive cultivar, far out of reach for most consumers. Our goal has always been to deliver these tastes at price points anyone can afford. A few years ago, we had a hot-fermentation Gesha called Baru that met this criteria, one that was produced “at-volume” by our friends at Ninety Plus Gesha Estates at a price-point that was available to everyone. For the first time since then, we have a release that meets (and maybe exceeds) the “bar” that Baru set.

We will be releasing this soon, but as an Odyssey subscriber, you’re getting the first taste. This is “Thermic,” a blend conceptualized to pair 2 distinct and unique hot fermentation coffees to deliver something totally out of this world. The blend consists of

87.5% Cordillera de Fuego, Tarrazu, Costa Rica, featuring a “Termico” Honey Process

12.5% La Chiquita Tabi, Mandarin, Colombia, featuring an Anaerobic Natural Hot Fermentation in Mandarin Rum Barrels

Quite simply, “Thermic” is an exploration of the application of heat in fermentation. It deepens, widens, and intensifies. From perfumed aromatics to a deeper sweetness, it is a wild and very fun ride. On our table, we’re tasting Mandarin Orange, Cherry Cola, Deep Spice, Mulberry, and Pink Peppercorn with a juicy, effervescent finish. This is one of the more interesting and exciting releases we’ve had the pleasure to share. Have fun!

Yirong Farm, Yunnan - February 2022

For this shipment of Odyssey, we are taking a journey to the producing region of Yunnan, China. This is our first time releasing a coffee from Yunnan - it's such a fun surprise to be tasting a coffee of this caliber from such an unexpected place! While traditionally known for centuries of tea production and consumption, cultivation of coffee in China started in large part in the late 1980's and has grown steadily since. While to-date there has been more Robusta and other disease-resistant crops, there has also been an increase in Specialty production that has grown steadily.

The cultivar of this coffee is Catimor, an Arabica variety that has its genetic roots in Robusta, which helps lend to its versatility in planting, growing, and harvesting while still being vibrant and representative of great tastes in the world of specialty. The Yirong Farm has been a family-run operation since 1987. Yirong is a Washed coffee, certified Organic, and bridges tastes between the earthier expressions oft-found in Indonesian coffees with the sweetness reminiscent of a lot of Central American profiles.

In the cup, we are tasting some beautiful spice (that lingers as a subtle clove) with malic and tartaric acidities. From tamarind and tart cherry to clear apple, there are some fun fruited tastes occurring, all the while being extremely approachable for any palate. There is a distinct nuttiness with the pleasing bittersweet tastes of cacao nib. We are exploring this coffee and producing region in our brewing as much as you, so feel free to have fun and try some new things with it. If you have an opportunity to try this as Espresso we think it will delight!

Cafe Bio Project, Fazenda Camocim - June 2022

As coffee enthusiasts, we thrive when we are able to expand our minds experiencing the vast tastes of different coffee producing regions, cultivars, processes, and methods of brewing. With that, we’re proud to bring you another coffee from Fazenda Camocim, located in Espirito Santo, Brazil. This farm was purchased by Oliver Araujo in 1962, a pioneer producer of organic coffees in the region. Before coffee was grown organically on the farm, the soil had to recover and the trees replanted to begin full production many years later. Since its conception, Fazenda Camocim has implemented holistic approaches to improve the consistency and quality of the raw coffees, testing different coffee varieties, fermentation techniques, and cultivation practices. Last month for our Odyssey subscription, we roasted a coffee from this farm that was processed using the Honey method. It’s such a treat to be able to present an entirely different flavor profile with this Natural process version that was harvested and produced simultaneously.

Yellow Icatu is the cultivar of this coffee, which was developed in Brazil by the Campinas Agronomic Institute (IAC) in the 1970s, crossing Red Icatu with either Yellow Bourbon or Yellow Mundo Novo. Icatu cultivars are high-yielding plants originally developed for crop-resistance to disease. This is part of the delight of experiencing a cup with truly impressive complexity.

Coupled with its Natural Process, we are presented with a juicy, sweet, and full-bodied cup that evokes red fruits like strawberry, grape, and pomegranate throughout. The body is like a creamy chocolate truffle which, when cool, turns vibrant with a striking sweetness that to us tastes of Madagascar Vanilla, juicy peach, with a lingering finish of walnut and black licorice.

We suggest brewing this coffee at a temperature range of 200 - 202 Fahrenheit to bring out its wild side. We hope to bring your day some joy with this experience, happy brewing!

“Flora” - October 2022

Ever since starting Bar Nine, our aim has been to continually improve, find new ways to share our passion for coffee, and deliver memorable taste experiences that resonate with our guest, home, or pro user. It is with this in mind that we have taken much of the last year working to define internally a simple question: if we could distill our experiences and appreciation for coffee into 3 distinct taste profiles, what would they be? And diving deeper, could we do so in a way where we could move away from tasting notes as a primary means of describing the enjoyment of a coffee? While we love refining our palates, tasting notes are inherently subjective and are impacted by a myriad of factors, from the specific water used in brewing, the temperature the coffee was brewed at, how far off roast the coffee is, how far off harvest the green is, etc. Coffee is a seasonal fruit that evolves over its lifespan of enjoyment, so we would like to embody that better in how we structure our menu.

The first of these 3 new profiles we're excited to share with you is FLORA, which will always be a seasonal single origin that expresses vibrancy and highlights floral aromatics. These are coffees that dazzle in their fragrance, open dynamically as they cool, and delight the most avid appreciator of fine specialty coffee.

The first coffee selected and roasted for this profile is a Certified Organic and Direct Trade selection from Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia. This is Idido, a Washed iteration of it, produced by our longtime producing partners and friends Ashenafi Argaw and Steve Holt. It is a beautiful cup and is wild in its presentation, reminding us of higher priced Gesha variety selections in-the-cup. A lot of energy (more convective than conductive) was applied to this coffee during the roast to help really define its memorable acidity. Its final roast degree is a hair lighter than some of our other selections, so don't be afraid to fine up your grind or brew at hotter temperatures to extract everything wonderful this coffee has to offer. Floral bombs await!