We have been making many changes to The Coffeevine over the past few weeks and months and still have a long way to go before we’re even close to where we want to be, but today we’re happy to share another instalment of one of our new initiatives: The barista diaries.
Previously, we published a summary brew guide for each coffee box edition that we shipped using the recipes provided by the roasters. From now on, in addition to the recipes provided by the roasters, we will take our monthly selection of coffees to three different baristas every month and ask them to brew the coffees for us. The result will be a fresh take on each one of our delicious coffees from people who have a deep understanding and love of coffee.
Today, we are introducing our guest barista Yessika Pacheco from Santa Kafeina in Madrid who was super keen to discover this beautiful Kenyan coffee, roasted by Stow Coffee Roasters for our recently shipped [2/18] coffee box.
Basic setup:
As in any good kitchen or bar, you want to be sure to have a few key items at your disposal that will aid you in preparing a delicious cup of coffee.
These include:
- Scales (with or without timer)
- A good quality burr grinder such as the Comandante Grinder
- Your favourite brew method (Kalita Wave, V60, Aeropress etc)
- A clean vessel for brewing and decanting
- A timer (can be on your phone)
- Filtered water
- A pouring kettle but a regular kettle will also do, however it requires more precision
When working with whole beans, it’s crucial to make sure to always freshly grind your coffee just before preparation because it quickly loses its aroma and old coffee ends up tasting stale and hollow.
Now, ready? Let’s brew!
Santa Kafeina is one of Madrid’s friendliest and cosiest specialty coffee bars and they recently moved a few doors down from their previous location. Founder Javier Castillejo and his partner Yessika regularly feature guest coffees from all over Europe, one of the only local cafés to do so. When I pulled out the bag of Stow’s Kenya, AA Thuti, she immediately reached out to have a look and a smell. “Que rico,” she said.
She ground 20g of the coffee medium-fine, took another smell as if to doublecheck that this coffee is indeed delicious, and then she proceeded to load her V60. The bloom was done with 40g of freshly boiled water at 94° for 40 seconds before she resumed her pour to add the remaining 260g of water.
After 2:40 minutes it was all over and Yessika removed the V60, swivelled the coffee around in the server a few times before pouring herself, Javier and me a cup so we could taste the results. “Oh I love this coffee,” she exclaimed in Spanish. “It’s so clean – pause – very nice acidity and – pause – notes of currants and green apple.”
Yessika’s recipe for filter:
V60: 20g of freshly ground coffee (medium-fine). Bloom with 40g of filtered water at 94° for 40 seconds, then pour in one continuous pour until you reach 300g. Total brew time: 2:40 minutes.
Stow’s recipe for filter:
V60: 20g of coffee ground medium. Bloom with 30g of filtered water at 93° for 40 seconds, then pour in one continuous pour until you reach 300g.
Stow’s recipe for espresso:
18g of coffee ground fine. Extraction time: 27-29 seconds. Yield: 36-38g.
Did you also receive this coffee from our box? Add your recipe below and let others know how you like to prepare this stunning coffee from Stow Coffee Roasters.
