We are proud to announce that our Guatemala Finca El Socorro y Annexos just received a 91 from Coffee Review!  This incredible coffee won 4th place in the 2008 Guatemala Cup of Excellence, and one sip will make you understand why.  To celebrate the great review, we are taking $10 off the price of this coffee! Purchase this coffee here! Here is the outstanding review:

PT’s Coffee

Guatemala Finca Socorro y Annexos Cup of Excellence #4

Topeka, Kansas

Reviewed: July 2009

Aroma 8

Acidity 8

Body 8

Flavor 9

Aftertaste 8

Origin: Palencia, Guatemala Department, Guatemala.

Roast (Agtron): (66/91)

OVERALL RATING: 91

Notes: A prize winner in the 2008 Guatemala Cup of Excellence (www.cupofexcellence.org) competition, where as a green (unroasted) coffee it placed fourth out of hundreds of entries, attracting a score of 89.60 from an international jury. This coffee is comprised of the Maracaturra variety of Arabica, a cross between the giant-beaned Maragogipe and Caturra, a dwarf selection of Bourbon. Roasted at PT’s Coffee, where the motto is “without the love, it’s just coffee.” Visit www.ptscoffee.com or call 888-678-JAVA for more information.

Blind assessment: Elegant floral aroma, with fruity hints of mixed berries and stone fruit, bright acidity, lightly syrupy mouthfeel and medium body. The floral tones carry into the cup with tart notes of Meyer lemon and strawberry rounding and sweetening to cherryish chocolate and nut. A mild sweet cocoa note lingers in the long finish softening a touch of astringency.

Who should drink it: Those who enjoy flowers and tart fruit in a lightly roasted prize-winning coffee.

Decaf coffee isn’t a fun subject to talk about.  Whether the coffee is decaffeinated using the Swiss Water Process or through a chemical process, the taste is never quite the same as regular coffee.  This may not matter if you only drink regular coffee, but someday, it might happen to you.  You know what I am talking about.  You walk into the doctor’s office for a regular checkup, and you are told, “You need to cut down on your caffeine.”

For these individuals, we are happy to report that there is hope on the horizon.  Daterra Coffee in Brazil has spent a significant amount of time and money developing a low-caffeine hybrid coffee that does not taste like decaf.  Daterra’s Opus 1 is a boon for anyone who must watch his or her caffeine intake.  It is lush and round with notes of chocolate and a hint of vanilla.  For a limited time, purchase this coffee here for $12.95.  Drink it yourself or share it with a friend!

In the past year, a new PT’s tradition has developed for Friday afternoons. Since Friday afternoons tend to be more relaxed and less busy, we decided to take some time to sit back, grill out and enjoy a beer together. This community building exercise has been a huge boon to everyone here, providing a way to unwind after an intense week of producing some of the best coffee in the world.  If you are ever in the area, feel free to drop by Friday around noon for some great food, and great Blind Tiger beer!

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We are excited to announce that we will soon be roasting an exquisite Colombian coffee from farms in the Cauca department of Colombia. In June, the non-profit organization Grounds for Health held an online coffee auction in which roasters bid for coffee that was donated by coffee producers, importers and exporters. The proceeds from the auction will go towards Grounds for Health’s ongoing efforts to create sustainable, effective cancer screening programs in coffee-producing regions. To date, Grounds for Health has treated over 14,000 women in Tanzania and various Central American countries. We are excited to contribute to this worthy organization, and we look forward to offering this spectacular coffee in the coming months.

Watch a video that explains the work of the Grounds for Health organization.

Peaberry de la Lagunita from Finca Los Planes wowed the judges at Coffee Review for their June article covering Bourbon variety coffee.  It received the second highest score, a 93, even beating out a few spectacular Kenyans.  We have a fairly limited supply of this spectacular coffee, so purchase a bag (or two) here before we run out!  Here is the review:

Blind Assessment: Both Ken (93) and co-cupper Andy Newbom (92) admired the deep, profoundly fruit-toned character of this coffee. “Very sweet, richly but discreetly fruity coffee” for Ken, displaying “butter, honey, nut, aromatic wood, night flowers, a hint of herb.” Andy read more excitement and less discretion in the fruit character, in which (prepare yourself) “a menage a trois of raisins, dates and butterscotch got together with tangerine, clover honey and some lemons and raspberries and threw the sexiest block part ever.” Incidentally, sweetly bright acidity, “round and juicy” (Andy) mouthfeel, and a finish that resolved the profile with profound sweetness and “the slightest hint of savory complexity” (also Andy).

Who should drink it: “Don’t let this mouth party end,” writes co-cupper Andy Newbom, which definitely sounds like a buy recommendation.

PT’s Coffee Roasting Co will be closed Friday, July 3rd. Any orders placed after 9:00 am, July 2nd, will be roasted and shipped on Monday, July 6th.  Have a wonderful 4th of July!