Hits: 18
Beans: Batavia Cold Drip – Salvadoran España (Bourbon family), Colombian Huila (Caturra Family), Ethiopian Yirgacheffe (Mixed Heirloom).
Shop: Batavia Cold Drip Coffee, web shop, The Netherlands.
Batavia Cold Drip Coffee – Background information.
To many of my readers the Batavia Cold Drip coffee concept is a relatively new idea but as a matter of fact it is hundreds of years old already. It all started in the 1600’s with the Dutch trading companies who traveled the world in search of trade. The Dutch loved their coffee and wanted to bring it along on their journeys to far away lands, but there was a small problem that needed to be solved. Open fire was prohibited on a sea faring vessel and so the Dutch had to think of a way to brew their coffee and keep it drinkable when it was cold. After a while they discovered a cold brew method that they could use. They brought the coffee along on their journeys and the coffee made it’s way to Japan.
The Japanese were intrigued by this coffee and started to experiment with the brewing technique. It did not take them long before they came up with the Cold Drip brewer as we know it. Iced water drips over the coffee grounds in a time span between 6 to 24 hours. The flavors it produced are nothing short of a miracle. Jits Krol and Robert Nijhof rediscovered the flavors of Cold Drip coffee and decided to bring this ancient technique back to life in The Netherlands. Now, a few years later, they are slowly conquering the world with Batavia Cold Drip Coffee.
Batavia Cold Drip Coffee – Opening the Package.
When Batavia Coffee send me the package of the Cold Drip Trio coffee it came in a beautiful carton box with their logo on the lid. Inside the box were the three bottle of Cold Drip with a booklet full of information and recipes.
On the bottle is a label that displays the production process of the Cold Drip coffee which is a nice touch.
Batavia Coffee used filtered iced water that was dripped over the coffee grounds. Over the course of 18 hours all the possible flavors and aroma’s were extracted and eventually bottled. Let’s try this Cold drip…it’s almost a heatwave in The Netherlands at the moment, so I cannot wait any longer!
Batavia Cold Drip Coffee – The Tasting: Yirgacheffe.
When opening the bottle a pungent scent immediately comes out. The aroma of dark chocolate comes forth first and, as my nose adapts to the scent, a fruity aroma mixed with a soft caramelized sugar note mingles. I take out a nice crystal glass and stuff it with ice cubes. I pour the brew in the glass and my mouth already starts to water. I take a sip and slurp oxygen in my mouth. My mouth reacts to the cold of the coffee and I notice a flavor of dark chocolate and a hint of tobacco first. As the coffee warms inside my mouth, it starts to bloom and open up. The dark chocolate and tobacco gets pushed to the side a little and the fruity notes come forth. Passion fruit, melon, berries. It is like a bowl of fruits that are carried by the darker flavors of Dark chocolate and tobacco.
Batavia Cold Drip Coffee – The Tasting: Huila.
Opening the bottle gives off a super sweet sugary scent that reminds me of sweet soy sauce and caramel. The Huila from Colombia is a totally different experience when taking a sip. The citric acidity in this coffee is quite high and stimulates my tongue to the fullest while carrying a milk chocolate scent with brown sugar notes and caramel. As the coffee warms in my mouth it starts to bloom just like the Yirgacheffe. A fruity orange aspect comes forth that gradually changes into a grapefruit bitterness on the lower back of my tongue. The aftertaste lingers quite long and changes over to some more savory nutty flavors. wow!
Batavia Cold Drip Coffee – The Tasting: Salvadoran España.
Opening the bottle of the Salvadoran España is a treat to the nose with the aroma of smoked almonds. Again this is a totally different experience to the nose, one that is more obvious and aromatic than the Yirgacheffe and Huila. As I take a sip of the ice cold brew, the flavors tend to lean towards chocolate and a hint of tobacco. I swirl the coffee in my mouth and gradually the smoked almonds appear once more. Where the Yirgacheffe and Huila kept developing and bringing more flavors to the table, the Salvadoran España sticks to its core: smoke, chocolate and almonds. There is nothing wrong with it and I even think that this brew will do an excellent job at a BBQ or Braai.
Batavia Cold Drip Coffee – The Verdict.
Batavia Coffee’s founders Jits Krol and Robert Nijhof want to bring back the Cold Drip technique and managed to do an excellent job with these three flavors. Especially when it’s hot outside, you don’t think of brewing a pour over or pulling an espresso. You want something refreshing and cold to get you through the hottest part of the day. With the Yirgacheffe, Huila and España, Batavia Coffee produces three very distinct but great brews that will suit to everyone’s needs. The Yirgacheffe comes forth as a fruity brew with dark chocolate, the Huila (my favorite) has so much to offer and keeps developing in your mouth and the España is great after a BBQ. The small bottles are great for one person unless you mix them up as a cocktail making it enough for two. The bigger bottles easily cater two persons, and up to four when using it in a cocktail.
Check out my Facebook page to win a box of this Batavia Cold Drip Coffee Trio! Contest will start soon!