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Beans: Sun Jaroen, Caturra Yellow, Caturra Red, Washed, Nan, Thailand.
Shop: Thai Specialty Coffee, webshop, The Netherlands.
Thai specialty Coffee: background information.
The story of Thai Specialty Coffee started back in 2004, when owner Martin went to Thailand for the first time. Falling in love with the people, the culture and their way of living, Martin decided to try to move to Thailand and start a coffeeshop in 2008. Unfortunately this seemed a bridge too far and Martin realised that he needed to learn the language and all about the culture before opening a business there.
Meanwhile, Martin started a franchise coffeeshop in The Netherlands but soon noticed how the quality of the coffee wasn’t up to his standards.
In 2018 Martin decided he wanted to go back to Thailand again, this time to seek out quality coffee to use for his own business: Thai Specialty Coffee.
Sun Jaroen is a village that is located in the Nan province in Thailand. Around 120 families grow coffee but only the Lertwarayuth family helps growing this particular coffee. This farm is situated at the highest part of the mountain and is run by the whole family. one part of the family is responsible for growing and fertilising the coffee while the other part maintains the farm, selects the cherries. The son of the head of the family is responsible for innovating on the processing techniques. This particular coffee consists out of red and yellow Caturra and is grown at an altitude of 1540 meters above sea level.
Opening the package:
Thai Specialty Coffee uses a beige coloured package that has a ziplock and degassing valve to keep the coffee as fresh as possible. The front has a label on it, depicting the logo and more information. You will find the origin, varietal, name process, altitude and three sensory notes on the label. It will also tell you if its a dark, medium or light roast. The beans look evenly roasted and I havent spotted any defects. This coffee is the same as my previous review but the roasting profile is fully focussed on the espresso roast. This results in flavours that suit espresso based drinks a lot better than it’s light roast kin.
Opening the Sun Jaroen package gives a sweet yet nutty aroma. It reminds me of caramel/toffee and the sweeter Macadamia aroma. The beans are crispy and give off a cedar wood, nutty and wholegrain cookie flavor. When grinding the coffee the aroma’s are the same, although a little more pungent. The floral notes a way more faint but the caramel and chocolate notes are more on the forefront. There is also a hint of cocoa nibs in there as well. Let’s brew this coffee!
Sun Jaroen: The tasting.
I reviewed this coffee on my Rocket Giotto Evoluzione R and my Eureka Atom Specialty 75. The setting on my Atom is number 4 and I like this coffee better when the shot is stopped between 24 and 26 seconds. This has all to do with the acidity, balance and creamy aspect of the coffee. I used 18 grams and got 36grams out.
When you have brewed this espresso and stir the spoon, a nutty, sweet and creamy aroma comes forth. Almond, Macadamia and chocolate are the first things that come to mind. Vanilla is also on the nose a little when the coffee is hot. When the espresso cools down a little, you will find cookie spices in the aroma as well.
Taking a sip will immediately make you aware of just how balanced and creamy soft the Sun Jaroen is. The citric acidity go’s so very well with the nutty almond and macadamia flavours. The caramel/toffee flavour mingles superbly as gives the espresso a nice sweet touch to it that lingers also in the aftertaste. The acidity is, like I said, citric and yet also has a bright aspect to it. With that, I mean that you feel a sensation like your tongue is ‘opening up’ if you will.
The aftertaste of this coffee lingers quite long and has flavours of the above mentioned ones, but also a salmiak flavour. This makes the aftertaste super sweet and gives a little juiciness to the coffee as well.
The verdict.
Thai Specialty Coffee has made the Sun Jaroen into a versatile coffee that works on filter as well as Espresso. In my opinion the Sun Jaroen is best as an espresso. The creamy, balanced and sweet character of the coffee, together with the caramel, toffee, chocolate and Salmiak flavour notes, makes this an excellent brew. I especially love how the creamy and balanced character go’s with the acidity.
If you are living in The Netherlands, this is a coffee that I would recommend buying.
Here is the link to the website of Thai specialty Coffee. This is not a paid link, nor do I get any money from the clicks. Check it out!