Sep 02 2010
Company: Rocketfuelcoffee.com
Bean Origin or Blend: Brazil Yellow Bourbon
Body: Light/Medium
Roast: Medium
Brew Method: Drip and French Press
Price: $36/lb. (Purchase)
Background:
Today we are reviewing another single origin bean from Rocketfuelcoffee.com. Here is how the bean is described on their website:
This Yellow Bourbon is produced by Fazenda Cachoeira located in the Mogiana Region in the State of Sul de Minas. The cherry of Yellow Bourbons are bright yellow when fully ripe. Growing altitude is 3500 to 3800 feet and precipitation is between 1,800 and 2,000mm per year with an average temperature of 19ºC – ideal conditions for coffee.
Fazenda Cachoeira da Grama has been in the Carvalho Dias family since 1890. Gabriel de Carvalho Dias, son of the owner, Lindolpho de Carvalho Dias is responsible for the property’s management. On this farm everything is done manually, which includes coffee plantation handling and harvest, since its topography does not allow any kind of mechanization.
Social and environmental sustainability is considered very important in the farm management. Lindolpho de Carvalho Dias developed a program of planting native species to keep a better ecological balance. The farm has a school, a club and an official size soccer field for the employees’ benefit. There are 47 houses for the employees and their families, all with modern facilities. The wastewater is treated to avoid polluting the stream that runs across the farm.
Coffee is harvested manually on cloth, preventing beans from getting in touch with the earth. This is full natural coffee, not pulped-natural. The entire cherry is dried under the sun in terraces until the beans reach 20 percent humidity. At this stage, the coffee is transferred to the dryers to reduce humidity to 11 percent. Subsequently, the coffee lots are stored in a warehouse, with very low humidity level and free from odors that can affect the coffee.
Profile:
Medium in color and oil, the bean is smaller than what most are accustomed to. The aroma is dominated by a bold nuttiness, with a pungent fruit along the edges and a slight berry. The profile has a velvety aroma overall. On the pour, the nuttiness prevails with some floral notes along the edges; the pungency is still present but less so than on the bean.
On consumption, the bean presents a very lively and energetic cup and the nuttiness is actually in the background, while up front is a myriad of flavors – berry and mixed fruit, floral – just a great marriage of pleasant flavors. The finish is very long and creates a thick mouth feel.
Synopsis:
Rocketfuelcoffee.com beans are always lively, and this is one of the more complex coffees I’ve had from them. The finish is long and thick and the flavor jumps about ever sip or two. This is an excellent cup! The Brazil Yellow Bourbon would pair very well with the Nestor Miranda Dominicano.
Sep 01 2010
Size: 4.5×50, Robusto (#400)
Wrapper: Connecticut
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Dominican
Strength: Mild
Price: Box of 20, $75.95 (Purchase)
Grade: 9.0
I picked a box and a half of these up in a recent purchase and I’ve loved them, so I figured it was time to actually sit down and review them. Before I started reading up for the review, I had no idea what I had been smoking! I knew it was good, but I didn’t know it was the brainchild of the Newman and Fuente families! Nor did I know they can be found for around $3 a stick!
La Unica is a collaboration between J.C. Newman’s Chairman, Stanford Newman, and Carlos Fuente Sr. Back in 1985, Newman had an idea to offer a premium bundle cigar – back then only factory 2nds were sold in bundles. Once the sizes were selected by Fuente and the blend was approved by Newman, the La Unica shortly became the top selling bundle cigar in America. The blend has remained the same, but it is now sold in boxes rather than bundles. It is produced at Tabacalera A. Fuente.
The La Unica is available in Natural, Maduro, and the recently introduced Cameroon. Sold in boxes of 20, there are six sizes offered: 8.5×52 (#100, Presidente), 7×49 (#200, Churchill), 6.75×44 (#300, Lonsdale), 4.5×50 (#400, Robusto), 5.5×42 (#500, Corona), and 6×50 (#600, Toro). La Unica has received high ratings from both Cigar Aficionado and Smoke Magazine.
Pre-light, 1.8:
The stout size of the #400 is a great cigar to hold for Robusto lovers – firmly packed with a nice weight. The light brown wrapper has some quiet spider web veins, a well constructed triple cap, and flawless seams – the seams are so even that it appears as one single sheet of wrapper leaf. The aroma is very sweet with barnyard notes primarily of hay – toward the foot the La Unica has a creamy sweetness to it that is very pleasant. On the cold draw, the pull is loose and airy and the flavors are muted, though there are some wood notes and a bitter tinge detected.
Burn, 1.7:
An ample amount of smoke billows from the loose draw on the #400. The ash is consistently colored and forms into a beautiful thick and firm sheet; it even looks chalky in its structure. The burn is slow but hilly throughout – toward the second third it begins to v, and it requires some minor touch-ups. The temperature stays cool, though toward the nub it burns harsh in the back of the throat.
Flavor, 2.7:
With a creamy burst up front, the profile is mostly gentle with a mild spice present in the back of the throat. Through the first third, the primary note is a pleasant and creamy butterscotch. Moving into the second third, the creaminess decreases and becomes dryer with a harsher finish. The barnyard notes noticed in the cold draw are more present here due to a lack of cream. Into the final third of this short Robusto, the flavor reminded me of Arabica coffee beans – the coffee notes were not overt, but they were present, and were complimented by a dry and less gentle finish.
Overall, 2.8:
Did I mention yet that these are $3 smokes from Fuente and Newman? Well, they are – and they are really, really good for a mild smoke. The flavor is interesting, the construction is what you’d expect, and the price is hard to beat. The La Unica lands in my Top However Many List for sub $5 smokes. Try them, you’ll be happy.
(Total: 9.0)
Aug 31 2010
We Have 6 Winners for our Berger & Argenti MOOCH Contest (Details)
A MOOCH Slogan Selection Committee, featuring Al Argenti, a crack advertising consulting team appointed by Berger & Argenti, and some well known Miami-area mooches, have selected the winners of the Mooch Slogan Contest featured on Toasted Foot.
According to Al, sorting through the submissions and selecting the winner was an extremely difficult task given the number of respondents and outstanding quality of the responses. So he increased the prizes to allow for two 2nd prize winners and 3 3rd prize winners. Here they are:
GRAND PRIZE WINNER – a 30ct Box of MOOCH!!!
Kreth – “GET YOUR OWN”
SECOND PRIZE – 6pk of Entubar
- Paul Moran
- Michael Zions
THIRD PRIZE – 3pk of Clasico
- Mike D
- J. Redley
- Robert
Thank you all for your contributions and if you didn’t win, we hope you enjoyed participating and watch here at Toasted Foot for future contests!
