Brewing some Costa Rican Tarrazu
A good first exposure to a medium roast that won’t leave you with a bad taste in your mouth.
Some information on the Costa Rican Tarrazu can be found here, but it should be noted I don’t have any information (yet) on the origin or estate. If I find it or get it from the roaster, I’ll update this. The batch I purchased was a half-city roast, pretty light I think even for a Costa Rican–you’re more likely to see a full city roast on something like that.
The rundown:
Grind size: medium-coarse (11/16)
Bloom time: 45s
Water temperature: started brewing at 93°C
Ground coffee mass: 46g
Brewing water mass: 750g
Water to grounds ratio: 16.3:1
The results:
I rebrewed this three times using slight variations in the water:grounds ratio (46g, 48g, 50g) and noticed that it came out a little astringent with a higher ratios. It’s certainly a little more citrus-y, which I think is to be expected from a higher-altitude bean. I think the grind size is fine, but I’m going to start modifying bloom time a bit to see if any noticeable differences emerge.
Update 4/14/2016: I changed the grind size from 11/16 to 13/16, and I think the brew is a bit lighter-bodied (it certainly doesn’t steep as long in the filter). It’s been good so far, and I have a little less than half of the beans left, so I’m going to finish it out and see what else I can modify.
Update 4/16/2016: I finished the roast, so my final verdict is a 13/16 grind size and a 45s bloom time. I thought it produced the brightest cup without being overwhelming or reinviting that astringent mouthfeel back I got with my first few brews.