Terroir Coffee
from the indispensable wikipedia…
Terroir is a French term in wine appreciation used to denote the special characteristics of geography that give a wine its individuality. It can be loosely translated as ‘a sense of place’ which is embodied in the qualities of a wine, the sum of the effects that the environment has on the vines which produce a particular wine.
Terroir is distinct from the characteristics imparted by the grape variety, by the vintage and by production methods (vinification), and is the product of a range of local influences that are transmitted into the character of the wine.
The concept of terroir has only recently been applied to coffee. Cup of Excellence founder and all-around Knight of the bean George Howell recently launched an ambitious new roastery that aims to showcase some of the finest single origin coffees in the world fresh roasted to order. Many self identified coffee snobs are content to simply make the leap beyond bad coffee into specialty coffee - as if switching from box wine to bottled wine instantly makes one a connoisseur. Vanguard roasters like Howell are raising the bar on connoisseurship, and offering a glimpse of what specialty coffee may mature into.
Drool over Howell’s offerings. Marvel at the brilliance of his FAQ. Submit to the commandments of his quality page. Gaze into the future of good coffee.
[I hope Santa brings me a half pound of Panama, Boquete, La Esmeralda Special Reserve….]
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December 4th, 2004 at 9:34 pm
Geography is but part of the equation. Crops from the same patch of ground will yield different qualities in different years. While not entirely without merit, this is mostly a marketing ploy which, like the Emperor’s New Clothes, depends upon the vanity of the consumer to counted among the “wise”. Only “connoisseurs” can see the cloth!
December 4th, 2004 at 10:24 pm
CheekyGeek-
As a “marketing ploy” this one is pretty good. It isolates really excellent small crop coffees from small farmers in regions where that coffee might otherwise be blended into obscurity at a larger wet milling/dry milling facility and sold at commodity prices (which still lag below the cost of production in many regions). It encourages crop improvements, milling improvements and creates a model of sustainability for small producers.
Most Americans are still drinking preground, stale, robusta from a can. Or perhaps graduating to the coffee-flavored liquid candybars churned out by starbucks. To experience small crop artisan roasted coffee from different origins is to never go back to the overroasted swill from most large roasters.
I’ve had the privilege to see and roast the naked beans that lie under this clothing of luxury marketing. Superior coffee is superior by orders of magnitude. You might even argue that given the greater variety of flavor and aroma compounds found in coffee (over 850) as compared to wine that distinctions in quality appear on a broader scale.
I’d say that among coffee aficionados its less the vanity of “wise” consumers than the obsession and madness that comes from the seeking of a degree of excellence still not broadly acknowledged. Coffee geeks are a rare and crazy breed with little of the glamour or established tradition of wine, cheese or beer geeks. To most people coffee is just coffee.
December 5th, 2004 at 3:56 pm
I suppose it is “obsession and madness” for some, but for me it just makes sense (the opposite of madness). I can get a fresher cup of coffee, determine what level of roast that _I_ like for a given bean, AND pay a lot less in the process. If that isn’t sensible, I don’t know what is. The obsession may be that I’m already growing impatient with roasting little 1 cup batches and looking for something that does a larger quanity.
: )
(not a problem for you)
December 5th, 2004 at 5:38 pm
Also, Howell’s web person should learn not to use spaces in his file names:
Special%20Limited%20Offering.php
: )
December 18th, 2004 at 1:03 pm
I have a pound of the Panama on its way to me. A bunch of us at Victrola went in on a buy. Dwayne Sorenson at Stumptown also has a stash of these beans which we’ve been privileged to sample. I’ll try to post a review of sorts when our package arrives.
March 15th, 2006 at 3:55 am
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