December 2017 Newsletter
Holiday closing dates will be as follows:
LAST ROAST will be on Monday 18th DECEMBER 2017.
LAST SHIPPING DAY & CLOSE will be Wednesday 20th DECEMBER 2017.
REOPEN on Tuesday 9th JANUARY 2018.
I've been chatting to my couriers and they've been telling me that parcel volumes are up a LOT this year, which is good news for them but not necessarily for you. Goods shipped on the Wednesday may arrive before Christmas, but they wouldn't bet on it. A couple of them suggested that Friday the 15th would be the most practical cut off point, even for Express Post.
As per our usual practice, customers are reminded that we will be running our stocks of roasted coffee down to zero, and late orders may be filled by whatever coffees are available, not what you actually ordered. This means that we cannot guarantee the contents of orders after Monday the 18th. Given the usual shipping chaos that engulfs both the post and couriers, early ordering is advised. Based on past years some of the orders shipped on the Wednesday won't arrive until next year. Also, a reminder that due to the volume of orders we may take a couple of days to roast and ship, instead of our usual next day timeframe.
There won't be a January special coffee but I'll try to organise a brief January newsletter as soon as we're up to speed. As usual at this time of the year, this month's special coffee is something really special, and rates my highest cupping score this year at 92.
Nicaraguan Carlos Ferrey
$60.00/kg
An intense tropical fruit aroma and front palate flavour balanced with cleansing mid palate acidity and a sweet nutty finish. These coffee beans were sun dried in the cherry, i.e. "Natural" processed, and this coffee is the first Nicaraguan natural that I've seen in over 30 years in the trade.
Coffee is Nicaragua's major export item and rigorous industry controls have meant that until recently all of it has been water fermented and washed.
December also marks the return of an old favourite to our list of coffees, the Organic Timor Maubisse. Organic coffees are episodic by nature, crop to crop availability is never guaranteed, so since the Organic Yirgacheffe has run out I was happy to get hold of the Timor.
And, unfortunately, it marks the discontinuation of a coffee that I've been selling for over 30 years, the Swiss Water Processed Colombian Decaff. Sales of decaff have fallen to a point where I'm throwing away more than I'm selling.
I suspect that a lot of this fall is due to the increasing volume of medical evidence that a few cups of coffee a day are in fact good for you. I can remember my doctor in the 90's telling me that I should switch to decaff, advice I obviously ignored. Just as well, since I've outlived him! However, the most up to date medical advice is that regular consumption of ordinary caffeinated coffee causes zero harm and in fact has positive health benefits.
Anyway, with apologies to the half-dozen customers who still order it, decaff is off the list. Have a happy and safe holiday, and I'll be back next year.
Alan
