Songbird Nicaraguan

Sweet without sugar, mellow without cream, it is a great breakfast coffee. This coffee is roasted to a light milk chocolate color where its bright and complex flavors explode into life. "Balanced, crisply sweet-tart. Lemongrass, cardamom, cocoa powder, rhododendron-like flowers, fresh-cut cedar in aroma and cup. The structure fuses sweet, tart and savory tendencies, enlivened by a quietly juicy acidity. Buoyant, satiny mouthfeel. The crisp finish is richly sweet, with notes of lemongrass and vanilla-like florals carrying into the long." The New Nicaragua "Perhaps the only coffee presenting a classic Nicaragua profile among all of the nine highest scorers is Thanksgiving Coffee’s Organic Shade-Grown Nicaragua (92), a blend of the respected Maracaturra, Caturra and Catuai varieties meticulously processed by the traditional wet method. It is also the only coffee we review that is certified Bird-Friendly by the Smithsonian Institution, hands-down the most uncompromising and rigorous of environmentally focused certifications. The idealism and passion that drove the growing and farm management that produced this coffee clearly went into its processing as well: It is an impressively pure coffee. Of all nine coffees we reviewed this month, it most clearly represents the classic Nicaragua cup of tradition, with its inherent balance, quietly juicy acidity and buoyant, satiny mouthfeel."

Coffee to Water Ratio

Using the correct amount of coffee will ensure that your coffee is brewed to strength, without over-extracting or under-extracting the coffee to compensate for an inappropriate dose. We recommend 2 grams of coffee for every fluid ounce of water used to brew. Weighing coffee is the most accurate way to measure the appropriate dose. If a scale is not available, we recommend 2 heaping tablespoons of ground coffee for every 5 ounces of water used to brew.

Grind Size

Producing the correct particle size in ground coffee is one of the most important steps in coffee brewing. In general, a finer grind will produce a more intense brew and a coarser grind will produce a less intense brew. At the same time, a grind that is too fine will produce an over-extracted, astringent brew, and a grind that is too coarse will produce a weak, under-extracted brew lacking flavor. In pour-over methods, grind size also affects the rate of extraction, as water will pass more slowly through a finer grind, and more quickly through a coarser grind. We strongly recommend burr grinders over blade grinders.

Water Temperature and Quality

Water temperature dramatically affects the extraction of coffee’s flavor during brewing. We recommend brewing with water at 200° Fahrenheit for best results. Using fresh, clean, chlorine-free water is essential.