Video Transcription
Introduction to Hacienda La Minita Beans
Good morning, fellow caffeine crusaders! I’m Russell Volz from Lake City Coffee Roasters, and boy, do I have a bean-tastic treat for you today. Get ready for some epic education that’ll have you buzzing about the coffee I’m totally obsessed with. We’re diving into a review of the Hacienda La Minita estate beans-straight from the Tarrazú region. Boom!Our Annual Bean Hunt
Every year, Alisha and I play bean detectives, hauling in about two dozen samples from across Costa Rica’s Tarrazú playground. Why there? Because it’s home to the smoothest, least bitter brews on the planet that still pack a powerful coffee punch. Think bold chocolate vibes, with cherry or berry twists-sometimes red, sometimes dark. If your taste buds aren’t super tuned-in, it just screams “awesome coffee!” But our crew? They’re total coffee geeks who geek out over those subtle notes. This year’s batch? Off-the-charts wild! Out of that bean bonanza, we crown one champ-the ultimate smooth operator with zero bitterness and killer chocolate flair. Past winners include heavy hitters like San Raphael or La Pastora, all top-tier plantations. This time? Drumroll… Hacienda La Minita!The Story Behind Hacienda La Minita
These folks have been a family affair for ages-until they sold to a big Japanese corp. But get this: The new owners were like, “You’re nailing it! Keep rocking the coffee world-we’re tea pros dipping our toes in java.” They left ’em be, which is awesome. I’ve been chatting with the family and team for the last six months while we taste-tested their goodies. We didn’t stop at just the estate beans; we slurped through half a dozen others from Tarrazú and beyond. Experiment mode activated! But we landed on their estate gems-beans grown right on their property, surrounding the HQ. It’s like wine: “Estate” means you can spot the fields from your front porch. Coffee version? Pure magic.Brewing Setup and Comparison
Alright, let’s brew up a quick comparison! These bad boys arrive in our signature bags, labeled with the roast date-try finding that elsewhere! We’re tasting medium roasts here (my fave, though dark sells like hotcakes-three-quarters of our orders!). Why medium? The flavors pop more vividly. Dark’s great too, but medium lets those subtleties shine. We’re using French presses because, hands down, they unlock the best in beans. With over a thousand molecules swirling in there, each brew method pulls out different stars-but French press? It’s the MVP for true taste reveals. I’ve got a dozen gadgets, from AeroPress to you-name-it, but this is my trusty sidekick. Setup: 25 grams of beans per 16 ounces of water, medium grind on my Made-in-USA grinder from Red Rooster Trading Company in Missouri. Served in Burnout mugs-vacuum-insulated wonders, also proudly American-made. Cheers to that!Tasting Notes: Last Year’s San Raphael
First up: Last year’s San Raphael phenom. Super smooth, with soft milk chocolate notes-you gotta focus to catch ’em. The texture’s light and airy, not thin on flavor, just elegantly slim. Lots of fans dig that vibe.Tasting Notes: This Year’s Hacienda La Minita
Now, the star: This year’s Hacienda La Minita! We loved it so much, we snagged a couple tons to tide us over till next year’s hunt-starting right back here, ’cause wow. Still silky-smooth, but the flavors? Amped up! Bolder overall, with chocolate that hits you like, “Hello, delicious!” Even casual sippers might pause and think, “Whoa, that’s next-level coffee.” What sets it apart? The aroma-cherry blasts you right on the nose! Alisha picks up chocolate there too; me, not as much, but it’s lurking. On the sip: Subtle chocolate upfront, stronger in the middle, and cherry on the finish. And that finish? It lingers forever-like, if you swish for two minutes, cherry party keeps going! Super fun and enjoyable.Final Thoughts and Comparison to Kona
Bottom line: Flavors are punchier than last year, just as smooth. In my book, this is the finest cup I’ve ever savored-even tops Kona coffee, and that’s saying something! Kona’s stellar (never had a dud), but it costs 10 times more. Real 100% Kona? Don’t get fooled by cheap knockoffs at big stores-that’s not the real deal. This is pure Hacienda La Minita estate goodness. You’re gonna adore it! Got questions? Hit up Alisha or me-we’re here to chat. Have a brew-tiful day! [table id=17 /] Pick Your Low Acid Beans HereWill Low Acid Coffee Beans Help My Stomach?
You bet your brew they will! But let’s spill the beans: Coffee’s pH is basically twinsies with apple juice. Does a sip of apple juice send your tummy into a tailspin? Nah, usually not. So, if you’re yelling, “Russell, is the acid in coffee wrecking my gut?”-well, it depends on your bod, but probably not the main villain. The real gut-buster? Burnt-to-a-crisp beans that taste like you’re chugging charcoal! Most roasters torch ’em till they’re blacker than midnight, leaving your stomach screaming “Uncle!” Solution? Go medium roast, or at least a dark that’s a rich, velvety brown-never Darth Vader black. Those fancy labels like Italian Roast, French Roast, Continental, or Vienna? Just snazzy code for “We burned it, but hey, sounds exotic!” Enter low acid coffee beans: They’ll totally pamper your pipes, especially our medium roast gems from Lake City Coffee. We hunt ’em down from Costa Rica’s Tarrazú region-famous for silky-smooth, low-acid magic with chocolate hugs and zero drama. What’s not to love? Your stomach will thank you with a happy gurgle!
Why Tarrazu Region Beans Are the Smoothest Choice
Alisha and I (Russell) are professional taste testers. In fact, Alisha is a certified wine sommelier (expert), i.e. she has a very well developed palate. We love smooth, non-bitter coffee, with well balanced flavor notes of chocolate and berry. Keep in mind that a vast majority of coffee companies never taste test the beans that they buy. Not us. For years, we sipped, swirled, and spit coffee originating from one corner of Earth’s coffee growing belt to the other. Hands down, we consistently most enjoyed coffee from the Tarrazu Region of Costa Rica.
Therefore, each year since 2015, we bring in 20-30 samples of the very best beans from this region. Again, we sip, swirl, and spit coffee for a full day, just to pick out the one very best bean. Then we purchased several tons of this amazing single source bean. The results have always been amazing.
This year, we were fortunate enough to run into Hacienda La Manita Estate Beans. This is by far, the smoothest and most flavorful coffee we’ve ever tasted. Its prominent dark chocolate notes on the front and middle are to die for. But it is the finish that really got to us. The finish is all cherry. Typically, coffee’s finish will end in a second or two. Not this bean. The cherry finish just goes on and on and on. It was so wonderful, that we purchased 2 & 1/2 tons.
How Low-n-Slow Roasting Keeps Coffee Smooth and Flavorful
Coffee smells awesome. It tastes like a beautiful sunrise. It satisfies the soul. What is inside those beans that makes it so wonderful? There are over 1,000 molecules and compounds that make up all coffee. Those compounds are intertwined in the bean’s oils. Those oils are where the bean’s bioflavonoids, antioxidants, caffeine, aroma, and flavor reside. The better the oils the better the coffee. The more oils, the better the coffee. So, if someone wanted the perfect roast, the goal would be to preserve those oils.
A vast majority of coffee companies burn the living snot out of their beans. Not here at Lake City Coffee Roasters. We roast our beans low-n-slow, to preserve the oils and keep that smooth jive going. And we only need 3 roasts; White, Medium, and Dark. The medium is the color of medium brown, thus lots of oils and flavor. The dark is a very dark brown, but never black. The inside is still brown, thus more oils. The white is a golden color with notes of peanut butter with a super kick of caffeine. Granted we do offer Swiss Water Processed decaf and espresso, which are both roasted identical to our dark roast.
Low Acid Coffee FAQs: Tummy-Friendly Edition
Which Brewing Method Makes the Least Acidic Coffee?
For acid avoiders, nothing beats the AeroPress. The paper filter, does filter out a bit of the acid. But that’s not its real secrete. The coffee coming out of the AeroPress is so smooth, you’d think you died and went to heaven.
Does Freshness Matter for Low Acid Coffee?
The fresher the roasted coffee, the smoother and better tasting the coffee. So YES, freshness matters a lot for low acid coffee. You want coffee that was roasted less than 30 days ago. Therefore, the bag had better have a “Roast Date” on the bag. Good luck with that. Lake City Coffee Roasters is one of the few companies that prominently displays its roast date. What not, we roast and ship the same day.