Rwanda Honey Process Kibirizi
Cupping Notes
(Credit Sweet Maria's)
I was surprised by the level of fruit in the cup. It isn't quite as fruit-forward as some of our dry process lots. But compared to the smells, the cup flavors carried quite a bit more intensity. My City roast had a smell of baked fruit pastry, with a sweet doughy note, and jammy stone fruit accents. The stone fruit notes started to take shape in the wet aroma, dried peach, and hints of fruit nectar, and balanced bittersweets. When brewed, the sweetness has some rustic sugars that lead into flavors of earthy dried stone fruits, and pear jam. Acidity brought some fruit juice appeal, but is overall kept to a minimum, even at City roast level. I found the mouthfeel to be very juicy and thick, which props up some of the fruited cup impressions. My darkest Full City roast pulled out indelible low tones without too much of a drop off in fruit. There was a plump blueberry accent note that seemed to melt into a rich flavor of dark chocolate syrup. As espresso, that fruited aspect carried some tartness that added a nice tart twang to the sapid dark chocolate flavor matrix.