Visiting Venezuela-Bolivia-Peru-Guatemala-Ethiopia
3:51 PM
A taste-bud and brain explosion of spicy fruity wine, licorice, floral notes, cocoa, and nuts and honey...and that's just the tip of the iceberg.
That’s what happened when we combined beans from five different countries, and two continents. Remember opening up that giant crayon
box from Crayola when you were a kid, and what seemed like an entire rainbow of
colors begged to be used -- and with them endless possibilities of color
combinations? If you can recall those memories, then you have a general idea of
what it was like to sit down and experience the flavors and aromas of our chosen
chocolates and coffees, as we curated Sip & Melt’s first pairings.
To create our pairings, we began by identifying the dominant
aromas and flavor notes, and then established if these notes and aromas
complemented one another in a harmonious way (such as nutty with spicy or fruity
with floral); or contrasted one another (bitter and fruity, acidic and bright ) -- in that one flavor is able to bring out the qualities of another (contrasting
doesn’t mean one flavor overpowers).
We then discussed our findings and figured out what specific flavor notes we were able to identify. This was interesting, in that on several occasions, we disagreed on the flavor notes we had discovered in the same coffee or chocolate. To manage our findings, we kept a running list of adjective descriptors that described what we were tasting and smelling with each sample, and then compared them at the end of the tasting (and these descriptors can be found in your tasting booklet).
One of our curators was on the tail-end of a head cold, and instead of backing out, we thought it would be a great experiment considering that what we taste is dictated by aroma, or what we smell (see our February post), and our team member did not have her full smelling faculties at this point. This was taken into consideration during final discussions, for in almost all coffee and chocolate samplings, our gal was unable to identify bitterness, and only a very superficial taste of fruit flavor notes.
The takeaway: You are your own teacher! There are no right or wrong answers when it comes to your palate, and the wonderful thing about flavor pairing is that the combinations are seemingly endless.
We then discussed our findings and figured out what specific flavor notes we were able to identify. This was interesting, in that on several occasions, we disagreed on the flavor notes we had discovered in the same coffee or chocolate. To manage our findings, we kept a running list of adjective descriptors that described what we were tasting and smelling with each sample, and then compared them at the end of the tasting (and these descriptors can be found in your tasting booklet).
One of our curators was on the tail-end of a head cold, and instead of backing out, we thought it would be a great experiment considering that what we taste is dictated by aroma, or what we smell (see our February post), and our team member did not have her full smelling faculties at this point. This was taken into consideration during final discussions, for in almost all coffee and chocolate samplings, our gal was unable to identify bitterness, and only a very superficial taste of fruit flavor notes.
Both coffee and cacao beans have very complex and lengthy aroma compounds independently (over 1,000!), and flavor notes will vary based upon geography, harvesting methods, soil differentiation, farmer processing methods, and other factors.
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| [Foragers Market, NYC] |
While flavor pairing coffee with chocolate is a not new concept by any means, it is still a realm that deserves more exploration and study. Humans have been experimenting with and utilizing coffee and cacao beans for thousands of years. Their influence on world cultures is evident throughout history and up until present time. We are fascinated by their role in our lives, and the influence each has played on human health, industry, and society and culture. Pairing these two beans together not only exposes a myriad of flavors, tastes, and aromas that cannot be established independently, but reminds us that these two beans have so much more to offer us than just a caffeine jolt or a tasty treat.
We are excited to have our roasting team from Urban Grind Coffeehouse discuss their own specific flavor findings, that found their way into our May box. Keep an eye out on our blog for an upcoming interview mid-June.
Share your thoughts! Join us on our tasting journey.
-Sip & Melt
We are excited to have our roasting team from Urban Grind Coffeehouse discuss their own specific flavor findings, that found their way into our May box. Keep an eye out on our blog for an upcoming interview mid-June.
Share your thoughts! Join us on our tasting journey.
-Sip & Melt
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