Tanzania Peaberry Shinzidiwili

This Tanzania is grown in Mbeya, down in the Southwest corner of the country bordering Zambia. Mbeya is a growing region in Tanzania, and Shinzidiwili is the co-op. There are only 20 farmers in the co-op, so they have a lot of control over the quality and processing. This is a microlot of their peaberries sorted out, of just the N-39 varietal, which is a new hybrid based of of bourbon that is more disease resistant. As a results, this coffee is more complex and higher grade than a lot of the country's harvest. The altitude here is as much as 5,000 feet above sea level, which tends to help produce a denser bean, easier to roast, more complexity, and no need for pesticides.

The complexity of this coffee is nice! Orange (tart tangerine if its a few degrees lighter, with some lime and raspberry), cocoa, juicy. The chcocolate-orange combination of flavors really shines as the coffee cools down. It has a sparkling brightness, and slight tartness, but not enough to be offputting. As you approach 2nd cracks, the acidity tames out and the complexity is simplified, but you have a medium roast coffee with creamy body and chocolate finish. You really can't go wrong. As a French Roast, you find that it holds up really well -- much the way that a french roasted Kenya would -- and obviously you lose the nuances and acidity of the the lighter roasts, but it makes for a sweet and exotically aromatic french roast.

The coffee came into the US in January 2018.