Production Cupping at Spro

The team digs into the morning cupping session.

It's Saturday morning and that's come to mean more training and more cupping. Though this time the cupping is a bit different.

After spending the past few weeks learning how to cup coffees and exploring tastes and their palates, it's time to turn the team loose and start selecting the coffees we will order for the opening of project hampden.

Today we're cupping thirteen coffees from Counter Culture, Stumptown and Ecco Caffe. The program for deciding the coffees goes something like this: 1) cup and taste the coffees and generate flavor notes, 2) develop written descriptions for the coffees, 3) select the coffees for service, and 4) test and determine the "default" brewing method for that coffee.

It's a relatively simple process but, as with most simple things, it's rather laborious and difficult to do. In other words: it's simple, but it ain't easy!

The coffees cupped today (and over the next few days) are as follows:

1 - Shakisso Sidamo, Ethiopia, Counter Culture
2 - Konga Reserve Lot, Kenya, Ecco Caffe
3 - Finca Kilimanjaro, El Salvador, Counter Culture
4 - Finca El Puente, Honduras, Counter Culture
5 - Santa Terezinha, Brazil, Ecco Caffe
6 - Carmen Estate, Panama, Stumptown NYC
7 - La Guatuza, Nicaragua, Ecco Caffe
8 - Gichathaini Reserve, Kenya, Ecco Caffe
9 - La Golondrina, Colombia, Counter Culture
10-Mordecofe, Ethiopia, Stumptown NYC
11-Finca El Injerto Bourbon, Guatemala, Stumptown NYC
12-2009 Holiday Blend Vienna Melange, Colombia, Counter Culture
13-Guayabo, El Salvador, Ecco Caffe

Quite a bit of coffees but there's still more to sample before determining our opening day mix.