I started purchasing this whole bean coffee about one year ago. Unfortunately from one of the largest online coffee vendors in the US. However, the shipping cost if the purchase is less than $75 adds an additional $10 to the cost.
Then I decided to search on Amazon to see if any coffee vendor sold this same type of whole bean coffee et voila, enter Volcanica. Since they sell through Amazon and the same for shipping, there is no shipping charge if a Prime member. When I first tried this coffee it was about six or seven dollars cheaper but even this price hike is tolerable because of the quality and taste of it.
I have been purchasing coffee from this aforementioned vendor for more than a decade; however, since I discovered the Sumatra Gayo, I now buy only three coffees. This Sumatra Gayo has now replaced my everyday drinking coffee which was the Ethiopian Yirgacheffe whole bean coffee. The Yirgacheffe region of Ethiopia produces some of the best coffees anywhere. After all, coffee was first found in Ethiopia.
When I first tasted this coffee I really thought I had received a bag of Jamaica Blue Mountain. I simply could not believe I was drinking a Sumatran coffee. But I was. About the fifth purchase of this coffee I was dealt another surprise. But this one was not a good surprise. The coffee did not the smooth, rich flavor I was used to. What happened? Why did this wonderful coffee turn so off-putting? So acidic? So unpleasant tasting. Maybe I was inebriated? No, since I can’t imbibe alcohol any more.
However, this last purchase I made and received just two days ago was back to the FANTASTIC coffee I had experienced years ago. Why did it change. I believe I found out the reason. In case you don’t know, when coffee beans—especially Arabica coffee beans—you must let the beans oxygenate by expelling carbon dioxide. That takes a minimum of seven (7) days. The key word is ‘MINIMUM.’ I had a bag of these beans in the freezer from my purchase previous purchase one month before. The roasting date was in February 2024 and was and like the several purchases before it, was roasted just a little over one week when I ground 17 grams of beans approximately beginning on the eighth (8th) day after roasting. This last purchase, however, was roasted in mid-February which was approximately six weeks after roasting. (The bag of beans in the freezer is still there. I simply will not purchase another bag until May 2024 and from now own will wait about six weeks after roasting to grind and make the coffee.
Because the Volcanica beans are NOT in a bag that allows the carbon dioxide to escape during the first seven (7) days following roasting I will pour the beans into an open container for two additional weeks for them to oxygenate. As long as the beans have six weeks of resting following the roasting date I will get to enjoy one of the three best coffees in the world—IN MY OPINION. I have indeed read several roasters and coffee experts agree with my thoughts regarding the Sumatra Gayo Whole-Bean Coffee.
Although not anywhere near the price of the Jamaica Blue Moon Estate or the Hawaii Kona Volcanic Estate coffees, Volcanica’s price for their Sumatra Gayo’s price of $25.99 is a steal. The low acidity, full bodied taste, its smooth and rand deep, rich flavor are qualities that make this such a favorite anywhere.
ABOLUETELY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Sumatra Mandheling
