Mystic Monk 'Midnight Vigils' blend

Mystic Monk 'Midnight Vigils' blend

Mmmm, mmm, mm. I know that the go juice is a necessity in the morning, but it can also be a pleasure. Of course, I write this with a mug of steaming, dark joy at my elbow.

Mystic Monk coffee is roasted by Carmelite monks in Wyoming, which isn't a real stretch when you consider the contemplative and mindful state a good roaster maintains. It's a perfect fit. They also use 100% organic, fair trade Arabica beans, which would be consonant with their Catholic views of social justice and environmental stewardship.

The Midnight Vigils blend is described as Central and South American beans (no specific regions noted), roasted "extra-dark", and man, is it oily! Check out the sheen on these beans in the picture here. I guess it would be both dramatic and punny to say that the aroma from the bag is "Heavenly"; sweet, woody, dark fruit, a little hint of caramel or vanilla. And once brewed there's a smooth, sweet coffee flavor along with dark fruit and caramel nuances.

Other varieties of Mystic Monk coffees I love are the Hermit's blend and Cowboy blend. Good, good stuff.

Trader Joe's Dark coffee

Mmmm, mmmm, mm. I love a good dark roast, and Trader Joe's 'Dark' roast coffee is a lively cup. Plus, $7-8 not terribly expensive for the 14 oz. can. And like any other working-class schlub, I'm all for having delicious AND cash left over.

The beans are a dark and oily blend of Ethiopian and Brazilian Arabica cultivars, smelling of coffee with notes of milk chocolate and vanilla. It's a sublime delight just to open the can.

Grind, drip and sip! Freshly brewed, there's a dark fruit note along with cocoa and mild to moderate acidity. Bold without being bitter, this is a pretty tasty coffee. Perfect for some get-up-and-go in the morning. Now I need to find a cigar to pair this with.. Perhaps the Padilla Reserva Maduro.

Archer Farms Colombia Rio Magdalena

Archer Farms Colombian Rio Magdalena

Another medium-roast Colombian coffee, this time from the Magdalena region in the Northern tip of the country.

Not that long ago, I was able to get bags of the "Direct Trade" in whole bean, but lately seem scarce. It's a shame, because these coffees in whole bean are really good.

Though this batch is pre-ground, there are still some nice aromas of tangy fruit and sweet wood from the bag. Once brewed it still has glimmers of the flavors found in the aromas, but really becomes nondescript fairly fast.

 I wish this was whole bean, and much fresher, but when it's on sale for less than $6 for the 11 oz bag, I'm not complaining too loudly. It beats the more expensive Charbucks product just down the aisle, and is lightyears better than what's usually in the office coffee pot.

Cultiva Colombia Huila

Cultiva Colombia Huila

I love a local roaster than knows his beans from his bollocks and first crack from his ass crack. Cultiva is a fine roaster from Lincoln Nebraska, and this Colombia Huila is a sweet coffee. The Huila region of Colombia is on the southeastern slopes of the Andes mountain range, and is as rich a coffee-growing situation as any other.

Just opening the bag of medium-roast beans unleashes a delightful aroma of butterscotch and sweet fruit with an Amaretto-like note. Freshly ground, the coffee is a soft brown with blonde flecks and has an even more delightful aroma then the whole beans. Forget sniffing glue, boys; run some of these beans through your burr grinder and huff away.

Don't rush, don't burn your tongue, but it's hard to resist with the aromas coming off this coffee. Sipping brings bright, sweet flavors of coffee, fruit and wood. Not bitter at all, this is good stuff. I wouldn't waste this coffee by pairing it with anything too bold, like a heavy Nicaraguan cigar. Perhaps a Fuente Hemingway or Diplomaticos no. 4.

Trader Joe's Medium Roast

There are times when a medium roast coffee hits the spot, especially as a change-up to a dark-roasted coffee rut. Trader Joe's coffees come in generously-sized 14 oz cannisters, and at moderate prices.

Trader Joe's Medium Roast is arabica beans toasted to a soft brown City or City+ roast, and not oily at all. A little dryish to look at, really. Once through the burr grinder, you get some little blonde flecks here and there, and the aroma is a bright, woody smell.

After an appointment with Mr. Coffee (auto-drip), some smooth wood, just on the border of grassy, and coffee flavors abound. Just as it looks and sounds, a medium roast. A nice complement to a mild Dominican cigar with a shade-grown Connecticut wrapper, or dovetailing nicely with the floral twang of a Juan Lopez or Bolivar petit corona.

Archer Farms Nicaragua El Paraiso

Archer Farms Nicaragua El Parasio

You can get some great coffee at Target. Really, you can. Their house brand, Archer Farms, has some excellent fair trade and direct trade coffees available in both ground and whole bean. One of my recent favorites is the Nicaragua El Paraiso.

Finca El Paraiso is near Matagalpa, in central Nicaragua, a fair 3,000+ feet above sea level.The rich, volcanic soils and abundant rainfall there are excellent conditions for coffee.

A lovely, oily dark roast, flavors are dark earth, bitter cocoa with a subtle sweet fruit note. A cup of this dovetails perfectly, not surprisingly, with my favorite Nicaraguan cigars. Mates well with Oliva, Pepin, or even Padron.

Regular price is close to $8 for the 11 oz bag, but the sale price usually gets below $6.50. Keep your eyes open if you're a regular Target shopper.

Connoisseur, NOT

Heaven save us from the connoisseurs!

The word 'connoisseur' is a derivation from the French 'connaisseur', which translates (roughly) to English as 'insufferably snooty bastard.' I'm sure you've known one or two:

-The guy who only smokes Cuban cigars, and thinks all others as equivalent to Swisher Sweets
-The guy who only brews freshly ground coffee that he's roasted himself, thinking store-bought ground coffee is akin to necrophilia
-The guy who flashes his exspendy watch, going on about the Breitling 17 movement versus the ETA 2836

A Hugh Jass Rant

I even shy away from the label of 'aficionado,' as I'm not a metrosexual male who would light his Opus X with a $20 bill, while standing over his Titleist Pro 1V on the 3rd fairway at Pebble Beach. Actually, I'm a working schlub that prefers puffing an Oliva Serie O, while blasting my Noodle+ out of a bunker at my local municipal course. (By the by, The Serie O is a great golf cigar; good enough to really enjoy, classy enough to not embarrass you when giving one to a stranger, and cheap enough that you won't cry when you accidentally drop it into a muddy divot.)

I like humble geekery; being passionate about something and then delving deeply into the craft/trade/process that excites you. Plus, being a geek doesn't necessarily involve being a pretentious prick and looking down your nose at people that know/care less than you do.

If someone has to stick a label on me, I guess that 'Hugh Jass' fits just as well as any other.