It's Common Sense! - Your First New Coffee of the New Year
Welcome to Part 1 of our series introducing you to new coffees from small roasters in Tennessee. If you missed the intro last week, click here to see why small roasters are where you're going to find the best coffees.
Our first roast of 2021 comes from our friends at Broast Tennessee Coffee Roasters in Cookeville, Tennessee. We've been working with Broast for several months, and, besides their coffees, their love for their community has won our hearts. We'll share more about Broast in the coming weeks.
Brew and Tasting Methods
Before we jump in, it's worth noting that my own tasting notes are based on brewing coffee in a standard electric drip pot and drinking it black. Before you make a face at me for not doing a proper cupping, hear me out. I've chosen to do this for two reasons.
Keeping It Real
The first reason is that the majority of coffee-enjoying folks don't have a several-thousand-dollar coffee bar set up at home. We have a $20 coffee maker we got from a big box store or yard sale (hopefully we cleaned it thoroughly before use). I don't want to recommend a coffee that tastes like the songs of cherubs in springtime only when brewed in a way that's inaccessible to many of us. Ok, maybe I will from time to time, but mostly we'll stick with straightforward, easy to duplicate mugfuls of deliciousness.
Keeping It Consistent
The second reason is a quality control measure on my part. I like a creamy, syrupy latte as much as the next person, but to critique and select the most exceptional coffees, it was important to compare apples to apples... or black coffee to black coffee. In the process, I discovered there's a remarkable variety of flavors in coffee, not just in creamer, sweeteners, or other add-ins. As a former drinker of milk and sugar with a little coffee, I'll say I've been converted to a black coffee drinker. It is now my preferred way to enjoy coffee. You might just join the black coffee club too after you taste some of these specialty roasts!
Without further ado, on to the coffee!
Common Sense, by Broast Tennessee Coffee Roasters
We are kicking things off with a Broast roast called Common Sense. This is an ideal roast to start with in your exploration of new specialty coffees. It does particularly well as a drip coffee, and the name couldn't be more perfect.
Roast level: medium
Origin: Brazil & Colombia
Broast's notes: super smooth with rich nutty and chocolate notes
My notes: sweet, chocolaty, good base medium roast
By "good base," I mean it's enjoyable black and would also do nicely with added creamers or sweeteners to your liking. Common Sense tastes like, well, a delicious cup of no nonsense coffee. And really, what better way to start out the new year?
You can pick up a bag of Common Sense here. Once you've given it a try, leave a comment below with your own tasting notes!
Thank you for following along and for supporting small businesses like Red Eye Bistro and our roasters. We truly appreciate you. Check back next week to discover another coffee from a small roaster in Tennessee!
Cheers!
Amy, Founder of Red Eye Bistro