In March we bought a washed lot from Huila and called it Huila on the shelf. In July the lot ran out. The importer had another one from the same region, so we cupped it, bought it, and the shelf still says Huila. It is not the same coffee, and this is the note we owe you about it.
What stayed
The region, the process and the roast. Both lots are washed coffees from the south of Huila, around 1,700 metres, and both go through the drum the same way: a filter roast, first crack at about nine minutes, out ninety seconds later. If you brew the new bag exactly like the old one you will get a good cup.
What moved
The March lot was Caturra and read as red apple with a caramel finish. The July lot is mostly Pink Bourbon, and it is brighter: more citrus, less caramel, a shorter finish that some of us at the bench prefer and some do not. On the bag the tasting notes changed from “red apple, caramel” to “mandarin, panela”. The price did not move.
If you liked the March lot for its weight, grind one step finer and use water two degrees cooler. It brings the sweetness forward and rounds the acidity off.
Why we do not blend across lots
The easy answer would have been to buy both, mix them, and keep the label the way it was. A lot of roasters do, and the coffee is fine. We do not, because a blend that has to taste the same in March and in October is a promise you keep by hiding what changed. We would rather tell you the lot moved, put the new notes on the bag, and let you decide whether you want it.
Lot twelve will run out around November. The next one will be a different coffee again, and it will say so.