Monday, March 01, 2010

Mugged: Single Origin Medium [Doi Chaang]

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What does "Mugged" mean?


Subject:
Doi Chaang Coffee
Coffees Mugged:
Single Origin Medium
Rating:
4+ [see key]




Farming coffee often seems like such a distant process in regards to roasting. Especially in my consumption, it seems the only times one sees a farm and roastery combo are with Konas and Jamaican Blue.

But now I can add Thailand to my list, as I was sent a few coffees to try from Thailand coffee cooperative Doi Chaang Coffee. According to their website, the company was started when several tribes of the Doi Chaang village united to sell their premium coffee as single origin coffees to the world. So they put a headquarters in Vancouver, BC and seem to have a pretty slick operation. As I have never had coffee from Thailand and I'm a fan of such ambition, I was excited to see what Doi Chaang had to offer.

I sampled their Single Origin Medium roast first, a coffee that was the lightest of the three coffees sent (though still close to dark) and had also won a 90 from Coffee Review. I ingested the coffee via drip, siphon and french press.

The drip proved smooth, had touches of honey and some bits of clove along with a little bitterness provided by the darkish-ness of the beans. The coffee was thorough in the prior flavors but didn't have much else.

The french press developed the flavors a bit more. This brew was much sweeter, still showing honey and bits of cocoa and cloves. There was more brightness and less bitterness in this cup as well.

The vacuum press was the proverbial baby bear's bed as it was just right. Really sweet honey and cocoa with a noticeable grain-like element, followed with a little clove and a really nice brightness (practically no bitterness in this cup). By far, the best of the three methods for this coffee.

To say the least, I was satiated with this coffee, though it would seem like a good idea to roast it a little lighter to negate the bitter effects all together. If you're looking for a decent medium roast, give Doi Chaang's Single Origin Medium a go.


note: coffee was provided free of charge and the above review is objective feedback.

4 comments:

John said...

Coffee has really taken off in Thailand. Only a few years back you could only get a cup in the top hotels, now coffee shops are springing up everywhere.

After Vietnam's success at developing a major export the Thai government has been encouraging production, especially organic production as part of the Queen's agricultural projects.

Anonymous said...

Hm hm.. that's interessting but to be honest i have a hard time seeing it... I'm wondering what others have to say....

Julie said...

We reviewed it here (http://bit.ly/4ZzIfY), with a lot of background information.

Richard Daniels Photography said...

I recently spent some time at Doi Chaang.It is worth a visit if you are in the area of Chiang Rai, Thailand. The scenery is wonderful as are the people. I have started to document the process of coffee production. If you are interested take a look at http://archive.richarddaniels.com/2010/11/10/doi-chaang-coffee-company-part-1/.

cheers