Getting the best result from your coffee is a fun process of trial and error. The flavours of the coffee are naturally dependent on the regional and varietal flavour profiles and growing conditions, but also on the roast type and brewing methods. For this reason, the process of finding the methods that produce the best coffee from your beans, as fun and tasty as it is, can be quite lengthy.

To help you brew better and faster, we have provided some brewing recommendations!

 

Burundi Nkongwe Hill, MuyangeTasting Notes

 

The Burundi Nkongwe Hill, Muyange single origin coffee is primarily best suited to alternative brew methods, as they are able to bring out more of the fruity and subtle acidic flavours in the coffee that can sometimes be lost in espresso.

 

Brewing Recommendations for Burundi Nkongwe Hill, Muyange

 

As an espresso the Burundi is soft and light, but with a smooth rich flavour, great as a black or milk coffee (smaller cups in milk coffee so the flavour is still strong). It works well as a mocha as well, as the chocolate notes in the espresso blend well with cocoa.

This coffee is a bit temperamental in terms of the temperature: you’ll get a pleasant coffee with the 90 degree sweet spot, but the best results will come from a wider variety of temperatures. What was most surprising about the Burundi was how well it went in the AeroPress, which was the clear winner for us out of all the brew methods. The Burundi in all methods is a pleasant, rainy-afternoon drinking coffee.

 

Espresso Recipe

The Burundi really excels as a mocha. The rich chocolate and malty, chocolate and caramel tones of the Burundi work together beautifully to produce a really smooth rich mocha flavour. The espresso doesn’t bring out many of the fruity notes in this coffee, so it’s perfect for mochas. 

 

Dose: 22-23g Time: 30-32 sec Shot Volume: 60ml Chocolate Volume: 15-17g Milk Volume: 12 oz, Medium Cup Grind Level: Espresso / Very Fine                                                       Flavour Rating: 7/10

French Press Recipe 

  

The Burundi brewed best at a much higher temperature in the French Press. We tried the 90 degrees initially, but the flavour was underwhelming, so we really heated things up and brewed at 95 degrees instead. Let the brew sit for about 45 seconds to 1 minute after serving, giving it time to cool, and you will notice a medium acidity, soft body with a burst of sweet berry flavours across the palette and a quick clean finish.

 

Dose: 20g Water Volume: 200ml Time: 2 mins Temperature: 95 C Bloom: 40g for 30 secs Grind Level: French Press / Very Coarse                                      Flavour Rating: 8/10

Pour Over Recipe 

The Burundi pour over was a sweet, mild and clean finishing coffee. We tried this one at 90 degrees originally as well, but again there wasn’t much flavour, so we took it up to 92 degrees with great results. Again it had a medium acidity and soft body with some lovely sweet notes, but also had a smooth malt, almost like caramel, flavour.

 

Dose: 20g Water Volume: 300ml Time: 2:30 mins Break: Break for 10 secs at 180g (around 1:10mins) Temperature: 92 C Bloom: 40g for 30 secs Grind Level: Paper Filter / Medium-Coarse                                 Flavour Rating: 8/10

  

AeroPress Recipe 

The Burundi in the AeroPress was an interesting brew and we ended up making three attempts at getting this one right – so definitely be precise when you’re brewing with this one. We took the temperature lower than ever before – down to 84 degrees! The result was worth it though and AeroPress was the clear winner. It still had the medium acidity and soft body, but as it cooled it developed this beautiful raspberry jam flavour, plenty of sugar and berry sweetness, with just a hint of raspberry tartness. An all-round pleasant and easy-drinking coffee.

 

Dose: 19g Water Volume: 200ml Time: 2 mins Temperature: 84 C Grind Level: AeroPress / Medium GrInd                                 Flavour Rating: 8/10