Phoenix Coffee Co.
Cleveland, OH, USA
EXPOSURES is a collection of unusual, experimental, and off-the-beaten-path coffees curated to illuminate, demystify and delight. “Koji Supernatural” is a novel processing technique originally developed by Phoenix’s coffee director for this coffee for Kaapo Paavolainen, Finland's Barista Champion and founder of One Day Coffee, ahead of his presentation at the World Barista Championships in Milan in 2021 in collaboration with James Beard-nominated chef Jeremy Umansky from Larder, Higuchi Matsunosuke Shoten Co., a koji producer in Osaka, Japan, and El Vergel in Colombia. Koji, a strain of mold traditionally used across Japan, China and Asia to produce miso, soy sauce, and sake, produces amino acids and enzymes that break down complex starches into fermentable sugars. By culturing koji on coffee cherry, we are able to enhance its aroma, sweetness, acidity, and structure. The team at El Vergel in Colombia led by Elias and Shady Bayter masterfully executed this process across several iterations as we worked to create a scalable, affordable process that also required no water and limited infrastructure—so that it could be replicated by coffee producers anywhere in the world. We selected Caturra for this iteration of the process because of its popularity in Colombia and the familiarity of its cup profile. This is a new process, never having been used before—and we're excited to, alongside our friends at Luminous Coffee in Las Vegas who split this lot with us, be the first roaster in the U.S. to offer it after having contributed to its genesis.
Tobacco
Peach
Lime
Type
Single Origin
Origin
Colombia
Roast
Light
Species
Arabica
Varieties
Caturra
Process
Extended Fermentation
Altitude
1350m
Producer
Shady + Elias Bayter
Farm
El Vergel