Last Friday's Stone Creek factory cupping was the first for spring 2008, and ironically one of the snowiest cupping days I've ever hosted. By the end of the day Milwaukee had received somewhere between 14-16 inches. The four coffees we cupped, however, all came from the virtually snowless climes of East Africa. With a fire in the fireplace and both cupping tables full to capacity, we made our way through samples from Kenya, Ethiopia, and Tanzania.

The first sample on the table was a Kenya Peaberry from the Ntongoro district, which our cuppers unanimously described as bright, citrusy, cedary and a touch bitter. I believe the primary reason for some of these defects was a bit of underroasting on my part.

The next sample was an Organic Ethiopian Limu. This coffee had an extremely appealing body and texture, but most of us found the flavor to be a bit flat. Our retail manager, Athena, found more positive attributes in the flavor of the Limu than did the rest of us, discerning hints of cinnamon and spice and ultimately giving the coffee an eight out of ten.

A Kenya AA Tembo was our third sample, and our cupping group was divided on this coffee, several of us giving it sixes and sevens, while Tom gave it a three and Kim thought highly enough of this AA to award it an eight.

The last sample was, fittingly, the very best on the table, and how delightful that it was also a coffee that Stone Creek is currently roasting and selling. This wonderful coffee, a Tanzanian Hope Peaberry, beguiled us with Harrar-like aromas of fruit, berries, and chocolate, then amply rewarded our expectations with the rich flavors of fruit, plum, currant, and molasses. One of our cuppers described it as phenomenal and gave it a ten out of ten. I knew that this was a good coffee, but I wasn't expecting anything this overwhelming from a Tanzanian. My hope is to continue booking this coffee for our spring and summer purchases, and to keep it in our inventory until at least next fall.

As always, our Stone Creek factory cuppings take place every other Friday at 9 a.m. prompt. The next cupping will take place on Friday, April 4th.