Santa Petrona Review: Dark Matter

This last week I was in Chicago, and I got to visit some new places for coffee, as well as trying a new coffee from an old friend. I have never been to the Star Lounge, where Dark Matter Coffee is served. I braved the cold and snow, and ventured to the Ukranian Village neighborhood where the Star Lounge is located. I was glad I did.

The Star Lounge is a coffee bar, which if you didn't know better, was a local bar. The atmosphere was like walking into Cheers, where if you are a regular, everyone knows your name(and coffee drink).  In addition to the bar, there's an area where you can get your "to go" items, as well as buying a bag of beans.

After spending a few minutes looking at the various types of coffee available, I chose El Salvador: Santa Petrona. According to Dark Matter this coffee comes from Finka Santa Petrona, the "holy grail of coffee farms in El Salvador." It is a Bourbon coffee, which went through a natural process.

For those not clear, a natural process is when the the coffee berries are dried with the seed inside. The beans are dried, much like a grape to a raisin. Natural processed coffees tend to heavier feel and intense flavors. Speaking of flavors, on the bag, the flavors listed are "Strawberry Shortcake, Raspberry and Vanilla.

This morning I opened the bag, and made a French Press pot of this coffee. When I opened the bag, I smelled a strong nutty aroma. As I drank the coffee, the nutty flavor was the predominant flavor. I'll be honest, I didn't taste what Dark Matter described on the bag. I got almost a hazelnut flavor. It was a smooth coffee, definitely a lighter roast. I think the light roast fooled me, because I wasn't expecting the intense flavor.

This is a mellow coffee, as far as the strength. This is a love tap, 1 on our scale of 1-10. If you want to ease into the morning, this is the coffee. If you want an afternoon coffee, to remind you there is work to do, it would be fine for that.

Did I like the coffee? I was ok with the coffee. I am not a nut flavored kind of guy, so this coffee didn't strike me was something I would get on a regular basis. Still it was a good cup of a coffee, and if you want to try something different, I would recommend this.

Charlie