Coffee Review: Counter Culture Farmhouse Organic

Counter Culture Coffee is one of those coffee companies you mention in the same breath with Intelligentsia and Stumptown. They are the companies who've been on the leading edge of specialty coffee for the last decade or two. Counter Culture is based in Durham, NC, and have been in business since 1995.

The company is known for several things: education, sustainability and good coffee.  Education is a priority for Counter Culture. They have training centers in various cities. The goal is the educate not just the coffee industry and lovers, but anyone who wants to learn more about coffee.

Counter Culture works with farmers and artisans who believe in sustainability. They encourage farming which will reduce harm to the planet. While there are various direct of fair trade programs out there. Counter Culture their own certification, which encourage sustainable growing practices.

Coffee, of course is the one thing they are most known for. They work with smaller estate farms and cooperatives to source the best possible coffee. This brings us to today's coffee.

Farmhouse Organic is an unusual coffee, well not the coffee itself, but the idea behind it. At various times of the year you will not have the same Farmhouse twice. They roast and package the most recently harvested coffee. So one season it may be a Guatemalan coffee, the next it could be from Indonesia.

In this case, I am drinking coffee from Finca Nueva Armenia, Guatemala. According to the package, the coffee was roasted within the last month. I purchased it at The Fresh Market. This morning, I made it in our French Press.

This is a medium roast coffee(on the lighter side, or so it looked). Counter Culture doesn't provide notes on this coffee, so I can't review that with you. Here is what I got from the coffee: The first taste has a sweetness to it I didn't expect. I get a chocolate from it. As I savor the flavor of the coffee, I also get some berry notes. You get a strong taste at first sip, but it mellows and it goes back.

This is a very nice coffee. I enjoyed it as my morning cup. The last few days I've had Eight O'Clock Coffee, and this, as you would hope, is a better, fresher cup of coffee. It does give a good comparison between fresh and not as fresh coffee. It's a smooth cup of coffee, and on our Cher scale of strength, this is a 6 out of 10. Imagine Cher singing her "Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves" number in a Bob Mackie creation, and you'll be humming along, but not really rocking.

My goal is to try the various versions of this coffee over the course of the next year to see what differences there. If you don't have Counter Culture in a grocery store near you, you can shop on their website....

www.counterculturecoffee.com

Charlie