15th Ave Coffee & Tea

As spring is finally beginning to make itself apparent in Seattle, a new coffee has shown up in the bins at 15^thAvenue Coffee & Tea. Papua New Guinea Peaberry, our latest small batch offering, is a lively coffee with a lot to offer to a variety of palates.

• Description: Lively acidity, herbal, bell pepper, tomato plant
• Processing Method: Washed
• Elevation: 5,200 feet (1,585 meters)
• Coffee Variety: Mondo Novo, Blue Mountain, Typica, Arusha, Caturra, Catimor

Cultivated at an elevation of 1,585 meters, our Papua New Guinea Peaberry offering is produced by the Kimel Estate in the Wahgi Valley near Banz, Papua New Guinea. Previous offerings we have featured from the Asia/Pacific growing region such as those from Sumatra and Sulawesi can be characterized by their heavy body, minimal acidity and an earthy, herbal flavor, which can be attributed to their semi-washed processing method, typical of Indonesian coffees. Unlike the nearby-cultivated Indonesian coffees, the majority of coffee from Papua New Guinea is processed using the wet-processing method (check out Luke’s post below for a more detailed description of this method) to which it can accredit its bright, acidic profile not unlike a Central or Southern American coffee. Coffees from the Kimel Estate are unique among other coffees originating in Papua New Guinea. While many of the plantations in Papua New Guinea control every variable of the production due to their large-scale wet-processing facilities, the Kimel Estate, owned by the Opais Tribe, encompasses a group of individual farms scattered about the 600 hectare estate. Coffee throughout the Kimel estate is made up of a wide variety of cultivars including Mondo Novo, Blue Mountain, Typica, Arusha, Caturra and Catimor. Like a private cooperative, the Kimel Estate processes and enforces quality control at a central wet-mill.

Also unique about this small-batch offering is its classification as a peaberry coffee (click on to enlarge the photo above to compare Papua New Guinea Peaberry, on the right, with 100% Kona, on the left). While typically the fruit of the coffee plant develops as two halves of a bean within a single cherry, peaberries form as one single round bean. A common botanical occurrence in coffee, Peaberries form in 5-10% of Arabica coffee but often go unsorted from the remainder of the crop. While many batches of coffee contain peaberries within them, coffee offerings are only classified as peaberry coffees when they are majorly comprised of peaberry beans.

All around, our Papua New Guinea Peaberry offering is a vibrant coffee teaming herbal flavors of bell pepper and tomato plant with a crisp acidity and a syrupy mouthfeel. Try this coffee Clover-brewed over ice or, for a cleaner cup highlighting the Papua New Guinea Peaberry’s herbal and bright flavors, as a pour-over through one of our Hario V60’s.

If you have any questions about our Papua New Guinea Peaberry offering, or any of the other coffees in our spring line-up, please comment below!

-Amanda