I was recently contacted by the nice people at Weekend Coffee Company, based out of Northern California. I like that they’re a family-owned company, and they received the “Editors Choice” award in the 2017 Metro “Best of Silicon Valley” issue. At this time, they’re an online-only business (they don’t operate a storefront/brick-and-mortar coffee shop), but they do have limited hours available for customer pickup if you’re in the Bay Area.
Their normal practice is to ship beans within two days of roasting and they do make note of the roasting dates on the bag. Comforting to know that they take freshness seriously, as should anyone who is passionate about their coffee! They have a good selection of blends and single-origins on their website.
Whole bean: Smelt from the bag, I detected the scent of vanilla wafer cookies. Ground, the beans smelled like plum and almonds.
French press: Extremely smooth cup, almost to the point of dullness (not in flavor, but in acidity). Murky. Slightly grassy aroma.
Chemex: Really clean flavor and body to this cup that had a hint of gingerbread. It had a bit of what most people would interpret as “bitterness” on the finish but it smoothed out as it cooled, revealing more flavors like almond and amaretto. Would be quite nice with cream added.
AeroPress: Thick and robust brew that tasted of dark chocolate and almonds. I didn’t add any additional water than what was used for brewing.
V60: I made this at a 3:25 extraction and it produced a smoother cup than the Chemex, with a classic “coffee” aroma and flavor.
Summary: I haven’t had much experience with Mexican coffee but this is a surprisingly layered one if you choose to brew in a Chemex. I’m a black coffee drinker and my tastes run to the complex side so if you are like me, I’d say try this in a Chemex. If you like “simpler” black coffee, it’s really good in the AeroPress and Hario V60. Like most coffees I’ve had from Mexico, it’s a crowd pleasing brew that would also suit for people that add cream and sugar to their coffee. I’d personally not brew this in a French press as I think the other methods showed off the flavor of these beans better.
Review conducted 7 days post-roast.
Disclaimer: I received this product gratis in exchange for a fair and honest review. Even though I received this for free, I treat and test it the same way as if I had paid for it out of my own pocket.