$ 23.00
Dario Rodriguez is back in the Huck lineup, and while his Pink Bourbon variety is an extra-special treat, we’re also roasting up some of his more “normal” coffee and slinging it in slightly less-fancy packaging. Hard air quotes around that “normal” though, because Dario’s other coffee is also delicious!
We’ve been buying coffee from the Desarollo Growers Association for years now, and two years back, our head roaster Shelby singled out Dario Rodriguez and his pink bourbon variety for special release. For the second year running, we went all-in on Dario, and are roasting up not just his extra-special pink stuff, but also his very tasty, “normal” coffee. It’s a touch less in-your-face, but still bright, sweet, and super enjoyable.
In a world where mono-cropping has taken over much of the Colombian mountainsides, Dario aims to create an old-world farm with organic and sustainable practices. While his main source of income is his coffee, Dario has only planted 11 of his 16 hectares with coffee trees. Why, you ask? Because Dario knows that the key to long-term success is biodiversity. Mono-cropping (planting only one type of crop in an area) can easily destroy a delicate ecosystem, cause major erosion and kill the nutrient rich soil.
From macro to micro, Dario has his operation molded into a symbiotic ecosystem. The ash from his stove and the scraps from his kitchen go into his compost. His chickens eat the fallen, overripe cherries off of the ground to control the insects, and they, in turn, fertilize the soil. The shade crops he planted exist to draw the right kind of wildlife, enticing the indigenous species back to the land, creating the bustling environment needed for truly phenomenal coffee. Not much happens by accident on Dario's farm, and that intention is something that we can taste in the cup.
Dario’s “normcore” coffee - primarily, but probably not only Colombia variety - combines bright fruit with more traditional and expected Latin American sweetness. We’re tasting molasses, boysenberry, and blood orange here, and this one’s coming in a full 12 oz bag.
*** for roasting schedule, shipping, receiving & additional information, please visit out Frequently Asked Questions . And, for a primer on coffee processing, check out our Processing Basics Guide. ***
$ 21.00
Natural Ethiopia is back in the Huck lineup, and we’re kicking things off with this juicy and complex fruitbomb from the village of Worka Chelbesa and Danche Washing Station! Sweet, juicy berry flavors are the main attraction here, and they’re complemented by some delicious florals and citrus.
SNAP Specialty Coffees has impressed us quite a bit over the last few years. They’ve exported and dry milled some of our favorite coffees from the Guji Zone, but also own a few washing stations throughout Ethiopia. This is the second year we'll be showcasing coffees from their stations in Worka Chelbesa. Worka Chelbesa is the highest kebele (village) in the Gedeb municipality, and Gedeb is well-known for producing some of the best coffees in Ethiopia's famous Yirgacheffe region.
Several years ago, SNAP built its first washing in Worka Chelbesa, and named it after the town. After a few seasons with one station, Snap decided to build a second, newer station, closer to some of the more remote farmers, and named it Danche. This year we'll have two delicious coffees from Danche - this full natural fruitbomb and the return of last year's all-star, the experimental washed lot named after station manager Marcelo.
Berries, tropical fruit, jammy goodness, with a touch of florality and citrus to mix things up. This one’s for all you fruity coffee lovers out there - we hope you enjoy this one as much as we do.
For questions about roast and ship details, please visit our FAQ page!
*washing station photos courtesy Snap Coffees.
View full product details$ 20.00
Last year marked our first foray into Indian coffee, and we're back for round two!
While coffees from India are a relative rarity on US specialty roasters' menus, coffee in India has a storied history, tracing back further than any country besides Ethiopia and Yemen. Indian coffee dates to the late 1600s when, according to legend, a Sufi pilgrim named Baba Budan smuggled coffee seeds from the Arabian Peninsula, planting them in the Western Ghat mountain range.
Despite the long history, we haven't always associated Indian coffees with the qualities we seek out at Huck, and we had steered clear of coffees from mainland Asia until last year. Over the past few years though, producers in India, China, and Myanmar, to name a few countries, have raised the bar for specialty coffee in Asia, and we've had to reconsider our preconceived notions. Gundhikan and Ratnagiri Estates are among the producers that have forced us to open our minds to coffees from mainland Asia, and both happen to lie in Chikmagalur, India, the same region where Baba Budan purportedly planted his smuggled seeds.
Ashok and Divya Patre are 3rd-generation coffee and pepper farmers, and for the past decade or so, the family has focused on innovative processing techniques and equipment to push flavor potential at Ratnagiri Estate. In this case, Ratnagiri produced a traditional washed coffee, and the result is a clean, approachable window into Indian coffee, without too much processing intervention. With notes of walnut, graham cracker + cocoa, spice, and baked, our second year of Ratnagiri is low acidity, milk-friendly, and easy-drinking.
*** for roasting schedule, shipping, receiving & additional information, please visit out Frequently Asked Questions . And, for a primer on coffee processing, check out our Processing Basics Guide. ***
Pictured: Ashok + Divya Patre at Ratnagiri Estate, courtesy Osito Coffee.
View full product details$ 22.00
Our final single origin Peru from the 2023 harvest comes to us from the Silva-Fernandez family, led by Merci Fernandez! Merci's a young farmer, cupping lab manager, and all-around badass based in the Colosay area of Northern Peru, ands exactly the type of producer we’re excited to partner with: experimental, young, and passionate about coffee, with a bright future ahead of her.
We first met Merci on our trip to Peru in August of 2021, when we took a day trip up to Origin Coffee Lab’s purchase station in Colosay. Origin is the exporter we work with in Peru, and a recipient of the Specialty Coffee Association's annual sustainability award.
At that point Merci was running Origin's acopio in Colosay - a small cupping lab, purchase station, and warehouse catering to farmers in the area. Merci continues to run the Colosay acopio and work with her parents, Felix and Violeta, on their farm, Finca La Pomarrosa. But in the the years since, Merci's taken on more and more responsibility with Origin, too, working as an agronomic and processing advisor for other farmers in the network. And we've had the chance to meet Felix + Violeta, too. The combo of the family working together on-farm, coupled with Merci's knowledge and drive, seem to be a magic recipe for quality.
Finca La Pomarrosa sits at 1800 meters and above in the village of La Higuera, and the Silva-Fernandez family has mostly a local variety called "Colosay Bourbon." In reality, it's not a bourbon at all, but a disease-resistant hybrid, but the quality can be incredible, and lends the coffee in the Colosay area a unique profile. Additionally, La Pomarrosa processes Huckleberry's coffee using a variation on the washed process that they and Origin Coffee Lab call "fruta madura." It's a washed coffee, but with a prolonged in-cherry fermentation before depulping, followed by a prolonged under-water fermentation after depulping and before washing. All those factors, plus some careful roasting here in Denver, help create a cup we love, with big purple fruit, syrupy body, and big sweetness.
We’re tasting black plum and raspberry, balanced with notes of caramel and pastry. With both body and balanced fruit, La Pomarrosa is pure, chuggable deliciousness!
*** For roasting schedule, shipping, receiving & additional information, please visit out Frequently Asked Questions . And, for a primer on coffee processing, check out our Processing Basics Guide. ***
📸: Violeta Silva, Merci + Felix Fernandez at La Pomarrosa
Merci + Maria Alberca, Merci's former co-manager at Origin's Colosay Lab (Maria now works at the Jaen lab, and Merci runs the Colosay show)