Fortuna Roaster Series - What Is A Peaberry?
William Barton, Head Roaster | Fortuna Enterprises, LLC
- William Barton
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| Image from: Coffee Brewing Methods |
What Is A Peaberry?
Coffee 'beans' are actually just the hidden seeds of a fruit known commonly as a 'coffee cherry'. Each cherry contains two seeds that grow along side each other. What we call a 'peaberry' is a natural mutation occurring in roughly five per cent of all cherries in which only a single round seed is produced. As these variations are relatively uncommon, some producers choose to hand select and separate each peaberry for sale, usually at a premium.
Characteristics of Peaberry Coffee:
Peaberry coffees have a reputation for excellent quality, clarity, and tasty, unique flavors. A common misconception is that this is because the coffee cherry’s nutrients are condensed into a single seed rather than two; this isn’t exactly true. The quality that peaberries are characterized by actually comes from their careful separation from the masses of other surrounding beans. This hand selection ensures that only the best beans with no defects are selected and sent to the roaster. Also, because of their round shape, peaberries roast evenly. This attention to detail with peaberries results in a clean and flavorful cup of coffee.
Our Current Peaberry Offerings:
Papua New Guinea:
We introduced our Papua New Guinea Tsekaka Peaberry last month to enormous fanfare. Tsekaka is the name of the tribe indigenous to the Papua New Guinea Highlands; over forty years ago, the tribe purchased the local coffee mill and its surrounding farm. They act as a cooperative, buying coffee cherries from small farmers in the area in addition to growing their own.
You can expect brown-sugar sweetness in this cup as well as hints of melon and cherry.
Rwanda:
We're extremely excited to introduce our newest addition this month: a wonderfully complex Rwanda. Coming from the rapidly growing Misozi Abakundakawa group, the sale of this coffee helps the cooperative invest in programs and infrastructure for its farmers and their families.
We roast this Rwanda peaberry light to preserve its wonderful tangerine and apricot acidity.
Tanzania:
We’ve been offering Tanzania peaberry since the doors to the Fortuna Roasting Room opened several years ago, and we see no end in sight for these beans. Lately we’ve been bringing in peaberry from the Burka Estates, one of the oldest operating mills and farms in Tanzania which has been around since 1899. All of this is to say... they know what they’re doing and our customers couldn’t agree more.
Our Tanzania is light with a bit of blackberry acidity balanced by bittersweet walnut.
- William Barton
Roast Master
Fortuna Enterprises, LLC
Fortuna Enterprises - Want it all? We have it all!
Established in 2000, Fortuna Enterprises is the consummate leader in providing complete and comprehensive solutions for all of your coffee shop needs. Located in Greensboro, NC, Fortuna excels in unparalleled customer service by offering specialty roasted small-batch coffee, a fully stocked warehouse, imports, design, equipment repair, consulting, barista training, and more!
We are compelled to be the unsurpassed authority for all coffee shop requirements. We use this drive to continue our extensive research in carefully selecting only the highest quality coffees, equipment, syrups and other coffee shop necessities. Our products have a proven record of premium industry performance and unmatched reliability. We buy large quantities from our suppliers so we are in turn able to negotiate extremely competitive pricing for our customers.
We look forward to hearing from you about how we can take you from concept to completion!
Established in 2000, Fortuna Enterprises is the consummate leader in providing complete and comprehensive solutions for all of your coffee shop needs. Located in Greensboro, NC, Fortuna excels in unparalleled customer service by offering specialty roasted small-batch coffee, a fully stocked warehouse, imports, design, equipment repair, consulting, barista training, and more!
We are compelled to be the unsurpassed authority for all coffee shop requirements. We use this drive to continue our extensive research in carefully selecting only the highest quality coffees, equipment, syrups and other coffee shop necessities. Our products have a proven record of premium industry performance and unmatched reliability. We buy large quantities from our suppliers so we are in turn able to negotiate extremely competitive pricing for our customers.
We look forward to hearing from you about how we can take you from concept to completion!
