Costa Rica Mirazu Catajo Gesha

Lychee aroma really hits from the first sniff. As usual, when I swirl the server, the aroma gets even stronger—clearly floral too, though I’m not sure it’s white flower like the listed notes.

On the palate, the body feels syrupy, with a long aftertaste—comfortable and pleasant. The lychee stays pronounced from the first sniff to the last sip. It’s quite sweet, with the light acidity lychee has. I caught something else in there too, but I still couldn’t tell what it was by the time the beans ran out. My palate isn’t rich enough yet.

I also brewed with a chilling ball… and it felt brighter and cleaner. The trade-off was that sweetness weakened, and the syrupy body thinned. After all, more interesting beans from Costa Rica.

I got a chilling ball around the time I had these beans because I was curious what it could bring out as an alternative to ice. Technically, both bring the aroma out more, lean the palate toward acidity, and soften the body a bit—and it’s true. But the chilling ball works better because it doesn’t make the coffee watery.

From now on, the chilling ball will be part of my brewing experiments. The Icosa server already helps bring the aroma out when I swirl it—and pairing it with the chilling ball will bring out even more.