Burundi Rwiri Yagikawa

Yagikawa has a spiced sweetness in fragrance and aroma, with delicate, bright top notes that carry over into the cup. Loose leaf tea, shaved lemon peel, unrefined sugars emanate from the ground coffee when kept to City roast level. Though the sweetness is somewhat transparent in the light roasts, it leans toward raw, turbinado types with a little more roast development. The cooling coffee opens up to hints of all-spice powder, a subtle whiff of lemon in the nose, and tea-like accents of chamomile and buckwheat teas that linger long in the aftertaste. A bright backbone structures the cup flavors, and has a grabby citrus side to the acidic impression. The level of sweetness increases with deeper roast development. Flavors of bittersweet dark chocolate are dotted with intimations of spiced raisin cookie. I didn't give it the 'official' espresso recommendation since there are currently a few other Burundi's with better body more well-suited for espresso in my opinion. But I happened to roast a batch to Full City, and while I thought the bittering roast flavors didn't suit brewed coffee, I found it ticked off a lot of boxes for a good single origin espresso, especially if you like a vibrant shot!