New year, fresh start—and a reminder that sometimes the problem isn't the coffee.
Bella Vista
Verve Coffee · Latin America · ★★★★☆
January 19, 2025
| Brew Method | Grind Setting |
|---|---|
| Espresso | #7 → #11 (19g) |
Cherry Dream. Black cherry, hazelnut, dark chocolate.
Shut down the first pull at 30 seconds when nothing came out. 7 grind at 19 grams.
After clean and new pull was 60 seconds—11 grind at 19 grams.
Smooth and good.
Four stars. Turns out the issue with December's Esperanza might have been my machine needing a cleaning, not the coffee. Once I sorted that out, Bella Vista was exactly what the tasting notes promised: cherry, hazelnut, chocolate. A proper redemption for the new year.
Next up: February 2025—a tricky Guatemalan that worked great for pour over but fought me on espresso.