Oddly Correct – Gerardino Tecano Experimental Process

Oddly Correct is one of my favorite local Kansas City coffee shops/roasteries, so I’m always excited to try new coffees from them whenever I get the chance. This review looks at their Gerardino Tecano, an experimentally processed coffee from La Finca Primavera in Colombia. I found this coffee to be extremely easy and pleasant to drink with nice, balanced acidity. You can purchase it directly from Oddly Correct here, for $16 for an 8oz bag.

Disclaimer: This is a complimentary sample from Oddly Correct. Oddly Correct is not an advertiser and this is not a paid review (nor are any others on this site). The cost of the coffee did not affect the outcome of this review. 

I don’t know a lot about the processing that went into this coffee, but it is a washed coffee from Finca La Primavera in Colombia. A bit of research yielded some information about incredible coffees coming from a farm called La Primavera in Colombia and coffee from that plantation won Cup of Excellence in 2011. I’m not sure if that’s the same farm or not, but based on how this coffee from Oddly Correct turned out, it wouldn’t surprise me if it’s the same farm. The processing uses both lactic and acetic fermentation.

Fermentation is part of the processing of washed coffees in which the hulled “beans” (seeds, really) are put in a tank with yeasts that ferment sugars from the mucilage layer left after hulling. This breaks down a lot of this sticky layer, but it also creates a variety of compounds that can end up giving the coffee seeds some of their flavor profile that can make it into your cup.

Oddly Correct’s Gerardino Tecano is a delightful cup of coffee to drink out of the AeroPress as well as through a Gino (Kalita, basically) dripper. It has nice acidity that carries through the entire sip into the finish and aftertaste and creates a very refreshing cup of coffee. This acidity carries through nicely from right after brewing until the coffee is at room temperature. It carries some berry notes but also a lot of apple juice flavors for me and I do pick up some of the raisin later in the aftertaste mentioned in the tasting notes on the packaging.

The acidity in this coffee feels “softer” to me than it can from some bolder, more bracing coffees I’ve had. I have no idea if fermentation in coffee works like beer, but I know some of my favorite sour beers are fermented using lactic acid and they can produce a bright, but round instead of edgy acidity. Maybe it works the same in coffee!

The guys at Oddly Correct told me this coffee also works as espresso and I found that to be true. As espresso it is quite bright but not nearly the acid bomb I’ve tasted in other coffees. It had a nice sweet balance, just like it does as dripped coffee, and a medium body with a dark chocolatey aftertaste. As good as it is as espresso, however, I think this coffee is just amazing dripped. It’s super-easy to drink, very balanced and has wonderfully sweet fruit notes that are unique, yet familiar and pleasant. Another masterfully roasted coffee from Oddly Correct!