Onyx Coffee Lab La Palma Jose Forero Lot #25

Jose Forero courtesy of La Palma y El Tucan
Jose Forero courtesy of La Palma y El Tucan

We’re finally (and sadly) at the end of the Colombian microlot samples I received from Onyx Coffee Lab. This coffee is a mixed varietal grown on the Las Marias farm in Payacal, Colombia by Jose Forero. It was was washed and underwent lactic acid fermentation by the expert hands of La Palma y El Tucan. This coffee can be purchased directly from Onyx for $22/bag.

I found this coffee to be a bit thinner in body and had the shortest aftertaste of Onyx’s La Palma lots. The lactic fermentation character was also more subtle on this coffee than it was on the other ones, and it was a bit less complex and more straightforward, yet no less enjoyable, than the other coffees in this Colombian microlot series.

There were hints of cherry and lime in the high notes of this sample, which I brewed using my Gino dripper (like a Kalita 185) using 30g of coffee to 450g of water with a 4:00 total brew time. The slight lactic sourness and the cherry limeade-like fruitiness was juicy and inviting on my palate and it made me want to drink this coffee quite quickly! I also found a grape soda character to the sweetness of this coffee and a lingering, but pleasantly refreshing “sourness” from the lactic ferment that sat on my tongue in the aftertaste.

While this wasn’t the most complex of the La Palma lactic fermentation lots it was no less enjoyable. I particularly enjoyed the grape soda qualities I got from this coffee and this was probably the easiest drinker from a group of coffees that I found inviting and wonderfully consistent in their quality as a whole. Get this one while you can!