My bag arrives in a decorative box. 

Nariño single-origin label coffee beans are big and plump compared to another Colombian bean I happened to have on hand. 

My bag arrives in a decorative box. 

Continuing my unofficial, sporadic "what's in Matthew's inbox to review" series: 

Today's featured item is a Colombian coffee — my personal favorite country of origin, hence why I said yes to a sample — named Amor Perfecto. 

What partly caught my eye in my email inbox was mention of this "first Colombian roasted-at-origin coffee" and "the most direct supply chain ever to exist in the coffee industry."

The company isn't new, but apparently its coffees are available for direct-shipping to the U.S. marketplace for the first time. From a release:

"Americans can now get Colombian coffee that has been roasted high in the mountains of Colombia shipped directly to their door within just a few weeks of the beans being harvested. Almost every other coffee that we drink in the US comes via a coffee distributor that buys green beans from the farms, ships them to the US for roasting, which means the beans are already 24-144 weeks old before we can buy them, which can drastically change their flavor." 

The company notes existing distribution in "every top hotel, restaurant, grocery store and café in Bogota," where the company began as a "bootleg coffee roasting operation" in 1997: 

"At that time, it was illegal to roast and serve Colombian-grown coffee beans within the country. Green coffee beans were too valuable a commodity and were exclusively sold for export. While Colombians grew some of the best coffee in the world, they had to drink imported lower quality coffee ... 

Luis Fernando Velez, the Founder of Amor Perfecto, was determined to change the law and build a better coffee culture and economy for Colombians. In 2003 the laws changed due to Luis’ lobbying efforts, establishing Amor Perfecto as the pioneer of fresher, better-tasting coffee that is roasted at origin and even fresher than locally roasted beans."

We hear a lot in Colorado about how our altitude affects many aspects of cooking, particularly baking. Amor Perfecto claims that roasting in Colombia's mountains (where there's less oxygen) yields "the freshest coffee ever."

Which is where they lost me for a moment as my eyes rolled back in my head over the superlative language. I tuned back in at the note of their coffees being sustainably grown and processed. I also thought it was cool that they say their process for growing, harvesting and roasting "is decolonizing the practices of the 400-year-old coffee industry. Helping farmers earn double the fair-trade rate to support community health and growth." 

Anyhoo, the sample I'm sent is the company's flagship, single-origin Nariño label from beans off a family-run farm. You can click on the above photo to read the detailed profile of the medium roast, which in-part notes Colombian coffees' defining chocolate elements, plus fruit aromas and flavors, citrus descriptors and a sweetness likened to panela sugar. There's also a milling date and roast date stamped on each bag. 

I played with making it different ways at home (pourover, French press, Aeropress) over the course of a week and made rough notes with each rendition. Overall, I really like this coffee and it holds some impressive depth of flavor. Turns out one of my favorite tastings was the least fussy and purist-minded to make: the French press. And though I tried the coffee sans inputs initially, I found the smallest touch of cream really brought out the chocolate undertones in each version. The French press resulted in the smoothest of sips, too.  

I don't claim to be the most advanced coffee cupper, so take my observations for what you will. Firstly, I don't pick up the described aromas of red berries and chocolate; out of the bag and after a grind, the beans have a fairly pungent musty smell, pleasant to those of us who like a strong whiff of coffee beans I'd say, and a promissory note of robust flavors to come. 

This Nariño bean holds a pretty creamy texture and certainly isn't thin across the palate. I don't perceive a lot of natural sweetness as described, but I can see the comparison to a natural sugar that has its molasses intact. 

The pourover resulted in a more stringent, acidic cup, brighter and teasing the sides of my tongue more, with a bittersweet chocolate taste. One sip started my mouth salivating. 

The Aeropress resulted in less citric stringency, hitting more on the top of the tongue. It felt like the preferred preparation for the most chocolate forwardness and richness, especially once I added the splash of cream. This one compelled me to grab a piece of dark chocolate to pair with my cup, for a full hedonistic experience in the morning hours. 

I'll still support our local coffee roasters (here at our high altitude) when it comes to stocking my kitchen regularly. But I'm glad to know about this high-quality Colombian coffee for potential gifting or an occasional treat. I do appreciate cutting out the extra carbon footprint (of sending beans through a middle-person whether for distribution or roasting, etc.) by buying direct from the source. 

If Amor Perfecto's claims are accurate as seen on their website for the Nariño, $10.55 stays in Colombia for growers and producers when this coffee's purchased vs. only $2.34 "from the traditional model." That would certainly have an outsized impact on many peoples' lives, inside a global industry where the words "fair-trade" reportedly aren't always very truthful. Here's one easily found online source on that topic. 

Nariño single-origin label coffee beans are big and plump compared to another Colombian bean I happened to have on hand. 

Matthew Schniper is the Food and Drink Editor at the Colorado Springs Indy. He began freelancing with the Indy in mid-2004 and joined full-time in early 2006, contributing arts, food, environmental and feature writing.

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