UE Coffee Roasters
UE coffee roasters are an independent family run business from Oxfordshire.
UE has been around for quite a while when it comes to speciality coffee roasters. 2009 to be exact was when Dominic and Daniella opened their doors to showcase the delights of freshly roasted coffee in Oxfordshire.
Their brand is built on the relationships and the community that they have nurtured over the past decade and now are looking to elevate UE roasters to the next level.
To quote directly for UE;
Whether it is the experience had by the customers, in our own retail stores through to our wholesale partners, or that of our team. Experience is something we cherish and harness to be the best we can be.
UE Coffee Roasters like to cultivate talent and spent time training and bettering their team across the board. These guys are certainly driven not only to produce the best quality coffee possible but in the best way possible.
The branding and packaging are fairly new and oozes quality and premium coffee I had a long chat with the Business development manager, Tom about the pros and cons of coffee packaging, which is something I have researched extensively for our coffee subscription boxes. There is certainly a balance between style, practicality, environment, and price and I think that UE has hit the sweet spot.
The coffees that they rotate on their single-origin menu, as well as their blends, are of that quality and premium nature deserving that beautiful branding.
These guys don’t just roast delicious coffee and post sexy Instagram photos though, they also give back.
The barista foundation was launched to make use of the resources and relationships that UE coffee roasters have forged over the last decade and to help groups around the world.
The two charities that they are currently supporting are the Elephant Valley Project in Cambodia and Homeless Oxfordshire.
The EVP is a sanctuary developed for elephants that have spent their lives in captivity and may have been overworked and injured. They have been significantly affected by COVID-related travel restrictions because the majority of their funding comes from tourism. UE make regular donations plus a proportion of their solidarity blend goes towards the cause.
Homeless Oxfordshire is a project a lot closer to home. They work with their clients to develop skills and trades to provide employment. UE are looking to open a sponsored cafe on the site of HO providing all of the equipment for a working cafe and professional training in the intricacies of making great coffee. Whenever someone buys coffee from our online shop, they are given the option to round up the cost of their purchase by a chosen amount.
The Coffee
The Bota Tarrazu coffee from UE Coffee Roasters originates from Costa Rica. A magical country that has a huge amount of biodiversity and is home to some of the most pioneering coffee farms.
Up until fairly recently processing methods in coffee were binary, either natural or the vast majority of the time washed. Honey processing started in Costa Rica when farmers wanted to improve the quality of their coffee and essentially raise the price per kilo of their green beans.
Farmers started to experiment with their coffee and found that a balance between washed and natural was the sweet spot.
Honey processed coffee is picked and pulped in the same way as most washed coffees. Rather than soaking and washing the coffee which eliminates the sweet layer of mucilage as you would with washed coffees, honey processed coffee is dried with the sweet outer layer intact. This effectively transfers some of the sugars into the bean.
This is no easy process though and the drying takes time and care. The farmer has to rake the coffee twice a day for at least a week to make sure the coffee doesn’t dry up and the sugar not transfer into the bean or ferment and become mouldy.
The particular region of Tarrazú is perfect has well-defined rainy and dry seasons and lush with vegetation making it an ideal area for growing coffee.
A cooperative called Coope Dota came about to help farmers in a time when there was huge uncertainty in coffee prices. They started to receive fairer pay for their coffee and help with agricultural practices thanks to the coop, improving quality along the way.
Photo; Monteverde
The Review
Although you should never judge a coffee by its bag as the famous saying goes. I was pretty excited to brew up the Bota Tarrazu From UE. Also, I’m rarely disappointed with Costa Rican coffees so I was pretty sure this was going to be a hit.
Straight away when opening the bag I got notes of bubblegum and certainly some stone fruit. The aromas of the coffee as I brewed a V60 were sweet yet soft and satisfying.
The first few sips were smooth, I notice a fairly light mouthfeel for a honey-process, nothing really overwhelming but enjoyable to drink.
The brew has an overall muted acidity that invites sweet flavours into the middle and end of the sip. A brisk note of hazelnut pairs with honey that lasts through into the aftertaste.
Bubblegum fragrance smoothes out after brewing but notes of stonefruit maybe cherry pair with the hazelnut mid-sip.
The Tarazu is an incredibly approachable coffee with a light structure and sweet flavour that anyone would enjoy.
Brew this guy as you wish. Holds well when subjected to milk and taste brilliant as a pour-over.