Roasteries / Alt.coffee
Alt.coffee
Kyoto, Japan
alt. coffee roasters is a fully vegan, fair-trade Nakagyo Ward micro-roastery serving single-origin light roasts, roasted in-house by owner Chihiro Nakamura.
8
coffees
Japan
base
Location
Coffees
8 coffees
A red, round, playful seasonal blend modelled on a Christmas cake: berries, cassis and nuts, and with milk it turns into something like a sweet-tart strawberry milk.
Berry, cassis, nuts
A washed Bourbon from eastern DR Congo, bought partly to support communities displaced by decades of conflict over the region's minerals. Bright and full of energy: lemon tea, green apple and lychee.
Lemon tea, green apple, lychee
Processed at a Tarrazú mill founded in 1888: cherries rest several days in vacuum-sealed tanks so microbes build lactic and malic acid, then dry on African beds. Rugged yet delicate, fruity with body: sakura mochi, green apple and Japanese black tea.
Sakura mochi, green apple, Japanese black tea, complex
Decaffeinated with the chemical-free Mountain Water process, from farms in a Mexican conservation network that bans clearing forest to expand. Mellow yet bright, with mandarin, dates and caramel and a long finish.
Mandarin, dates, caramel
Grade 1 natural from Guji, the most sought-after corner of Sidamo, where big day-night temperature swings at altitude suit the plant. Only fully ripe cherries, hand-picked: a bright, glossy acidity with strawberry, mango and a tea-like finish.
Strawberry, mango, tea-like
José grew up on a coffee farm and saved for years while working elsewhere so he could invest when he inherited 0.7 ha, since grown to 1.5 ha. Cherries are picked at peak ripeness, pulped, fermented 24 hours and slow-dried for about 25 days; most of his crop now sells as micro-lots. Round fruit with a weighty, lingering sweetness.
Orange, cacao, apple
alt.'s first original blend, built around Kyoto's calm, dignified side and its elegant, glittering one. A good balance of florals and solid coffee character that never tires; good with milk too.
Dark cherry, nuts, buttery
A "Snow Top" grade lot from the Arusha highlands, the name taken from the year-round snow on Kilimanjaro. Grown on gentle slopes in Indian Ocean breezes, tropical rain and strong sun: dark cherry, grape and a buttery body, and good with milk.
Dark cherry, grape, buttery