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Today is the day we can proudly report our coffee portfolio consists entirely (aside from decaf) of Central American coffees we have purchased through our friends. Our money is transferred directly form our bank account to their bank accounts - no middle men are taking a slice of the pie! Companies our size and larger rarely, if ever, can claim this. 

The monsooned Malabar coffee has been a part of the DMC portfolio since the emergence of our roasting program.  These beans behave uniquely in espresso and the monsooning process has yet to be imitated successfully anywhere else in the world. Though Malabar was fussy, giving this coffee the proper care insured a beautiful full bodied shot,

Out of necessity, we only purchased coffees through importers and every batch had to be sifted through by hand to remove stones, twigs, bones and other debris. Acid driven coffees were even more alien to consumers then, than they are today, and for that reason, Malabar thrived in our shop not only in espresso or blends, but also as a "single origin" offering. This coffee, it seems, is the last reaming relic of that time for us and our philosophy has evolved  since then.

We were no longer depending on importers as we developed relationships with producers in El Salvador and later in Finca San Jeronimo. Debris became a far less common sight and product consistency was tighter than ever before. Now, we are lucky enough to have pristine, masterfully prepared coffees we can revolve around as a base coffee, alleviating our dependency on the Malabar's characteristics to produce a low acid, voluptuous, chocolaty espresso.

Our mixed lot is from Finca Santa Rosa, with processing done by Inaginsa from Honduras. (A gentleman and great friend of DMC, Willaim Dunaway and his family operate this company.) The key to these coffees as the base of Unicorn Blood is their cocoa nib character and complete lack of acidity. It pairs extremely well with the Catuai/Caturra (Guatemala) and together produces a subtle and sweet cherry nuance.

As an espresso, you will notice this cup to be far less jagged and rough around the edges. Unicorn Blood still holds up beautifully to milk, with Dutch cocoa, cherry and praline as dominant notes in the cup. This is an exciting time for DMC family and friends and we hope you enjoy your Unicorn Blood more than ever! 

Country: Honduras
Farm: Santa Rosa
Cultivar: Mixed
Process: Washed

Country: Guatemala 
Farm San Jeronimo Miramar
Cultivar: Catuai/Caturra Mix
Process: Washed

Country: Guatemala
Farm: San Jeronimo Miramar
Cultivar: Catimor
Process: Washed
Notes: Dutch Cocoa, Cherry, Praline

"To get back to the warning that I received. You may take it with however many grains of salt that you wish. That the brown acid that is circulating around us isn't too good. It is suggested that you stay away from that. Of course it's your own trip. So be my guest, but please be advised that there is a warning on that one, ok?" Woodstock 1969 

When the famous words were echoed from the microphone to the crowd at Woodstock, the legend of Brown Acid was born. While the folklore of this drug and many others during this time of enchantment, it was hard to pin-down if the acid was actually good or bad. According to one very experienced attendee, the acid was so pure, people mistakenly took more than one hit. A fair number of these people where novices, inadvertently labeling their experience as a "bad trip", instead of just a very intense one. The resemblance between Brown Acid then and our version now shares a similar characteristic when it comes to purity.  

Released once, four years ago, Brown Acid is our answer to the common approach to third wave espresso: bright, clean and vibrant, blending similar cultivars, from the same country, but three different farms.

These three farms share similar care in farming and a beautiful mill where they process and dry. The largest factor in their differences are their degrees of fermentation: washed, semi washed and natural. Each coffee was strategically placed in this blend to bring out the best in each bean. 

We begin with sparkling washed beans from Santa Elena, an established farm in El Salvador, which commonly places in the Cup of Excellence, among other awards. With its particular style of processing, the semi washed bourbon from Las Nubes, contributes body and sweetness. Santa Josefita, on the conservative side of dry-processing, is a natural processed that brings juicy fruit and acidity to the blend.