Trader Joe’s Rants & Raves (mostly raves, a few rants)

“Notes of dark chocolate, blackberry and brown sugar”.

Here is another limited edition Small Lot coffee offering from Trader Joe’s called La Morena Peaberry. This coffee comes from the Huehuetenango region in Guatemala from a woman-owned farm collective, La Morena.

The graphic design of the bag is just great. Trader Joe’s has some come up with some great graphics for many of the small lot coffees.

https://www.traderjoes.com/home/products/pdp/guatemala-la-morena-peaberry-small-lot-coffee-075106

The bag says “medium roast”. I would call it a light medium roast. The coffee beans are the famed “peaberry” coffee beans which are smaller, and supposed to have more concentrated flavor.

“While there are usually two beans in each coffee cherry, approximately 5% of coffee crops yield Peaberry beans, which are smaller and prized for their concentrated flavors… In these Peaberry beans, those flavors express themselves as dark chocolate, ripe blackberry, and a sweet, cozy finishing note of brown sugar. We recommend enjoying each cup in a context where you can slowly savor every sip, like paired with a flaky pastry, avocado toast, or a few squares of our Dark Chocolate Bar with Almonds.”

This may be the first Guatemalan coffee I ever tasted. This coffee has a nice aroma, flavor and was smooth. I liked it. I’d give it a 7/10.

Now my current favorite of recent small lot coffees from Trader Joe’s is the Dominican Republic Jarabacoa (for me 9/10) which I just loved, just one reason being I am partial to a bit of darker medium roast. This Guatemala coffee is a bit higher priced than some of the other Small Lot coffees at $10.99 (12 oz) however surely “peaberry beans” go for a premium price from the grower. I liked this coffee but I am not sure I would buy it again, the only reason being that I’ve had some other small lot coffees that I’ve liked more (as well as a few I’ve like a lot less.) The last small lot coffee, that Dominican one I liked so much, I’ve stocked up on a few bags of that (its $9.99). Before that, I just loved the HONDURAN small lot coffee. Please don’t get me wrong. As coffee preference is so personal I would say this may be worth a try if you love to explore coffees from unique regions and expand your coffee taste buds and knowledge.