Front Street Coffee has recently added Chopin coffee beans from Costa Rica's Canet Estate to its lineup. After joining the Musician Series, this bean has drawn attention for its prominent rose aroma and sweetness in cupping. To investigate how different brewing devices affect the flavor expression of this bean, Front Street Coffee conducted four comparative brews using the Hario V60, Ice Eye dripper, Strawberry dripper, and Origami dripper. This article focuses on the structural characteristics of these four drippers, the parameters and brewing techniques used for each, and the resulting differences in aroma, acidity, sweetness, and finish, helping coffee enthusiasts find an extraction approach better suited to their own taste. [more…]

The same coffee beans, brewed with a different device, often yield dramatically different flavors in the cup. Front Street Coffee maintains an experimental spirit year-round, happily using different brewing methods to uncover the many facets of a bean. This article takes Front Street washed Yirgacheffe as a sample, extracting it using five methods: cake filter, KONO dripper, French press, strawberry dripper, and SOE, recording the parameters, techniques, and flavor performance one by one, and comparing the extraction logic and taste direction each device brings due to structural differences. After reading this article, you can make a more suitable choice based on the flavor you want to present, combined with the characteristics of the device. [more…]

Huakui coffee is an Ethiopian specialty bean that has attracted much attention in recent years, winning the favor of many enthusiasts with its signature strawberry-and-cream flavor. However, many coffee lovers have noticed that Huakui seems to taste different from year to year. What exactly are the reasons behind this? Starting from Front Street Coffee's cupping experience, this article sorts through the sun-dried processing characteristics of the Sidamo producing region, compares the cupping flavor performance of Huakui G1, 2.0, 3.0, 3.1, and 4.0 batches, and shares in detail the brewing parameters and flavor presentation of different devices such as the V60, cake cup, and trapezoidal dripper, helping readers gain a more comprehensive understanding of this coffee's story and charm. [more…]

Choosing a handy dripper is the first hurdle for pour-over beginners. The market is flooded with all kinds of drippers, from the classic V60 to oddly shaped strawberry and diamond drippers—what exactly are the differences between them? This article starts with the structural design of the flow channels, explaining how spiral ribs, vertical ribs, and concave flow grooves affect water flow speed, then compares the real-world performance of materials like resin, glass, ceramic, and metal, and finally discusses the involution trend in dripper appearance design. Drawing on years of brewing experience, Front Street Coffee offers functionality-first purchasing advice to help coffee lovers find the dripper that best matches their own brewing style. [more…]

Front Street Coffee has previously offered several Colombian coffee beans, among which the Sakura anaerobic beans from Finca El Paraiso have a unique aroma with a faint hint of mugwort. This article will guide you through the background of Finca El Paraiso, the characteristics of the Castillo variety, and Front Street's cupping and brewing process for this Sakura coffee. In addition, Front Street also evaluated the Strawberry Yogurt double anaerobic washed beans from the same estate and attempted to make them into an SOE. Through this article, you will gain an in-depth understanding of the flavor performance of Finca El Paraiso coffee and Front Street's selection standards. [more…]

In the specialty coffee world, the ripeness of coffee cherries directly determines the quality expressed in the final cup. Front Street Coffee's Front Street Yirgacheffe Natural Red Cherry is a select lot from Ethiopia's "Red Cherry Project." The project was initiated by Trabocca, the largest green coffee trader in the Netherlands. It requires partner farms to harvest only 100% ripe red cherries, which are then hand-sorted by local women with sharp eyes and a willingness to work hard. Only lots scoring 88 or above in cupping are eligible for selection. This article will guide you through the origins and operation of the Red Cherry Project and share Front Street Coffee's brewing parameters and flavor performance using two devices—the strawberry dripper and the origami dripper—to help coffee lovers recreate this bean's floral aroma and fruity sweetness at home. [more…]

Costa Rica, a country nestled in the Central American isthmus, has conquered the taste buds of countless coffee lovers with its honey-processed coffee beans. Front Street Coffee's bean list features six Costa Rican beans year-round, which speaks volumes about their exceptional quality. Today we introduce this Front Street Mirasu Geisha Blend, from Costa Rica's highest-altitude Tarrazu region, centered on 50% Geisha variety, blended with ET47, SL28, MAICO and other varieties, processed as raisin honey, presenting rich layers of jasmine floral notes interwoven with strawberry berry flavors. Front Street's roaster uses a medium roast, and the barista uses a high temperature of 93°C, a finer grind, and a V60 dripper with a three-stage pour, striving to release the sweetness and aroma of this bean to the greatest extent. [more…]

Costa Rican coffee is renowned for its high sweetness, clear acidity, and balanced mouthfeel, making it one of the representatives of Central American specialty coffee. Within its borders lie several distinctive producing regions, among which Tarrazú, with its high altitude and unique microclimate, cultivates coffee with citrus acidity, dried-fruit sweetness, and chocolate notes. In this article, Front Street Coffee will start with the growing environment and regional flavor differences, focusing on Hacienda Mirazu's Costa Rica Strawberry Candy, and share the roasting approach and brewing parameters for this raisin honey process coffee, helping coffee enthusiasts achieve rich fruity aromas and lasting sweetness at home. [more…]

Costa Rica, as an important producing country in Central America, is famous for its honey-processed coffee, and Front Street Coffee's bean list includes 6 related products. This article starts with Front Street Geisha Blend Strawberry Candy, outlining the high altitude, acidic soil, and shade-growing characteristics of the Tarrazu region, and explaining its citrus acidity, dried fruit sweetness, and chocolate main notes. It then breaks down the combination of 50% Geisha variety with ET47, SL28, and MAICO in this blend, as well as how raisin honey processing brings a richer, more viscous mouthfeel, longer-lasting aroma, and stronger sweetness. Finally, it provides Front Street's roasting and brewing plan: medium roast, 93 degrees Celsius water temperature, finer grind, paired with a Hario V60 and a three-stage pour, highlighting floral, berry, grape, and strawberry flavors. [more…]

The same coffee beans, brewed with a different device, will present a completely different profile in the cup. Front Street Coffee has always enjoyed exploring the possibilities of beans through experimentation, using French presses, siphon brewers, espresso extraction, and various pour-over drippers to find the most interesting side of each bean. This time, Front Street selected a washed Yirgacheffe and brewed it with a cake filter, KONO dripper, French press, strawberry dripper, and SOE method, recording the parameters, techniques, and flavor performance of each. Different device structures change the flow rate and immersion time, thereby affecting the extraction yield and the direction of the mouthfeel. We hope this comparison can provide some reference for you when choosing a brewing method. [more…]

Since its introduction in 2017, Geisha coffee has quickly gained popularity with its bright strawberry and cream aroma, becoming a highly sought-after Ethiopian bean variety in coffee shops. From the original TOH champion batch to the current 8.0 version, many enthusiasts have noticed that the flavor of Geisha seems to change every year. This article will take you back to the origin of Geisha, Guji Hambela, to learn about the sun-drying process at the Buku Abel processing station, review the flavors and roasting curves of each version of Geisha that Front Street Coffee has sourced over the years, and analyze the causes of Geisha's aroma and the sources of its year-to-year differences. It will also share Front Street's V60 brewing parameters and techniques to help you better appreciate this classic coffee interwoven with passion fruit and berry notes. [more…]

Since winning the championship in 2017, Huakui coffee has captured the hearts of many coffee lovers with its strawberry and cream-like aroma. From its first generation to version 4.0, this natural-process bean from the Guji Hambela region of Ethiopia has undergone variety changes and production-area expansion, and its flavor has changed accordingly. This article will systematically sort out the origin story of Huakui, methods for identifying the real from the fake, the characteristics of the Dega variety, and Front Street Coffee's roasting and brewing practices, taking you through a comprehensive understanding of exactly how Huakui 4.0 differs from previous generations, and how to brew a cup of richly layered Hambela natural coffee at home. [more…]

Would you like to understand the flavor differences between brewing Costa Rican coffee with the Ice Eye dripper and the V60 dripper? This article starts with the structural characteristics of the drippers, compares in detail the extraction principles of the Ice Eye dripper and the V60 dripper, and presents the different flavor performances brought by the two drippers through actual brewing tests with Front Street Strawberry Candy coffee beans. We will also share our experience using the Ice Eye dripper and offer brewing suggestions for different coffee beans. Whether you are a coffee beginner or a seasoned enthusiast, you can find practical methods here to improve your pour-over skills. [more…]

Although Geisha coffee is famous for its connection to Panama, its varietal lineage entered Central America through Costa Rica. This article traces the spread of Geisha from Ethiopia to Costa Rica and then to Panama, and focuses on the Costa Rica Mirazu Estate Strawberry Candy Geisha blend introduced by Front Street Coffee. This blend is composed of 50% Geisha and 50% ET47, SL28, and MAICO, undergoes raisin honey processing, and presents jasmine floral aromas, raisin sweetness, and strawberry gummy candy flavors. The article explains in detail the estate's varietal background and processing methods, and includes Front Street's V60 pour-over parameters and brewing technique, providing a complete reference for coffee enthusiasts. [more…]

Colombian coffee is known for its balanced, smooth body and bright acidity, and on this land nourished by the Andes Mountains, different regions and processing methods give rise to distinctly characteristic flavors. This article takes you deeper into the geographical indication background of Colombian coffee and the distribution of its main producing regions, with a focus on analyzing the flavor characteristics and processing techniques of coffee beans such as Rose Valley, Huila, Flower Moon Night, and Cherry Blossom, while also sharing Front Street Coffee's brewing suggestions to help you find your ideal strawberry-flavored coffee beans. [more…]

Front Street Coffee's pour-over tutorials have long been based on a single-serving standard of 15g of coffee and 200ml of water, but when you need to brew 2 to 3 cups at once, the No. 01 small dripper simply can't handle the job. This article centers on a hands-on test of brewing with 30g of coffee in a V60 02 large dripper, starting with a 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, 91℃ water temperature, and a three-pour technique, which revealed that the extraction time was too long and produced bitterness. The parameters were then revised by coarsening the grind and increasing the pouring speed, ultimately bringing the extraction time under 2 minutes 30 seconds, with the flavor matching that of a single serving. The article also retains recommendations for several Front Street Coffee beans and answers the question of whether the No. 01 dripper can brew a large dose when no No. 02 dripper is available, making it suitable as a reference for enthusiasts who have already mastered basic pour-over and want to advance to brewing for multiple people. [more…]

The Clever Dripper stands out among pour-over devices, selected by many specialty coffee shops as their designated brewing tool. It has a low barrier to entry and is easy to clean, making it very suitable for enthusiasts who are just getting into pour-over to use at home. Unlike conventional pour-over, the Clever Dripper's extraction process is primarily immersion-based, resulting in a rounder, fuller cup with a comfortable mouthfeel. This article will walk through the complete brewing process of the Clever Dripper step by step, from equipment preparation, filter folding, and water temperature control to pouring and stirring, and will also include an advanced method for iced coffee. At the same time, for different taste preferences, we recommend beans such as Front Street Kenya Little Tomato, Front Street Washed Fruit Ding Ding, Front Street Strawberry Candy, as well as Front Street Brazil Queen's Estate Yellow Bourbon, Front Street Jamaica Blue Mountain No. 1, and Front Street Papua Bird of Paradise, to help readers find a pairing that suits them. [more…]

The origin of Geisha's fame actually lies in Costa Rica, and the Panamanian variety was introduced from there. This article starts from the history of variety dissemination, compares the differences between Costa Rican and Panamanian Geisha, and focuses on the strawberry candy Geisha blend from Mirazu Estate launched by Front Street Coffee. The beans come from the Tarrazu region, at an altitude of 1700 meters, and are a half-and-half blend of four varieties: Geisha, ET47, SL28, and MAICO. They are processed as raisin honey and cup with jasmine floral notes, raisin sweetness, and strawberry gummy flavors. The article also outlines the background of each variety, processing details, and includes Front Street's V60 brewing parameters and technique for coffee enthusiasts' reference. [more…]

Costa Rica is renowned for its honey-processed coffee, whose parchment beans are golden in color, mellow in body, and remarkably sweet. This article focuses on the Strawberry Candy coffee beans from the Mirazu Estate, launched by Front Street Coffee. These beans are a Geisha blend, grown at an elevation of 1,700 meters in the Tarrazú region and processed using the honey method. The article first reviews the terroir characteristics of Costa Rica's seven major coffee regions, then takes a deeper look at the background of the Mirazu Estate and the history of the Geisha variety, and finally shares the pour-over recipe designed by Front Street Coffee's baristas for this bean—93°C water temperature, V60 dripper, and a 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, using staged pouring to highlight the floral and fruity aromas along with a strong sweetness. [more…]

James Hoffmann shared a brewing method on his personal channel that netizens have hailed as the ultimate V60 solution, the core of which lies in dividing the total water volume into five equal pours and introducing Rao-style shaking at the first and last pours. After repeated testing, Front Street Coffee confirmed that this method delivers outstanding results. This article will provide a complete breakdown from principle and parameters to operating steps, including grind size selection, water temperature setting, the pouring rhythm for each stage, and two details that are easy to get wrong in actual practice. The article also records Front Street Coffee's brewing performance using Costa Rica Mirazu Strawberry Candy, and both the final extraction yield and flavor presentation were satisfying. [more…]