Highwire Coffee Roasters Batak, Sumatra
The Short
Highwire Coffee, Batak Sumatra has a complex, pungent aroma. Flavors are fruity and earthy throughout. It serves as a great introduction to Sumatran coffee.
This coffee drinks well as an espresso, cappuccino, or latte.
Note: We brewed this coffee at home with the Breville Barista Express.
Intro
Highwire Batak, Sumatra is a washed, wet hulled Arabica coffee from Highwire Coffee Roasters in Oakland, California.
It is grown and processed in a Northern area of Sumatra, Indonesia called Lintong.
On Bag Notes
Tasting notes on the bag indicate Rustic, Sweet, and Earthy.
The bag also details that it is a wet hulled coffee, produced in the Lake Toba region at an elevation of 1500 MSL.
Other Notes
Trade rates the roast level of this coffee at a 8/10 which is medium-dark roast, describing it as:
“Packed with bold notes of milk chocolate, ripe fruit and earthiness”.
Highwire describes this coffee as follows:
“Classic Sumatra character, this Rustic Charmer has a potent musty aroma; dense body, rustic cherry and herbal flavor with a strong finish.
Grown and processed in the Lintong region near Lake Toba, "Batak" refers to the ethnic group and indigenous culture in the northern part of the Indonesian island of Sumatra.”
Our Take
I have to admit that coming into tasting this coffee, I was a bit hesitant based on past experiences with mass produced commodity Sumatra coffee.
My memories of these flavors were of unpleasantly musty coffees with overly perfumed flavors masking poor quality coffee.
Also, to this point I had not tried Sumatra coffee for espresso.
Highwire Batak, Sumatra challenged my previous notions, and changed my opinions of Sumatra.
As espresso, the must was there in both flavor and aroma, but the complexity of this coffee was interesting throughout.
Although this was rated as a darker roast, there was a lot of nuance to the variety of pleasant flavors throughout.
There was an aroma of a pungent cheese and ash, followed by the typical fruity, aromatic, somewhat earthy flavor that Sumatra is known for.
This coffee works well as an espresso or a cappuccino, but can stand up to a lot more milk if that’s what you like.
For most people, we wouldn’t call this coffee a daily driver, but this coffee is nice to have in rotation when you’re looking to change things up from the usual espresso blends.
If you love Sumatra, or wonder what good Sumatra should taste like, then you should give Highwire Batak, Sumatra a try.
