“What happens with the barrels?” – This is one of the most asked questions we get when talking about our barrel-aged beers. When we can reuse them, we do, and when people like Shawn Pritchett, co-owner and lead roaster at Ragamuffin Coffee Roasters ask us about using one, we jump at the chance. Shawn approached Jim Crooks, our master blender and the mastermind behind Barrelworks, to help out with Ragamuffin’s first barrel-aged coffee.
Shawn chose a French Oak Cognac barrel that previously held UnderCurrants for two years. He aged fresh, green, Ethiopian beans from Kayon Mountain.
Being that the beans were fresh, they absorbed all the fantastic aromatics associated with the UnderCurrants beer.
This is not just your average coffee – it takes you through a unique and different tasting experience. The coffee emits an aromatic bouquet of delicate florals, tropical fruit, and buttery toffee. Your first sip, you will get natural red wine notes mixing with the black currant flavors. As your cup cools down, the characteristics will change. The natural flavors from the Ethiopian coffee will bring out notes of brown sugar and baking cocoa that mix seamlessly with the sweet notes from the Barrelworks wild ale, a tart lemon-pith, and an oakiness that comes from the cognac barrel.
The KayonCurrants is now available to purchase through Ragamuffin Coffee Roasters.
Stay tuned for further collaboration with Ragamuffin Coffee Roasters.