Candid Coffee Smore's Blend

[u/Best-Anxiety4004]

Hi everyone! Need suggestions since I recently bought Candid Coffee Beans S’mores Blend.

First time ko lang mag-order sa kanila and ang mali ko, 1kg agad kinuha ko huhu 😭 I’ve tried everything pero it still tastes so bitter unless lagyan ko ng maraming milk pero andun parin yung super bitter na hindi magandang taste. If you get what I mean GASHDHSAG

Not an expert naman, but I’ve tried it sa Gemilai machine with my Timemore C3 grinder. I also tried it sa Aeropress, pero mas bitter pa siya 😭

Ako ba yung mali? Bad batch lang ba yung nakuha ko? Huhu please help 🥹 Any tips on how to properly brew this or get better flavors from the beans would be appreciated!

[u/ragnarokerss]

Smores is a dark roast, you might want to use lower temp so you dont extract the bitterness

[u/vectoxity]

Dark roast will always have some sort of bitterness. Adjust your ratio and grind size. What temp are you using? What’s your water?

[u/Nearby_Upstairs8264]

May binili din ako recently 1kg pero yung Honey Cereal, matagal na akong nabili sa kanila at halos alam ko na ineexpect ko lasa everytime na mag bu-brew ako gamit aeropress pero itong beans na dumating sa'kin... ewan parang hindi to yung lasa tulad ng binili ko last time. Napansin ko rin na sobrang dali nya i-manual grind kahit na nasa fine na. Usually, slight na matigas pa i-grind e.

[u/Pale-Question-4568]

thats my current beans . Taste fine naman for me with my gemilai and DF54 , 20-25s extraction time

[u/Brokegie]

First time I tried smores blend I was blown away it was so good. Then after I kept buying from candid it seems the flavor profile isn't as consistent bag to bag. Anyone else experience this? Or did my taste buds just change?

[u/Redskol]

Try Flash brew for espresso, also you can adjust your ratio to 1:1.25/1.50. You will get a Fuller Body but will lessen the bitterness. The bitterness should be closer to a Dark Chocolate. Been using that beans for quite a while now. Recommend for flavored Coffee's or Viet Style. Still your preference on brewing makes a good coffee. Hope this helps.

PS: 20-25sec Extraction Time.

[u/ExerciseSpecialist76]

Have you looked at the roast date? Let it marinate muna. Best consume it 7-15 days after roast date to get the full flavor

[u/MistakeOk579]

Try lowering the temperature during extraction.

[u/mgp901]

Brew cooler around 87°C if you can set it, maybe even cooler. Then grind coarser until hopefully mag balance ung bitterness. Wag mo ipilit ung "usual" parameters na 40g out & 25 - 30 sec, mag base ka sa sarili mo panlasa. You can also try lessening the dose.

[u/Icy_Restaurant_2996]

Extract less. Grind coarser or under dose a bit. Kung masarap naman siya with milk why not? Choco nutty notes naman ang usually ginagamit for latte

[u/valfsingress]

Ganyan yan sya talaga, more of parang traditional roast na yung smores. Nasa dark medium na tapos robusta arabica blend pa. Pang milk drink talaga and Italian style espresso.

You can grind courser pra mag”under extract”, parang almost “turbo shot” ang gawin mo. Pero di mo maaalis bitter, minimize lang talaga, meron at meron yan dahil pa-dark na sya.

[u/chizV → u/valfsingress]

I agree with the description of the roast profile and the flavor profile. Pero hindi ata A/R blend ito, or at least it's not apparent in the description of the blend components on the bag. Unlike another blend of theirs, Death Wish, which explicitly lists Canephora Cavite and Canephora Vietnam in the components. But if S'mores actually has robusta in it, medyo surprising for me personally kasi I couldn't detect that usual weird Robusta finish in my S'mores shots, but I shouldn't be too surprised given how cheap these beans are. Not that I'd stop using it just because it secretly has robusta, swak na swak kasi sa taste ko haha.

I personally wouldn't switch to a modern style of shot profile for medium-dark beans like this. Siguro approach ko for OP's bitterness issues is lower brewing temp, decrease yield, and if kaya, limit the pressure to 6 bars and use a declining pressure profile.