Indian Plantation A Mysore, Zabu

We now reach the end of this round of Zabu Coffee reviews with this Indian Plantation A Mysore. 


This coffee comes from one of the 3 badra estates in the Karnatak region of South West India and is grown at a height of 1-1.4 thousand meters above sea level. The "Plantation A" refers to it being the highest grade of wet-processed India coffee. The grading being based on the bean size and the visual quality of the beans.

The Zabu coffee notes inform us that the estate uses the Central Cofee Research Station to analyse their soil every year to make sure it is up to standard. The fruits go through a rigorous process; picked when ripe, fermented for 36 hours, then a process called aqua washing and finally once drained and dried they are bagged and rested for 40 days.

The beans have an appealing light brown colour to them and the aroma was rich but still had a fragrant lightness to it.


On brewing the aroma softened a little. The flavour had a subtle zestyness to it, the light acidity giving it a little zing. 


As I continued to savour the cup there was a pinch of spice to catch the tongue and a gentle perfumed floweriness could be perceived. It was tangy but smooth and a tiny bit sweet with perhaps a hint on vanilla. The finish was clean.

Enjoy through the day when looking for something  that won't come on too strong but still has some flavours to explore.

Supplier: Zabu Coffee

Web: www.zabucoffee.com

Contact: mailto:CustomerService@ZabuCoffee.co.uk

Twitter: @zabucoffee

Zabu on Facebook

How do we taste it? Go here.

Columbian Medellin Excelso, Zabu Coffee

This coffee comes from the foothills of the Andes and gets its name from the town the coffee is distributed through, Medellin and the bean size or grade Excelso, meaning elevated or exalted.

Three natural factors give Columbian coffee its mild balanced flavour. The high altitude, the rich volcanic soil and the moist but temperate climate. The Zabu Columbian Medellin Excelso carries all those classic South American traits.

Looking at the beans they are certainly pretty with a medium roast giving them the colour of milk chocolate. They were oily to the touch and there was a little acidity to the aroma.

On brewing a rich golden tasting coffee was discovered. It was a flavour of little sweetness but it was rounded and earthy in abundance. There was a gentle, teasing bite to the proceedings from a small amount of acidity that brought with it notes of soured cherries and helped lighten the mood overall. 

The tanginess was balanced well against those muted, warmer elements and finally we were left with those rich flavours, a satisfying finish.

This Columbian Medellin Excelso was coffee that grew on me as it went down. The golden roasting comes through with all the richness and elegance it should have, shored up by the large heavier body flavours on one side and a light cheeky fruitiness on the other. 

This is the medium of mediums with nothing too sharp, too dark or too bombastic to get in the way of anyone’s enjoyment.

Supplier: Zabu Coffee

Web: www.zabucoffee.com

Contact: mailto:CustomerService@ZabuCoffee.co.uk

Twitter: @zabucoffee

Zabu on Facebook

How do we taste it? Go here.

Sumatra Blue Lingtong, Zabu Coffee

Grown high up by the PPKGO coffee co-operative in the Taekngon region of North Sumatra the Blue Lintong is a totally hand produced coffee. The tiny farms that make up this co-operative go through their extensive process of harvesting, pulping, fermenting, washing, drying and then sorting all by hand.

The beans are strikingly dark in appearance, I mean really black. On taking a big nose-full  you immediately get a heavy coffee aroma with an acidic lilt. On grinding these beans fluffed up beautifully into a really even batch of grounds. The sharpness in scent was lost a little as a broader aroma stepped forward.

After brewing, the Blue Lingtong gives an incredible dark and thick crema you could eat with a spoon. The aroma was very deep, full bodied and hinting at the darker flavours one can sometimes find.

Tasting confirmed this, the acidity was light, well balanced against a dry, almost iron tang. The darkness seen in those beans carried all the way through, resulting in great depth of flavour and a smooth dark bitterness.

This cavernous flavour begun at spiced fruits and ebbed towards moments of sweetness. Finally this coffee blossomed into an earthy, smooth rich chocolate tasting brew. Despite the strength the finish was clean and the coffee was smooth throughout.

For such a dark bean what could have been overpowering was instead strongly flavoured, striking but still well rounded and with plenty of elements to enjoy. Would kill with a slice of high % coco dark chocolate.

Supplier: Zabu Coffee

Web: www.zabucoffee.com

Contact: mailto:CustomerService@ZabuCoffee.co.uk

Twitter: @zabucoffee

Zabu on Facebook

How do we taste the coffee? Go here.

Brazil Daterra Estate, Zabu Coffee

The Daterra Estate in Brazil is one of the largest in the world, this coffee is single estate 100% Arabica beans. As well as being rainforest Alliance certified you will be happy to know that you are drinking from an estate with a huge investment in sustainability and who work hard at striking a balance with the nature around them. 

These Brazilian beans were extremely dark and very oily, they looked as if you could give them a gentle squeeze and you would have raw coffee in your mug. As well as this alluring look they gave off a very strong, deep pungent aroma.


After brewing none of that strong aroma was lost and now the black gold was shrouded within a layer of thick dark crema. 


The taste hit hard, it was strong with a tight bitterness and then beautifully melted away to something quite sublime and mellow. Rex said it was like going through a "crust", these Cornish eh? but he was bang on with that, we broke through.

After the initial rush those ebony beans left us with a confectioners store on our pallets. It had the sweetness and creaminess of a high cocoa content chocolate bar with the lightest shavings of hazelnut. All these flavours politely lined up and could be enjoyed together in rich balanced harmony.


To finish the after taste gave us something slightly tart as it developed a little acidity over time.

The Zabu Brazil Daterra Estate Coffee is one of two halves. Opening with a nearly overpowering haymaker to savor and some well placed bitter body blows it soon follows us with a tender embrace and the taste of fattening luxury. Here it brings the smooth creamy sweetness one dreams of from a quality brew.


We recommend this as a superior after dinner (or heavy lunch) coffee. One that can cut through and complement the meal just consumed and leave you set up to tackle whatever the evening still has to offer. 

Supplier: Zabu Coffee

Web: www.zabucoffee.com

Contact: mailto:CustomerService@ZabuCoffee.co.uk

Twitter: @zabucoffee

Zabu on Facebook

How do we taste the coffee? Go here.

Zabu House Blend

 The Zabu Coffee House Blend uses a mix of Brazilian, Colombian and Costa Rican and is made from  100% Arabica beans. It is also a Rainforest Alliance certified coffee. More details of the beans origin can be found from Zabu Coffee.

Sniffing straight from the pouch the beans had a good strong traditional coffee aroma with a gentle hint of acidity. They were light golden brown with a beautiful iridescent sheen like a beetle.

On grinding there was not a huge difference to aroma and the grounds had a almost woody texture.

After espressing (pressing?) the coffee had surprising little aroma compared to the roasted whole beans but the flavour on tasting was all there. On the first sip there was light tangy acidity on the front of the pallet, as these faded it gave way to a pleasant, mild nutty hazelnut aftertaste. 

There was a pleasingly balanced sweetness throughout which complimented the earlier acidity. Not overly rich in flavour the golden beans had given out a medium bodied smooth tasting coffee with no bitterness or fuzziness on the finish.

The Zabu Coffee House Blend is an extremely drinkable brew and one which I returned to ravenously till the bag was gone. It presents a pleasing cumulation of flavours yet does not surprise with anything jarring or difficult to handle, all the way from the initial sip to the glowing aftertaste. 

A great everyday coffee and recommended as a solid gateway blend for those new to real coffee.

Supplier: Zabu Coffee

Web: www.zabucoffee.com

Contact: mailto:CustomerService@ZabuCoffee.co.uk

Twitter: @zabucoffee

Zabu on Facebook

How do we taste the coffee? Go here.