Colombia Mandarum – House of Funk Roasting

House of Funk started as a brewery and began roasting coffee in the past year or two. Like their beers, their coffee is unique and full of funky flavor profiles. In November 2020 they started a subscription box that features two curated coffees each month selected by their head roaster that are “exclusive, super micro-lots, of new processing methods, varietals, or flavor profiles.”¹ I had the opportunity to try both their November and December boxes and the selection was amazing. November’s box featured a “Tour of Colombia” with two Colombian coffees and December’s box featured two barrel-aged coffees and a sample of this Mandarum. While both the white wine and bourbon barrel-aged coffees were delicious, it was the small sample of Mandarum that I was most enamored with.

When I first opened the small bag, I was blown away by the strength of the mandarin orange notes. They were unmistakable and grew even stronger after grinding the beans. There were also notes of boozy chocolate in the fragrance, which complimented the orange wonderfully. The flavor was perfectly balanced featuring notes of chocolate, orange and subtle booziness. It was creamy and smooth with a medium to full body; the sweetness really did remind me of a chocolate covered orange. The rum comes through most in the finish, which lingered with a nice sparkling acidity.

The Bottom Line

Mandarum featured a flavor combination that was bold, unique and layered. The rum notes were incredibly fun to explore and my only complaint was I didn’t have more to experiment with.

Want to check out next month’s subscription from House of Funk? You can sign up for the House of Funk “Omakase” subscription box on their website.