Coffee Details
Coffee Name
Ismaeli AnaerobicRoaster
Mokha BunnRoaster Location
Toranto, CanadaEstimated Price
$33 CAD / 250gFlavor Profile
Fruity and complex. Notes of cherry, toffee, dates, grapes, orange blossom, strawberry and clove. Lactic acidity with clean and silky bodyProcess
Natural anaerobicCountry
YemenRegion
Bani Ismail, Sana’aElevation
1900 – 2300 MASLProducer
Tayb QaidRoast
LightRoast Date
April 21, 2021Reviewed Date
May 9, 2021Coffee Scoring
Overall Score
Aroma
Body
Flavor
Acidity/Brightness
Balance
Sweetness
Cleanliness
Aftertaste
Complexity
Flexibility
Pros
This is the second coffee I’ve featured from Mokha Bunn recently. Mokha Bunn is based in Canada and roasts exclusively Yemenite coffee. Many of their coffees are micro-lots, which is very difficult to source from Yemen. This natural anaerobic processed coffee is from the western region of Yemen, Bani Ismail from the producer Tayb Qaid.
The coffee begins with a strong berry fragrance that was slightly funky (in a good way) with subtle spice notes. During brewing, notes of sweet strawberry were most pronounced. In the flavor I tasted notes of strawberry, cherry with more of the subtle baking spice notes coming through. The mouthfeel was quite lush and smooth with a strong, fruit-forward sweetness. The acidity was steady, but fairly muted throughout the cup. There was a lot of flavor depth and complexity that was really enjoyable to explore. As with the other Mokha Bunn coffees I tried, this Ismaeli was rich and complex, but also very approachable. I got to explore the coffee in both pour over methods, as well as with the Ibrik. The Ibrik lended itself quite nicely to this coffee where the fruit notes could shine, but the lush mouthfeel was even more pronounced.
The Bottom Line
Ismaeli was a wonderfully sweet and delicious coffee that worked well in a variety of brew methods. It was yet another unique look at the extremely varied coffee profiles that can come from Yemen.