Colombian Supremo from San Francisco Bay Coffee.

The folks at the Rogers Family Company were kind enough to send us some samples of their San Francisco Bay brand of coffees.

The first one we tried was their Colombian Supremo.

But before we get to the tasting…a few words about the Rogers Family.

They are a pretty big company now, but I really appreciate the fact that they still show a lot of concern for coffee farmers. They know that most of these farmers scratch out a pretty meager living, and it seems the company willingly goes the extra mile to pay them a fair price and help them with their farms and community infrastructure. Kudos to them for giving help where it is needed.

OK, now for the Colombian Supremo.

We ground the coffee beans fresh, as always, and them made the coffee in a French press.

This is a smooth but full-flavored coffee. It has enough of that “coffee bite” or acidity to satisfy, but is also naturally sweet. Think of that same combination of bitterness and sweetness you get in a dark chocolate and you won’t be far wrong. I also found a touch of dry fruit in there, and a hint of vanilla.

That said, all the flavors work together without being too strong or too bold. (In other words, the analogy of dark chocolate fails here….because the taste of this coffee isn’t that sharp. It’s more mellow.)

To me, that’s one sure sign of a good roast…when the strengths of the coffee are brought out, but without too much sharpness and with a smooth backdrop that fills the mouth.

All in all, this is a very nice coffee.

One thing about this coffee…and pretty much any other coffee…I stumbled upon by accident.

The first time I brewed this coffee, I made a mistake in the proportion of ground coffee to hot water. Instead of using 20 grams of ground coffee for the 12 ounces of hot water, I used only 15 grams.

The result was horrible. Bland, weak and reminiscent of an over-stewed pot of tea.

Once I tried again with the correct proportions, the true taste of the coffee shone through.

This is a timely reminder that when you skimp on the amount of coffee used, you’re basically destroying the quality of the coffee.

This is an important lesson, because my guess is that most people get this proportion wrong, making their coffee with too much water and too little ground coffee.

If you would like to try this San Francisco Bay Colombian Supremo, you can find it at the Rogers Family website…

About the author: Nick Usborne, aka Coffee Detective, is a writer and long-time coffee enthusiast. Read more…