# Monsooned Malabar



## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

I used to drink this all the time, many years ago. i also used to home roast it, back in the days but daveC always said on a gene Cafe, 12.26 was the optimum. This meant that my roast would invariably ge lighter than the offering Coffee Compass recently sent me. I have drunk it all and thoroughly enjoyed it, but it will not replace Mystery 8 as my go to bean!

That got me think about the late Danny McNulty and malabar Gold which was a delightful blend he used to roast. this in turn made me wonder if others had a bean that they used to drink a lot, but with the advent of the artisan and general explosion of roasters, had not had that bean for some time


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## jj-x-ray (Dec 31, 2017)

Was this the mahogany roast Malabar hit or 'plain' Malabar offering? I'm very interested in trying one of them from compass


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

jj-x-ray said:


> Was this the mahogany roast Malabar hit or 'plain' Malabar offering? I'm very interested in trying one of them from compass


Neither, was single origin. The other two you mention are nice as well


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## ronsil (Mar 8, 2012)

dfk41 said:


> That got me think about the late Danny McNulty and malabar Gold which was a delightful blend he used to roast. this in turn made me wonder if others had a bean that they used to drink a lot, but with the advent of the artisan and general explosion of roasters, had not had that bean for some time


Danny came to my House to teach me to roast (80 grms at a time)& gave me my introduction to Malabar Gold.

You might care for Baytown 'Boggle Hole'. Its very dark & makes a very good espresso


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## ajohn (Sep 23, 2017)

@dfk41 Have you tried 2nd crack and coated with oil as it comes?

John

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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

ajohn said:


> @dfk41 Have you tried 2nd crack and coated with oil as it comes?
> 
> John
> 
> -


That's pretty much how coffee compass do them. Perhaps not as oily as you suggest. Who do you buy from?


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## Snakehips (Jun 2, 2015)

Rave Monsoon Malabar single origin had been one of my go to beans for quite some time.

Never oily nor overly dark it proved to be a rock solid bean for producing a delicious 'coffee' coffee.

However, a few weeks back, Rave introduced the 'Dark Collection' of beans, within which they decided to include Monsoon Malabar. As a consequence, their MM roast level has recently been adjusted and is now considerably darker.









I placed my last order without realising the change in roast level and have to say that the darker roast is not to my liking.

@dfk41 David, if you fancy trying it then let me know and I will post you a 250g bag or two. @ajohn John, you're a well documented fan of oily MM so same goes for you if you would like?


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

That's a great offer, Snakey! Will pm you and sort something out

QUOTE=Snakehips;608374]Rave Monsoon Malabar single origin had been one of my go to beans for quite some time.

Never oily nor overly dark it proved to be a rock solid bean for producing a delicious 'coffee' coffee.

However, a few weeks back, Rave introduced the 'Dark Collection' of beans, within which they decided to include Monsoon Malabar. As a consequence, their MM roast level has recently been adjusted and is now considerably darker.

View attachment 35195


I placed my last order without realising the change in roast level and have to say that the darker roast is not to my liking.

@dfk41 David, if you fancy trying it then let me know and I will post you a 250g bag or two. @ajohn John, you're a well documented fan of oily MM so same goes for you if you would like?


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## ajohn (Sep 23, 2017)

It would probably best for dfk to have it. I've just had 750 arrive. It seems to keep pretty well but I'd rather not find out that's limit. I also usually don't touch it for several days and get it in a bean can and out of the bag straight away - it seems to mature more evenly and quickly. I'm not surprised the roast you show is a little uneven. Dry processed for one and also the problem of not burning too much oil off.

Before disposing I'd suggest that you try different ratios. I'm currently using 14g in 38 out in 3Osec for a circa 350ml long black, very little milk. While getting used to the DB and getting things consistent I have lost some degree of taste so this batch will be ground finer, similar out and longer shot time. Pass on how that will work out.







And you might not like it anyway.

I did get from here

https://www.redber.co.uk/collections/asia-and-pacific-coffee-beans/products/sumatra-mandheling-dark-roast?variant=348901275

No more though. The last 2 batches of 500g had just a couple of beans showing oil. Batch before that I phoned and a lady said she would watch for my order. Those came with a slight burnt smell that went in a couple of days. Good drink for me anyway. All batches before that were as I like them all oily and darker than were I get them from now. Maybe a little more uneven on the roast as well. Last few batches have been from here

https://www.monsoonestatescoffee.co.uk/coffee-shop/monsoon-malabar/

I know that redber get complaints from people about what they were producing choking up grinders. They have added more indian beans as an alternative. The one I tried was easy to grind. They also had complaints about uneven roasting with it. Both pretty stupid complaints really but maybe they should as the other site does warn about oil. I suspect this is why they don't seem to roast that far now. The roast they offer now does oil up after something like 2 weeks but the taste just isn't the same. The best roast I had of them was when I ordered 1kg but I prefer 1/2 that more often.

It's a bean that can produce a range of tastes. I tend to like it pushed the opposite way to how monsoonestates suggest.







I reckon that tastes like coffee and little else. The only way I have managed to make it seem bitter to me is weighing in with my weight on the beans not working as it should because of the problem I have with the mini. More get ground beans bouncing around at times, prevented now by using the on off switch at each stage.

i did try 500g of coffee compasses special roast - to be honest it took some effort to drink it rather than throwing the beans away. The Jam Pit equivalent made up for that but I still prefer MM.

So given that it might choke up your grinder and it can produce a very varied taste according to how it's brewed maybe it's best to stay away from the oily ones. I also doubt anyone in their right minds would drink my ideal shot as an espresso.

John

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## Snakehips (Jun 2, 2015)

ajohn said:


> It would probably best for dfk to have it. I've just had 750 arrive. It seems to keep pretty well but I'd rather not find out that's limit. I also usually don't touch it for several days and get it in a bean can and out of the bag straight away - it seems to mature more evenly and quickly. I'm not surprised the roast you show is a little uneven. Dry processed for one and also the problem of not burning too much oil off.
> 
> Before disposing I'd suggest that you try different ratios. I'm currently using 14g in 38 out in 3Osec for a circa 350ml long black, very little milk. While getting used to the DB and getting things consistent I have lost some degree of taste so this batch will be ground finer, similar out and longer shot time. Pass on how that will work out.
> 
> ...


Phew!!!! I'lll take that as a no then









I reckon for simplicity's sake , I may just put any that @dfk41 doesn't want, in the bin.


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## ajohn (Sep 23, 2017)

Snakehips said:


> Phew!!!! I'lll take that as a no then
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Brewing coffee needs some back bone at times - be a man and give it a go.







Maybe having to clean your grinder.

John

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## MildredM (Feb 13, 2017)

ajohn said:


> Brewing coffee needs some back bone at times - be a man and give it a go.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Yes, c'mon, Snake - get that Monolith of yours cleaned out. I expect you haven't bothered yet. It's not a car you know, you can't just buy a new one when the old one needs a clean


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## Snakehips (Jun 2, 2015)

ajohn said:


> Brewing coffee needs some back bone at times - be a man and give it a go.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Damn! We tend not to have a lot of backbone, us snakes!



MildredM said:


> Yes, c'mon, Snake - get that Monolith of yours cleaned out. I expect you haven't bothered yet. It's not a car you know, you can't just buy a new one when the old one needs a clean


I know.... I know.... don't nag !

I was hoping a mate of mine would be bringing his cloth round to give it a good clean out for me but no,....... it turns out he's just a Vindow Viper !


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## M1ks (Jan 29, 2018)

Monsoon Malabar is a current fave, I roast to the end of first crack, (rarely roast any bean beyond the start of 2nd), and it's delicious, lovely flavour.


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## CamV6 (Feb 7, 2012)

Java Jampit


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## ajohn (Sep 23, 2017)

I asked some one else who does drink it and also gave a link to the lens hood mod. Some amusement going to that length to grind it and that they use Mahlkonig, the problem - that's oily beans. Fact of life in other words.

I managed to run several kg through the BE only adjusting the timer and not touching anything else. Nice fluffy grounds. The increase in grind time from clean to a weeks worth of shots (20 plus) was rather large and then it just needed tiny tweaks to keep the output the same. I could do that visually by looking at the puck on the BE. Then came weighing in. That choked the Sage grinders too quickly for my liking so sold the SGP and decided to try Ceado and a hopper and maybe weighing in on that. The clumps out of the Mini weighing in part break up when I tap the grinds down so aren't a problem. Big but though. I've seen signs that popcorning does change the grind quality and taste but only if my weight over the beans doesn't work as it should.








Next thing I was going to try 'till it broke was hopper on the Mini. I might then find bitterness gets to be a problem due to how the grinds get out and more fines or what ever. Same on the Ceado. There is next to nothing left in the grind chamber when I weigh in a shot on the Mini.

On the BE I had to wash the hopper from time to time so that the beans would continue falling in when the level in it was low.







I found it easier to just put more in.

I have seen a mod to mazzers with a funnel - fit some mesh across the funnel and brushed through when the grind has finished. The mesh was rather coarse so lots fell through anyway and it probably broke some clumps. I suspect the Mazzer will produce cubes with this bean in the hopper and their mesh fitted.

John

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## johnealey (May 19, 2014)

You could also wipe the excess oil off your beans with a couple of pieces of kitchen roll as helps to cut down on what gets left behind.

Was given some Whittards Guat Elephant that are dark and oily as hell with the giver insistent on us having a cup before they went. The only way I was putting these through any grinder was to pat the dose down between 2 bits of kitchen roll which removed a surprising amount of oil (still tasted of roast though, even in lots of milk, funny how our tastes change)

John


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## ajohn (Sep 23, 2017)

johnealey said:


> You could also wipe the excess oil off your beans with a couple of pieces of kitchen roll as helps to cut down on what gets left behind.
> 
> John


What and wreck some good beans when I can grind them. Lot of fiddling weighing in though.

This is my latest batch after 1 day in the can. A bit darker than what I have usually had of them.









I did my best to show the shine and get the colour right but now I've seen it posted I must get round to calibrating my monitor.


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## MildredM (Feb 13, 2017)

@Snakehips ^^^^^^ These would be grand for oiling your old grinder


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## johnealey (May 19, 2014)

ajohn said:


> I did my best to show the shine and get the colour right but now I've seen it posted I must get round to calibrating my monitor.


Try 0,0,0,100









John


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## Snakehips (Jun 2, 2015)

ajohn said:


> What and wreck some good beans when I can grind them. Lot of fiddling weighing in though.
> 
> This is my latest batch after 1 day in the can. A bit darker than what I have usually had of them.
> 
> View attachment 35213


John..... goodness only knows what those will be doing to your insides.

If you've been drinking the likes of that then I think that explains a lot!


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## MildredM (Feb 13, 2017)

ajohn said:


> What and wreck some good beans when I can grind them. Lot of fiddling weighing in though.
> 
> This is my latest batch after 1 day in the can. A bit darker than what I have usually had of them.
> 
> ...


When you grind them . . . I wonder, do your burrs just slip over them?


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## Hairy_Hogg (Jul 23, 2015)

ajohn said:


> What and wreck some good beans when I can grind them. Lot of fiddling weighing in though.
> 
> This is my latest batch after 1 day in the can. A bit darker than what I have usually had of them.
> 
> ...


How do you make coffee using raisins.....


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## ajohn (Sep 23, 2017)

Hairy_Hogg said:


> How do you make coffee using raisins.....


LOL Easy if you know how but clearly some people don't or even can't. Not surprising really with all of the misleading stuff about on coffee,

John

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## MildredM (Feb 13, 2017)

ajohn said:


> Not surprising really with all of the misleading stuff about on coffee
> 
> -


Absolutely.


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## khampal (Feb 6, 2017)

ajohn said:


> What and wreck some good beans when I can grind them. Lot of fiddling weighing in though.


Think you might have already wrecked them when you turned them into charcoal


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

I have had Beans that level before and it takes real skill to make them have any taste beyond ash. I am surprised Redber manage that and am also surprised you can do anything with the.!


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## ajohn (Sep 23, 2017)

Those are the best roast at that level I have ever had and not the slightest signs of a burnt smell. Guess this might be down to roasting several times a week rather than trying to do everything on the same day. A 1kg order of Redber were nearly as even. Other sizes never and sometimes a burnt smell. My conclusion on that having had a couple doesn't matter that much and soon disappears if in correctly vented bean can.

This lot actually had a wonderful smell.

Strength etc. I just drunk one from a Guatemalan medium roast bean based on 15.2g, 40g out into 350ml total. It's made my head buzz. LOL Mind you some one messed the grinder up by leaving some grinds in so weigh came out wrong. First 30sec produced 4.7g. 2nd through it up that to 40g. I'm worried it was a rather nice drink.

John

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## MildredM (Feb 13, 2017)

ajohn said:


> Those are the best roast at that level I have ever had and not the slightest signs of a burnt smell. Guess this might be down to roasting several times a week rather than trying to do everything on the same day. A 1kg order of Redber were nearly as even. Other sizes never and sometimes a burnt smell. My conclusion on that having had a couple doesn't matter that much and soon disappears if in correctly vented bean can.
> 
> This lot actually had a wonderful smell.
> 
> ...


I think that's the least of your worries.


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## ajohn (Sep 23, 2017)

It turns out that the messed up grinder was down to around 1 1/4 kg of MM, maybe more though it. Part way through that it managed 250g of another bean without any problems. I can't tune my latest trial bean which is pretty similar to the one that was ok. So tried a brush type clean up of the grind chamber and will see of that helps. It removed maybe a heapish teaspoon of pretty well compacted grinds from the grind chamber and around the burr holder etc.

LOL I still can get over the strange shot having a nice clean taste that was pretty much as it should be. It had 12 secs or reduced pump pressure, then 18 at 9 bar for next to no flow and then the same again. Maybe it's an object lesson about beans not being as some suggest they should be. Grinder - same sort of shot even after an adjustment that would usually make a significant difference.

John

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## ajohn (Sep 23, 2017)

Cleaning up the grinder with a brush fixed things but now using a much coarser setting. It was choking up and the beans were taking ages to grind. I may find that the grind will need setting finer and finer as I get through some less oily beans now







I am a blend of S American beans with a bit of MM in there. I don't usually drink blends.







I might get tempted to count just how many MM go into a shot when I scoop some out. Usually it's not possible to check what mix is actually being used.

Odd this happened when I switched from MM to a less oily bean. Might be a fluke or might have happened if I carried on with MM. The BE grinder suggests it wouldn't have but that might be due to conical burrs.

John

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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

Just to update, I received the beans from snakey. Put them straight back in the freezer keeping one bag out. I have now drunk that. I did not find them too dark at all, although a bit of surface oil is showing. I think Rave have done a good interpretation of the bean, especially since they are not known particularly as dark roasters. Looking forward to the next bag. I did have to tighten up the grind a bit from mystery 8 which surprised me, taking the E5 to its limits before clumping would have started.

Bottom line, is if you like MM, give Rave a go (unless you like them light!)


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## El carajillo (Mar 16, 2013)

Just ordered some to try amongst an assortment of other beans.







I am drifting away form the very dark roasts.


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## ajohn (Sep 23, 2017)

I'll be drinking my first shot of the darker ones very soon. I've finished the blend they do called The Bloke. I can see why they suggest that it might interest people who like their style of MM. I suspect I should have kept it a bit longer before using it - I'd say a week plus postage time to be sure.. It grinds pretty cleanly but needed finer than the MM

I'd put the MM I had before of them at lighter end 65 to 55 Agtron, these darker end.







Yes they are brown (ish). They really have oiled up as the others did. A lot of the beans from Redber were once much darker with light ones mixed in. A bit like the photo of the Rav beans.

John

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## jj-x-ray (Dec 31, 2017)

Just ordered some MM and rancheros blend from compass


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

Must say, am into the last bag now, remembering these were dispatched frozen, then sent on to me and frozen again so have had some abuse! They are getting better and better. I have settled for a shorter pour but have it really gloupy, just as I like it! Many thanks to Snakey


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## jj-x-ray (Dec 31, 2017)

I really enjoyed the cc monsoon Malabar. Great flavour although it started going a little flat towards the end of the bag....I probably should have adjusted the grind to compensate. I would certainly buy again


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## DavecUK (Aug 6, 2013)

I just been reviewing this thread....oh my god. it reminded me why I stopped buying MM roasted by others. It's a tricky bean to get right because it lacks density and is aged. The bean should definitely not be oiley, even after a few weeks in the bag. oil is a sign of a roast gone too far, and or too fast. it's easy to roast it too fast and this pushes the oils to the surface, where after the roast thay can become oily quite quickly. For MM I significantly lower the temperature in the roaster, also the fact it's lighter means a normal load occupies more space in the drum and affects airflow, before 1st early on. These things normally combine to cause an overheated, rushed roast, which a roaster must compensate for in the setup of the roaster...things happen too fast otherwise.

the colour to aim for is cadburys milk chocolate, or very very slightly darker.......ideally they should not reach this colour in less than 13-14m....no oil and no oil after a week or two. Otherwise the bitterness, just curls up the inside of your mouth and they loose all character.


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

DavecUK said:


> I just been reviewing this thread....oh my god. it reminded me why I stopped buying MM roasted by others. It's a tricky bean to get right because it lacks density and is aged. The bean should definitely not be oiley, even after a few weeks in the bag. oil is a sign of a roast gone too far, and or too fast. it's easy to roast it too fast and this pushes the oils to the surface, where after the roast thay can become oily quite quickly. For MM I significantly lower the temperature in the roaster, also the fact it's lighter means a normal load occupies more space in the drum and affects airflow, before 1st early on. These things normally combine to cause an overheated, rushed roast, which a roaster must compensate for in the setup of the roaster...things happen too fast otherwise.
> 
> the colour to aim for is cadburys milk chocolate, or very very slightly darker.......ideally they should not reach this colour in less than 13-14m....no oil and no oil after a week or two. Otherwise the bitterness, just curls up the inside of your mouth and they loose all character.


as stated, I always remember your advice on the Gene Cafe which was 12.26 at a temp of I think 216 degrees or thereabouts, which produced the bean you talked about. but, and it is a big but, whilst I would never argue with you and your opinion, the MM seems to have lent itself to careful darker roasting producing a highly enjoyable drink.....for me anyway


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## DavecUK (Aug 6, 2013)

dfk41 said:


> as stated, I always remember your advice on the Gene Cafe which was 12.26 at a temp of I think 216 degrees or thereabouts, which produced the bean you talked about. but, and it is a big but, whilst I would never argue with you and your opinion, the MM seems to have lent itself to careful darker roasting producing a highly enjoyable drink.....for me anyway


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## MildredM (Feb 13, 2017)

DavecUK said:


>


That is NOT how I picture Ajohn ( I had him a tad older for starters!)


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