O to Roast a Single Origin Single Flavor

 In my limited roasting experience thus far with the Whirley Pop and now a Presto air popper, I've come to realize the complexity of the coffee bean. Upon reflection, I have yet to identify a single origin with a single flavor. Always very complex like a smoky, apple, watermelon as flavor notes. Or at least two flavor notes. So if there are any coffee roasters who have mastered a single flavor coffee like just a Banana or just a coconut I want to buy from you because I don't think I ever have. I'm sure if I took the time to search for a company that does single flavor coffee I would find some, yet in my daily life of sampling various coffee's I still not have found too many. There is a coffee company (Onyx Coffee Lab) that I have tasted where they have separated the coffee flavors nicely in their roast almost to perfection. Still, where are the single, strong, distinct flavor notes? 

    As a roaster this would be my ideal goal, then to move on the snow cone-like flavors like "Tigers Blood", "Blue Coconut", the customer is familiar with there tastes. Which fruits they enjoy, some are plain Janes when they go to the Ice cream parlor "I'd like a Vanilla" one would say, "Just vanilla?" the preparer would answer back. Yet there are those people. It's August and my wife last year would buy box after box of peaches. In Summer they are my all-time favorite. Unfortunately, we were able to get our hands on one box this Summer. Went away too quickly. What would I give to drink summer peach coffee beans? Not played with but authentic. The complexity of a coffee bean is beyond compare. Is it possible? As a roaster, I want to strive to do so, yet I can't help but think about the impossibility of the task. Complexity is never easy in any part of life. 

    Lives are complex with the arrange of emotions, cultures, child-rearing methods, habits, looks, personality differences, athletic and musical abilities, art. Life is complex. Lives are complex. This world is complex. Twins may look the same yet they are not, two separate humans with different likings, style the list goes on. I was reading in "Barista's Guide to Coffee" By Tristan Stephenson (which my wife was reluctant to find at Goodwill) I share strongly Stephenson's sentiments when he writes about Roaster X "Those with their hand on the gas knob have adopted practices, tweaked with their methods and tasted a lot of coffee in search of a better product. Today, our understanding of roasted coffee is better than it has ever been, but the growing realization that coffee is enormously complex has only really cemented a feeling of acceptance as to how powerless we are to truly affect and select its attributes on a molecular scale. (Barista's Guide to Coffee, Tristan Stephensonpg.45)". 

    

    When I read that it immediately brought my mind to God and His complexity and His attributes. He is 100% everything that is good. In 1 Corinthians 13, we read the love chapter. If anyone has ever been to a wedding more than likely they have at least heard this chapter read once. The Apostle Paul gives us a great description of Jesus and His attributes. As humans we are not 100% of anything, we don't possess all knowledge, goodness, kindness, patience. In life, these can be exercised but never be fulfilled to 100% capacity. I'd like to break down this verse perhaps some have never seen this passage as a description of God's attributes. Looking at the sequence of the passage I will start with God's Goodness. This part of His goodness highlighted in how He speaks to His children. 

God speaks tenderly to His Church those who bear the name of Jesus, In Hosea 2 Israel whored after other god’s and their judgment came. They were enslaved by the Babylonians, and God expresses His Holy disdain toward them prior to this captivity for their sin. (Hosea 2:1-13). Yet God’s tone changes (Hosea 2:14-24) to a people who will be apart of the new Israel the new covenant through the blood of Christ (Hebrews 8:6-13), This tone in which He will speak to her will be tender, Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her.” (Hosea‬ ‭2:14‬ ‭ESV)‬‬. Condemnation is not for the Christian (Romans 8:1) condemning thoughts are not from Christ. 

So the first attribute we see is His Goodness. Such intimacy that can not be found through any person. Wilderness is outside of the realm of religiosity, just Him, just Jesus, just enjoyment, pleasure in Jesus. “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.” (1 Corinthians‬ ‭13:1‬ ‭ESV)‬‬. A person naturally judges not only a person's conduct but through their words what kind of man he or she is. In what way will God speak to that person which comes to Jesus for salvation? Tenderly. 


        Jesus said in John 6:37 “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.” Wow really? Whoever? Even the vile? The rapist? The murderer? The castaway is brought home. The outcast may still be an outcast to the world but no longer to God no matter how odd that person may be. This is the voice of truth, Jesus said “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” John‬ ‭5:24‬ ‭ESV‬‬. Jesus is Goodness. "With his feathers he will cover you, and under his wings you will find refuge. His truth will be your shield and armor." (Psalm 91:4)


    God is good therefore he will not pass over sin, all will be judged . He is good, He does not wink at sin. AW Pink brings a sobering at the same time terrifying truth. “Would God be “good” if He punished not those who Illuse His blessings, abuse His benevolence, and trample His mercies beneath their feet? It will be no reflection upon God’s goodness, but rather the brightest exemplification of it, when He shall rid the earth of those who have broken His laws, defied His authority, mocked His messengers, scorned His Son, and persecuted those for whom He died.” ( The Attributes of God, The Goodness of God chapter 11, pg. 111, AW Pink). For the next few posts I will be going over the various attributes of God through the lens of love from 1 Corinthians 13, and also taking a look at Hosea Chapter 2, which illustrates God’s closeness and uniqueness of His relationship to the Church (true Christians, God’s children). Also, I will be writing about coffee. I feel I have said too little on both subjects God’s Goodness and Single Impossibility of a single flavor. 


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