OUR OFFERINGS - PERSEPHONE & ALCHEMY BLEND

Regions:  Central America, East Africa
Varietal:  Bourbon
Altitude:  1500 - 1900 m
Harvest:  April - June

Characteristics

Acidity:  Balanced, crisp
Flavor:  Honeydew melon, pear
Finish:  Hazelnut, butterscotch

Tasting Notes

With the emergence of spring comes our first-ever offering of Persephone & Alchemy blend. Created to embody the spirit of the season, this blend will refresh any winter-worn palate with its crisp acidity marked by honeydew melon and pear. The body is clean and silky as it leads into a finish of creamy hazelnut and butterscotch. Suitable for all day sipping, this blend is sure to sustain you ‘til the arrival of warmer days.

Marc Johnson's Notes

The Return of Persephone by Frederic Leighton (1891).

This past year we have launched offerings to celebrate almost every season. Summer Solstice, Otono Blend, and Celebration Blend have welcomed summer, fall, and the holidays. While Old Man Winter slept through January and February (look for it next year), we are pleased to introduce Persephone & Alchemy for Spring 2008.

OK, I am certain that you are thinking: “Where does the name come from?”  Glad that you asked, and with the help of our friends over at wikipedia.com we have an answer…

Persephone was a goddess of Olympus. According to Greek mythology, Persephone was gathering flowers with nymphs in a meadow when the earth opened and Hades, god of the dead, appeared and carried her off to be his queen in the world below. Torch in hand, her mother Demeter, goddess of the earth, sought her through the wide world. When she could not find her, life came to a standstill.

For a whole year not a living thing would grow and all would have died of hunger if Zeus had not persuaded Hades to let Persephone go. Before he freed her, however, Hades made her eat the seed of a pomegranate, and thus she could not stay away from him forever. So it was arranged that she should spend part of every year with her mother and the heavenly gods and the rest of the year with Hades beneath the earth. The time that she spent in the underworld became winter and spring arrives when she returns to the earth.

And the alchemy? I always think about alchemy as a magical transforming power… like when straw is spun into gold. Alchemy in this sense applies in two ways. Firstly, the transition from winter to spring seems kind of magical. After a long hard winter (which, by the way, still isn’t over here in Chicago), it sometimes seems like spring will never come. And then, mysteriously, it somehow does. Secondly, turning hard, inert green coffee pebbles into deliciously flavorful roasted coffee seems like as good an example of alchemy as you can find.

So, ultimately our Persephone & Alchemy Blend speaks to the period of transition that occurs at this time of the year. Persephone is back and she’s bringing her magic with her. There is no better way to toast her arrival than by drinking a cup of her namesake coffee.

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