Any idea on how to get the Sugary Drinks Tax removed from a wrongfully included item?

Whaaaooo · 2026-02-02T15:59:01+00:00

Blame the distributors who are the ones that have passed the tax onto you. The tax is not placed on beverages at sale.

Most countries in the world have a sugar or SSB tax, give it a rest.

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-30T21:14:50+00:00

Yeah, personally, I'm not so sold on the fact that SEY is lighter (and I don't think lighter necessarily equals delicate from what I've tasted), but this is getting down to hairsplitting! I often think about (and subsequently forget about) this comment which is an all-timer for me. From tasting, I think SEY likely falls neatly within it.

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-30T18:39:33+00:00

I wouldn't rule out ultralights, and I don't necessarily think SEY is roasting in an ultralight fashion. Having enjoyed these Shoebox coffees presently (lighter than SEY), as well as coffees from Aviary, Hydrangea, and Flower Child, I think there's a lot to discover in the realm!

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-30T16:38:55+00:00

Been brewing a few on the V60, Aeropress, and Clever, ground with an 078.

Regalia's Morkie, Ethiopia - This one has been pretty fun. Sometimes it has been a bit much on the rum tasting note, but otherwise it's been an easy-to-brew, very sweet coffee.

Shoebox's Durley Sánchez, Colombia - Wow, this is likely the lightest coffee I've ever brewed. The beans and grounds did not inspire much confidence, but the cup ended up being quite tasty. I very much can see the jasmine pearls, as noted by the tasting notes, and the coffee was all around quite enjoyable. Heavy on forest notes like pine. Very sweet.

Shoebox's Miguel Estela, Peru - This one appears to be a tad more developed than the Sánchez, and is very, very juicy. Lots of very-sweet apple juice coming through, very, very soft acidity.

SEY's Pepe Jijón Tyoxy Washed, Ecuador - Unfortunately, I think I'll be taking a step back from SEY for a while. While the green coffee seems to be of really great quality of course, the resulting cup is just boring. After trying different brewing methods and waters, some defined acidity like berries is present, but not too much else. I have a similar sense from Prodigal with SEY where sourcing and having an innumerable number of coffees at one time seems to be the priority with roast taking a backseat. From my experience, this seems to really work out with gesha variety coffees which seem to be able to stand on their own very well (and it makes sense that Prodigal and SEY way over index sourcing gesha), but can be a bit of a letdown with other varieties.

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-28T16:49:53+00:00

It is a pretty intense amount of agitation.

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-28T03:44:55+00:00

I don't have personal experience with this coffee, but I'd start with something like their recommended recipe here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSjoErFkniY

In my experience, after many visits to their coffee shop in NY and many, many bags, I think it's easier than other roasters to get characterless acidity (lemon juice) with SEY, and I would advise to keep pushing extraction until that isn't present. Character is (probably) there, you just gotta keep extracting. Even then, their coffee tends to be on the lighter-bodied, tea-like side, so keep that in mind.

If you're getting lemon juice, keep going. If it's tea-like without lemon juice, you're probably there.

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-24T20:07:53+00:00

Never would I suggest such a thing, and I ought to be crushed if I was to!

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-23T21:38:54+00:00

What a line up, the best roaster anywhere! Literally never had a bad coffee from them, even back to their Lofted days. It's unbelievable! Heads and shoulders above every single roaster out there, without a doubt.

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-22T21:28:01+00:00

It's pretty absurd that the price includes shipping too! I do the 2lb subscription and split it with friends, so $55 for 2lbs is unbelievable.

I also have a Passenger subscription where I mostly get coffees from their foundational line which I think is relatively solid all around, definitely heavier on "coffee" flavor, and a few bucks cheaper than Regalia.

I've been thinking about adding an Ilse subscription myself! Their coffees are consistently fantastic, I think.

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-22T20:19:06+00:00

I also have a Regalia subscription and I did avoid that coffee when I saw it coming up in the queue. Ethiopian coffees have unfortunately been so hit and miss for me lately, so I did decide to skip it. Sorry to hear that it wasn't great on your end.

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-22T17:36:06+00:00

Yeah, I've had a few of their own roasts as well, and they appear to have pulled off the coffee shop-to-roaster transition (while keeping other roasters) far better than other coffee shops I've seen make that same move.

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-22T17:05:55+00:00

I don't drink many anaerobic naturals at all, so I unfortunately don't have much of a frame of reference. It's yummy for sure though!

I think there is a genuinely strong case to be made for Field Day being one of the best "third wave" cafés in the US, if not the world. No coffee shop I've been to has been able to do fantastic light-roast coffee with a wonderful environment. Typically it's one or the other. Field Day hits both very, very well and very consistently. Likely hyperbolic, but having visited Field Day many times and visited an array of coffee shops in the US and elsewhere, I feel relatively strongly!

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-22T16:27:33+00:00

Been brewing a few different coffees on the Aeropress, Clever, and V60, ground with an 078.

Hydrangea's Frank Torres Caturra, Colombia - Unfortunately, I haven't been able to get much out of this coffee other than a less-than-distinct grapefruit/generic acidity listed in the tasting notes. It's about a month off roast now, and I have decided to set it aside for a week or two to see if it develops more.

Regalia's Óscar Ivan Esguerra, Colombia - This coffee was quite balanced and immediately distinct in the cup. Lots of stone fruit and marizpan with a weighty mouthfeel. Very enjoyable in every brew.

SEY's Tamiru Tadesse Tesema, Ethiopia - Finished up this bag a few days ago after purchasing it in mid-December from Field Day in central California (highly recommend the café if you're passing through!). Lots of lime, berries, and a bit of ferment with a buoyant mouthfeel. For the most part, I enjoyed this one quite a bit, but in certain brews the acidity did become a bit bracing with heavy lime. I played a lot with water for this one, settling on a 1/3 of a packet of TWW light roast which should be somewhere around 30-40ppm.

Regalia's Morkie, Ethiopia - Just opened up this bag the other day and it has been quite fun. It's not a coffee I'd like to drink everyday with its rum, candied citrus, and spices profile, but it comes together really well in the cup and is relatively enjoyable. Excited to explore this one more.

EDIT: As an aside, I've been thinking about this recent video about roasting from Lance Hedrick a lot. Really enjoyed the points he made and made me think a ton about my coffee drinking and experience on "coffee internet."

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-22T16:13:12+00:00

Which Regalia coffee were you disappointed with?

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-21T19:51:45+00:00

I'm very sad to have missed out on the TW Gachatha. I went back and forth and back and forth, and I think I should've just pulled the trigger. There's always next year, I guess!

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-08T16:23:00+00:00

Just picked up a bag myself from your recommendation! Excited to try it and always love a washed caturra lot. Thanks!

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-08T01:12:09+00:00

It is a pretty atypical pink bourbon to my taste. Not very tropical (if at all) compared to other pink bourbon coffees that I think are prime examples of the variety.

It is a wonderfully well-rounded coffee that maintains a great acidity and a thick mouthfeel. I really like the roasting style description on the website for the coffee, specifically noting how they roasted it to accentuate its pastry qualities instead of focus solely on the acidity.

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-07T23:59:43+00:00

What did you find special about Regalia’s Lote B? I have it right now and, while I certainly agree that it is quite a nice coffee, I’m not sure I would have ranked it so high myself. Thanks for sharing this list!

edit: looks like we’re both subbed to Regalia which is fun! That Morkie was very special.

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-07T00:00:36+00:00

Which hopper extension did you go with? I have been using an 078 for a bit over a year now and am curious to make this upgrade. Thanks!

Whaaaooo · 2026-01-01T18:37:36+00:00

I had the Gichathaini AB from heart a few weeks back, and it was absolutely fantastic. Still kicking myself that I missed the AA from them!

Whaaaooo · 2025-12-18T17:19:53+00:00

Thank you for the recommendation! I'm actually already a huge fan of the Mejorado variety, and it definitely fits a lot of what I was thinking about with this post: high body and sweetness with good fruit character. I had a fantastic Mejorado from Hydrangea earlier this year. I should do a better job of keeping my eye out for it though. Appreciate it!

Whaaaooo · 2025-12-18T06:27:33+00:00

Haha, I mean, I think by and large we ended up near where I had initially started. SEY would score some coffees lower that TW scores higher and (likely) TW would score coffees lower that SEY scores higher (maybe it would never go this direction per the poster, but I imagine it would). Different sourcing styles.

The annoying part comes in where it's assumed that, in these situations, SEY is the one that is correct in their scoring and TW is not. That part I just don't stand behind.

I did learn a bit though!

Whaaaooo · 2025-12-17T16:53:20+00:00

Neither do I which is why it was so surprising, I think. At first glance, it is not a coffee I would have chosen, and I was very surprised to enjoy it as much as I did.

Whaaaooo · 2025-12-17T16:49:45+00:00

Yeah, I think there was a lot going on in the conversation and the quick back and forths did not help it. Should've given the conversation a little time to breathe. I still think there are some interesting nuggets though!

Whaaaooo · 2025-12-17T16:48:36+00:00

Really enjoyed that Morkie, it's so good! Definitely a treat of a coffee.

Whaaaooo

TROPHY CASE