KANSAS CITY, Mo., US — It’s the perfect pairing of caffeine and liquor without the alcohol content. Parisi Café introduces its newest brew, a coffee made with beans conditioned in barrels previously used to age bourbon.
2013 World Barista Champion and Parisi’s own quality assurance manager, Pete Licata explains.
It is a process of exposing high quality, specialty grade green coffee beans to absorb the ambient aromatics of the aged whiskey still remaining in the charred and damp barrel interior. After a relatively short conditioning period, the small batches of beans rehydrate some of the moisture and impart a nuanced, oaky flavor to the finished coffee.
The beans condition one week, before being removed and roasted to Parisi’s specific roasting standards.
To brew the conditioned coffee, Licata uses a pour-over style method with a filter. “The paper filter removes some of the more intense whiskey flavors, leaving a beautifully sweet version of standard coffee, with just a light and pleasant version of bourbon.”
The barrel-conditioned coffee is being offered, both hot and iced alongside Parisi’s other selections at both Parisi Café locations: Union Station in Kansas City, Mo., and Park Place in Leawood, Kan.
The coffee also will be a topic and part of the samplings provided in the coffee classes Parisi offers each month at both locations. A 12-ounce retail package is planned for those who want to brew the uniquely flavored beans at home.
Parisi is working on a future series of barrel-conditioned coffees, experimenting with barrels from different type of spirits as well as barrels used to age wines, combining the interesting flavors with different micro-lot coffees sourced to perfect unique new tastes.
