Rising Ground

By Emma Jordan

This time we’re tasting coffee by Rising Ground. Starting sometime in 2017, the company is run by the world’s 10th best barista, Hugo, and “coffee bore” and beardy tattooed man, Sean. They roast their own coffee to their own specifications in their roaster in Cornwall (which they share with others) and insist that you don’t need either tattoos or a beard to enjoy their beans. They currently have four coffees (including a decaf) on offer, including one from a women’s cooperative in Congo (sadly not reviewed here) that gives women landsecurity and independent incomes.

Blueberry Candy – Nicaragua

As the name suggests, the beans have a distinctive blueberry aroma; almost exaggeratedly so, like blueberry flavoured sweets. It’s sweet, juicy and soft, yet fruitily acidic. Long It’s quite light in the cup and a watery consistency (somehow some coffees seem thicker). The aroma is still fruity, but has a hint of gravel and a slight creaminess.

On drinking, the incredible blueberry flavour is happily apparent, but there’s also something farmy which reminds me of lemony Ethiopian coffees; sometimes farmy is farmy, sometimes it explodes into intensely refreshing fruit flavours. A bit of slurping and sloshing releases a hint of white rum. It’s quite unique in the sense that it’s very light to drink, but the flavour is rich and sweet, yet not at all cloying, which I think is quite an achievement. It’s almost like a wellbalanced cocktail – juicy, refreshing and moreish. There’s a very pleasant aftertaste that’s sweet and fruity, with a hint of rain-on-tarmac, with a light but glossy mouthfeel.

Short The aroma has a greater acidity giving the impression of citrus and the blueberry is still there with more creaminess.

It’s by no means your typical espresso – still quite light, but very nice. The first contact hints at a strong citrus flavour but then softens back into the blueberry. The farmy-ness is gone. Aerating yields something of a metallic flavour, which is present in the aftertaste. It’s not unpleasant by any means, but I think this coffee is excellent as a long drink.

Foundry (Blend of coffee from Papua New Guinea, Brazil and El Salvador).

The beans have a more rounded, toasty aroma with notes of dark chocolate and, well, coffee.

Long Again, it’s quite a light coffee, in the cup the aroma is of smooth milk chocolate. The first thing I taste is a burst of mild dark chocolate bitterness, although this quickly opens out into a contrasting flavour of toasted hazelnuts and milk chocolate. Overall, it is subtle, sweet, warm and rounded. Aerating allows the nuttiness and bitter notes to come back out and adds a hint of black pepper to the mix. It’s a nice, easy drinking coffee that I might be inclined towards in the afternoon, still refreshing, but perhaps more relaxed and not quite as uplifting as the Blueberry Candy. The mouthfeel is glossy but develops into a chalky sensation after a while, with an aftertaste of dark chocolate. Short The aroma is really chocolatey – it reminds me of the smell when you open a box of chocolates. The flavour is quite different in the short coffee – the chocolate bitterness just bursts out and almost (but not quite) evokes a concentrated lemon flavour; just as it seems like it could be lemon, it turns out it’s actually dark chocolate. Beyond that, the flavour does seem to be pretty much dark chocolate, with an afterthought of tobacco. All in all, this coffee is very nice both long and short.

THE STORY OF THE DOUBLE HEART

Designed by Brian Benton, founder of Custom Woodwork Gifts – Thinking Outside the Gift Box

By Gillian Balcombe

Brian’s always been an artisan craftsman - and no doubt always will be. For him, there’s something very special about making one-of-a-kind items for people to love. Many years ago, he trained as a master craftsman in the jewellery trade in London’s Hatton Garden, and it was there that he learned some serious skills and the joy of designing and creating gorgeous, unique pieces.

When he moved abroad over 30 years ago, Brian decided to change track and turned his computer hobby into a business. But he missed working with his hands, so woodworking became his hobby instead. These days, he’s finally found a way to combine everything that he loves to do. Computers and craftsmanship amalgamated so that he can design and make bespoke products and gifts from beautiful hardwoods and softwoods. Notwithstanding the IT aspect, he remains very much the artisan, so that every piece is lovingly crafted and hand-finished to create a beautiful item.

Custom Woodwork Gifts have a range of standard items, that can be adapted for corporate as well as personal use, or they can make something totally different and custom-designed, as they do love a challenge. Hence Cibare’s exclusive double heart cheese and charcuterie board for the season of love, designed by Brian in conjunction with your subeditor. The design process begins with a series of questions and sketches to make sure he really understands what his client envisages. After everyone’s agreed on the concept, a computer image is

generated for discussion and approval. And once approved, he carefully selects the most appropriate piece of wood for the task.

All Custom Woodwork Gifts boards and platters are made from thoughtfully sourced hardwoods with stunning natural grains - usually French Oak or South African Walnut. This means that not only is each article uniquely beautiful, they are also hard-wearing and don’t chip easily. And the boards, whether cheese boards, serving platters, bread boards or pizza boards, can be personalised with a mixture of words and symbols – but unlike so many others, the wording on these boards is carved out of the wood rather than lasered, then carefully hand-finished. All the boards that are for use with food are treated with a 100% food safe oil, in a process that consists of repeated coating with oil and sanding. Each piece is treated with a minimum of four coats of oil, which enables the wood to cure from the inside, meaning that any juices or acids on the board will simply wash off, rather than penetrate the wood. This ensures longevity and enhances the natural beauty of the wood.

And it’s not just boards… Custom Woodwork Gifts also produce gorgeous plaques and signs to honour a special occasion, decorate a room, or encourage a new business, for which softwoods can also be used. Take an idea to Brian and he will make it happen. The design process doesn’t differ and is based around questions, discussion, design and approval, so that the lucky recipient ends up with the perfect, handcrafted wood gift, truly something to be treasured for many years to come.

www.customwoodworkgifts.com brian@customwoodworkgifts.com Instagram: @customwoodworkgifts