Rutas del Inca comes to us from the cooperative in Peru that bears its name. A group of some 250 farmers working to grow coffee that’ll impress guys like me 2,000 miles away. This morning, we’re going to see how those farmers and Tinker, the coffee roaster did, as we dive into a Tinker Rutas del Inca Review.
Pre-Grind Impressions
The pre-grind aroma of the Rutas del Inca is wonderful, though a bit ambiguous as I pull it through my sinuses and lungs. It’s sweet, incredibly pleasant and maybe even suggests something a little bit green. Sort of a hay-like quality that hits late after you get an initial scent of sweetness.
The washed process coffee is sort of a hodgepodge of coffee varieties. Inside the bag, Tinker tells us we’ll find Typica, Caturra, Paches and Bourbon coffee beans. The Rutas del Inca cooperative is located in the northern part of Peru – about 200 miles south of the country’s border with Ecuador.
Before grinding, we take the time to put eyeballs on the beans. We see nothing that’s going to stop us from grinding. The roast is fairly consistent but less homogenous than what you might see elsewhere. This may be a difficult coffee to roast as there is great disparity in bean size throughout the bag. With several different varieties and hundreds of farmers coming together for this blend, that seems to make sense.
Brewing the Tinker Rutas del Inca
Following the practices we adhere to for all our reviews, we drop the Tinker Rutas del Inca coffee into the hopper of our drip coffee maker. It’s time to see what this coffee offers.
At first sip, we note the mouthfeel offers something a little bit syrupy and Tinker’s suggested brown sugar note is likely delivering the sweetness promised. I’d call this a true medium roast as the sugary sweetness gives way to a tannin like mouth feel.
Tinker’s provided tasting notes suggests pomegranate and grape along with that brown sugar. I can definitely see the grape — not a red but more of a white grape flavor to the coffee. I particularly notice when slurping it.
As for the pomegranate, I’m not sure I’m able to speak to that. I do get something fruity that hits late on my palate. I would inclined to call it citrus but technically pomegranate doesn’t fit into that classification. I might call this note “grapefruit.”
Acidity Testing
The Rutas del Inca doesn’t strike me as a coffee that’s particularly acidic. For a medium roast, there’s a bit of crispness to it but nothing unruly. I’d call it a 5.4 on the pH scale based on mouth feel.
Breaking out the pH meter, we find out we’re close. It measures as a 5.3 on the pH scale. That keeps it in good company as far as acidity. Right about where you’d expect it.
Rutas del Inca Review Summary
Overall, this is a nice little coffee. It brings a little bit of sweetness, pairs great with a biscuit and honey, and is one that we think you’ll be happy you tried.
On the downside, there are things we noted in our Tinker Rutas del Inca Review that don’t particularly capture the imagination. As an example, we’re not getting a ton of complexity in the profile. It’s not the best coffee we’ve ever had but it’s a strong choice. We score it an 86.
