Onyx's Approachable yet Complex Monarch Blend

I recently had the chance to taste Onyx Coffee Labs' Monarch blend, designed specifically as a milk-friendly espresso but today i am going to enjoy it as some early morning drip. And let me tell you, this is an expertly crafted blend that delivers complexity along with approachability. With notes of chocolate, berries, and molasses, it's a sweet, syrupy cup that really shines when paired with steamed milk or cream.

The Coffee Deets 📝

🗺️ Origins: Colombia, Ethiopia
🔥 Roaster: Onyx Coffee Labs
🌱 Processing: Washed, Natural
☕️ Brew Method: Coffee Brewer. 45grams and 8 cups of water Using the recipe from here
❌ Availability: Purchase a 10oz bag for $18 here
🌐 Website: onyxcoffeelab.com

First Impressions: Chocolatey and Nutty 🍫🌰👃

Opening the bag, there are definite roasty notes, which is expected for an espresso blend. But behind the roastiness, there are pleasant aromas of chocolate and nuts - hints that this will be a more complex cup, let's find out.

The First Sip: Sweet, Syrupy Body 🍯

The first taste reveals the roasty notes in the flavor as well, but it has nice chocolate and nutty undertones. The body is thick and syrupy with a pleasant sweetness. Definitely a blend built for milk drinks while still maintaining origin character.

The Roast: Developed for Balance ⚖️

Monarch is roasted on the darker end to bring out caramelized sugars that pair deliciously with steamed milk. But Onyx has crafted the profile so that it doesn't go too far into second crack - allowing fruity acidity and nuttiness to still come through.

The Blend: Complementary Origins 🤝

This blend combines a natural Ethiopian for fruitiness and wine-like sweetness with a washed Colombian for heavy body, nuts, and chocolate. Together they create a balanced, sweet cup. The components are cycled seasonally.

Onyx's Distinct Blend Philosophy 🤝

What makes Onyx's blends like Monarch stand out is their unique approach to blend creation. Most roasters design blends by combining specific origins that they think will complement each other flavor-wise. But Onyx does things differently.

They start by deciding the exact flavor profile they want the blend to have - the acidity, sweetness, mouthfeel and specific notes like chocolate and berries for Monarch.

Only then do they start cupping numerous coffees blindly to find components that exhibit those target attributes. It's a backwards approach focused on achieving a pre-determined flavor experience.

They also limit blends to just 2-3 origin components for clarity of flavors. And they constantly re-evaluate the coffees making up blends to account for seasonal changes, updating components 3-4 times a year.

This rigorous cupping and focused flavor-first process allows them to deliver consistent experiences year-round while showcasing seasonal coffees.

It's a unique approach that prioritizes dialing in an intentional flavor profile over geographic blending. The result is meticulously crafted blends like Monarch that balance complexity and consistency by design.

The Tasting Notes: Chocolate Covered Berries 🍫🍓

• 🍫 Dark Chocolate - bittersweet cocoa tones

• 🍷 Red Wine - berry-like acidity

• 🥜 Almond - nutty complexity

• 🍯 Molasses - rich, earthy sweetness

• 🫐 Blueberry - subtle berry tones

Overall Experience: A Crowd-Pleaser ☕️👍

While darker than what I'd typically drink, Monarch is an expertly crafted blend. It retains pleasant complexity while being super approachable. The sweet, chocolatey flavors pair perfectly with milk. A fantastic everyday espresso or early morning batch brew!

Availability: Pick Up a Bag 🛒

You can purchase freshly roasted 10oz bags of these Monarch beans through Onyx's online shop for convenient home delivery.

Final Thoughts: Sweet, Balanced, Refined

With its syrupy body, milk-friendly flavor profile, and restrained roast, Onyx's Monarch blend delivers sweetness and complexity in a very refined, well-constructed cup. An impressive showcase of blending skill!