THE BACKSTORY
Let's start with an honest chat. 'Candy Mountain' was not the first name in the mix for this new, unicorn-inspired blend. Why share that info? Honesty, a bit of intrigue, and it paves the way for a deeper dive into the genesis of the blend. But let's park that for now to reminisce about Charlie. Yes, the animated unicorn from Youtube.
For those playing catch up, the journey started in the mid noughties (2000's) with the famous Youtube Clip named 'Charlie the Unicorn' produced by the team at Film Cow featuring a 'lethargic and pessimistic unicorn' - according to wikipedia. Things didn't end well for Charlie! It's rarely a good outcome when you have your kidney stolen. A sub-optimal ending, sure - but the magical journey to Candy Mountain absolutely planted a seed. How can you argue with 'a land of sweets and joy, and joyness'.
Above: Youtube animated film 'Charlie the Unicorn' created in 2005 by the team at FilmCow.
It began with a challenge. Like most specialty roasters, your bread and butter tends to be your staple espresso blends. For us, it's our award-winning White Knight Espresso Blend, closest followed by our very popular Hokey Pokey. Hokey is on the darker, caramel-forward side when it comes to tasting notes, whereas White Knight is a well-rounded soft fruits, chocolate - she's an absolute beauty and we're incredibly proud of her. They both pair incredibly with milk.
But what's this got to do with Candy Mountain? Good question. For those in the cafe game, you'll know that the vast majority of beverages served are milk-based. However, there has certainly been a substantial increase in the drinkers of black coffee, whether we’re talking cold brew, batch brew, pour over, and your classic espresso range.
BLACK COFFEE CONSUMPTION ON THE RISE
There isn't one reason why black coffee consumption is on the rise. On the one hand you could say it's a movement towards simplicity in the brewing process - departing from bulky espresso machine setups and the associated paraphernalia, but paradoxically (kinda) it's a shift towards a deeper appreciation of the nuances of flavour profiles, single origin terroir, processing, and roasting. The cool kids these days are rockin' a V60 or Mochamaster at home. Go figure!
Then, you've got the likes of Tim Wendelboe, former World Barista Champion, who operates his coffee in Oslo, Norway serving almost 100% of his coffee via Aeropress. If this isn't telling from a coffee culture perspective, then we don't know what is! The Scandinavian influence on global coffee culture is real.
BACK TO CANDY MOUNTAIN...
Now back to the blend in question, Candy Mountain. We'd been having ongoing chats with some of our key coffee partners. They were finding that a significant group of their customers were looking for a fruit-forward, nuanced black coffee. But here was the caveat: the rotating single origins - despite being of impeccable quality - were just not scratching this itch. These customers were looking for a staple. Something consistent. The thought was, a black-leaning blend might be the answer. And so the research and testing began. The climb to Candy Mountain was underway. Our Head Coffee Trainer and Lead Barista, Adam, was tasked with the challenge to architect the new blend. Let the roasting and cupping begin...
Above: Adam, White Horse Coffee Head Trainer, and team on the cupping table.
THE NAME CHANGED?
The truth is, nursing the blend to a place where it was ready to serve took a decent chunk of time. But the 'fruits' of our labour were beginning to pay off on the cupping table. The blend was almost ready to release! The talk then turned to the name of the blend. How do we capture the mission, and the real heavy lifting going on with the right messaging? We wanted something uplifting, a story focussed on sweetness, but also capturing the real challenge it had been to produce something that ticked all the boxes. The suggestion was 'fruits of our labour' - which became the working title.
Above: Candy Mountain Blend absolutely loving the photoshoot. Glowing, even!
FRUITS OF OUR LABOUR
It's 8am on Tuesday morning in a weekly team meeting and the caffeine is starting to kick in. The final naming was on the table as we were ready to go to market. Something about 'fruits of our labour' didn't feel right. Too many words? Possibly. What about the emotional and visual connotations? The term 'fruit' had promise, sure. But it was broad and possibly a tad generic. It wasn't capturing the uplifting, sweet and dreamy story we wanted to tell. To dig a little deeper, the word 'labour' connoted 'work', possibly 'diligence' and 'intensity' - but in this context, it wasn't overwhelmingly positive and dreamy.
The term 'Candy' was raised. Naturally, thoughts turned to 'Candy Cane' - but it was too Christmassy and seasonal. Next the thoughts turned to 'Candy Shop'. Shout out to 50 Cent! But it turns out that a bunch of other roasters were already rocking this name. Scratch it from the list!
And then something happened, the next day it had been decided. The new blend was to be called 'Candy Mountain'. We're not exactly sure how we got there! It was almost like a dream. Magical even. But the story checks out! A joyful, sweet and playful blend was born. Think fluffy, wispy, dreamy and a little bit cheeky. Enter Candy Mountain, the coffee blend. But everyone is happy, and nobody loses a kidney.
The tasting notes vary depending on how it's prepared, but as a rough guide we're tasting the following:
As espresso: Guava, Mango, Red Sherbet & Grape
As filter: Passionfruit, Guava, Blueberry
In milk: Cherry, Blueberry, Dark chocolate
The origins which make up the blend will likely change with seasonality, but as it currently stands, it includes: Colombia Wilton Benitez Red Bourbon, Ethiopia Ela Tenacha and Brazil Ondas.
Are ready to go to Candy Mountain? Your journey starts here.
Above: Candy Mountain Blend in her dreamy, cloudy element
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