Malt, Pipe Tobacco, Cedar
If your usual coffee leans bright and acidic, Monsooned Malabar sits at the opposite end of the spectrum - smooth, low-acid and unhurried, with notes of malt, cedar and pipe tobacco that linger quietly on the finish. It's a distinctive style drawn from a centuries-old processing tradition, and Wogan's version from the Sakalespur area of India does it real justice.
Mellow, malty and quietly singular
Monsooned Malabar is one of those coffees that earns its reputation simply by being unlike anything else in the cup. The processing method traces back to the old trade routes between India and Europe, when green beans stored in the hulls of wooden ships would absorb moisture on the long voyage, swelling, softening and losing much of their acidity along the way. Today, Wogan recreate that effect by exposing natural-process beans from the Sakalespur area to monsoon winds for around fourteen weeks - the beans swell to roughly double their original size and take on a pale, golden hue before a single one is roasted.
What you get in the cup is mellow and unhurried: malt up front, then cedar and pipe tobacco drifting through a smooth, low-acid finish. It suits people who find bright, fruit-forward filters a little sharp, or who simply want something with a bit more weight and character. The S795 and Catimor varieties, grown at 850 to 1,100 metres, bring a body that holds up well in a cafetiere or stovetop, though it works across most brew methods.
If you've not tried a Monsooned Malabar before, this is a good place to start - and if you have, Wogan's version is a considered one.
About the Roaster
Wogan Coffee has been part of Bristol's fabric for over fifty years, now run across three generations with one branch in Bristol and another in London. As a wholly independent family company, they've spent decades learning not just how to roast well, but how to do it responsibly - paying the living wage, running solar-powered roasteries, and delivering locally by cargo bike.
