Kenya AAA coffee

[The Engineer]

My high school Latin Teacher, a former Jewish boy from Scarsdale turned Augustinian monk, smoked cigarettes and drank coffee all day- including (mainly) during classes.

He said he was drinking Kenya AAA. At the time (early 1980s) he got it in a coffee store in then Citicorp Center.

Does anyone know where to get this? The only place I've been to where they've even heard of it was Porto Rico Importing in the Village, but they didn't have any.

My teacher said that compared to triple A, the double A was "camel piss."

[gpcohen]

I just returned from Nairobi two weeks ago. The "in" commercial spot for coffee is the Starbucks-like Nairobi Java House, which brews and sells Kenyan and Ethiopian coffee. All their Kenyan coffee, which I find to be terrific, is AA, for what that is worth.

[fatbuddha]

Hmm, to my knowledge AA is the largest size that Kenya beans are currently sorted at. I think that larger beans are not necessarily better, rather it is the consistency in bean size that matters. Therefore, if the beans are all AA, they are supposed to roast better. Admittedly, I have not had any AAA but the Kenya AA I have had is pretty damned tasty. My favorite single origin

[rebadog]

Just had to post. We lived in Atlanta GA in 1986. We always bought Kenya AAA. It was superior and available. I found this site as I began my search for Kenya AAA, it is not readily available and AA doesn't compare. Maybe the 80's were good years for coffee from Kenya.

[The Engineer]

so maybe the guy who originally told me about this stuff was just a label whore...

but thanks for the link, Jen

[jen kalb]

I dont know - there must have been something special he remembered. Anyway, these kinds of quests make life interesting.

[The Engineer]

Alright, I'll reply to my own post, as I've done some pavement pounding and others might benefit...

Yes, there is/was such a thing as Kenya AAA. It hasn't been available at least for, qouting the Porto Rico Importing guy, years. Like 20.

So maybe you can find it in Nairobi. But only maybe.

[jen kalb]

Im assuming that it just means the beans are bigger - are bigger coffee beans inherently better?

[jen kalb]

Here's a link - not sure its the best possible source (Id go to one of the coffee geek websites for that) but it is an interesting writeup on coffee grading.

http://www.gardfoods.com/coffee/coffe...

It seems to me that identifying the type of coffee you like, finding a reliable coffee roaster and handling the beans right is much more important than any grade.

ps - if you do a websearch for AAA coffee beans you will find a lot of sources, even Kenya.

[The Engineer]

AA seems to be everywhere...

[KRS]

Fairway stocks AA, which I've had and thought was very good. D&D may have AAA.