It’s a Wonderful Blend Competition

And the winner is…

We have a tradition here at Dillanos Coffee Roasters. Every year we release a brand new version of It’s a Wonderful Blend, our holiday coffee. Our team of professional coffee roasters join in a friendly competition against one another to craft a proprietary blend of coffee, contending to be this season’s selection for the coveted It’s a Wonderful Blend.

Director of Coffee, Phil Beattie, sets the perimeters. From countries of origin to target flavor profiles, Phil issues the challenge… and our roasting pros boldly accept!

This year, the competitors were tasked to develop a blend of coffees of from these countries: Colombia, Costa Rica, Honduras, and/or Java. They could be used in whatever portion the roaster determines and roasted to the degree they believed would showcase the target flavor, body, aroma, and overall holiday-ness of the blend for their final product.

Six competed, and six impressed. It was a tough lot this year! So tough, in fact, that two blends tied in the original judging. We had to put it to a tie-breaking vote, inviting all staff and our customers to weigh in!

After setting both coffees out in the lobby for a week differentiated as “Dancer” and “Prancer” to keep the two totally anonymous, a winner prevailed: Trevor Kajca’s “Prancer”! Trevor’s blend featured 50% Costa Rica, 40% Colombia, and 10% Honduras and was roasted to a medium-light.

This coffee presented with an intense, full body, candied aroma, and lighter flavors of clove and sweet figs. The aftertaste is smooth and it tastes incredible brewed with a French Press.

Blends are brewed in a variety of methods. French press, Chemex, and Pour over are all represented in this year’s competition.

Each submission is judged blind… Our team of experts are able to identify the subtle nuances between the six entries and rank them accordingly.

Competitors take care to brew their personal blends crafted to hit the targets set by Director of Coffee, Phil Beattie.

Leaders from all departments are invited to line up, grab a cup, and assess each entry for aroma, flavor profile, mouthfeel, and overall appeal.