I was introduced to Caribou Coffee on my first trip to Minnesota eons* ago. 

_{*by eons, I just mean decades. Point being: this love affair has been going on for awhile.}

I have yet to meet a Caribou coffee that I don’t like. Granted, I don’t think I’ve tried any of their dark roasts because, well, I hate dark roasts. I will suck it up for tasting purposes, but thankfully Caribou has a wide variety of coffees in medium and light roasts, so I haven’t needed to venture into the dark roasts yet. Regardless, I would wager that my excitement in seeing a Caribou cafe rivals that of any Minnesotan.

Unfortunately, I live in a place where Starbucks and Dunkin’ reign supreme. However, I have April who is awesomely diligent in sending me regular care packages of Caribou coffee delight!

This is one of my favorites. April sent it to me after a trip we took to Rwanda. In addition to the mountain gorillas, I totally fell in love with all the coffee I drank there. As such, I think she knew it was a safe bet that I would enjoy it. She was definitely not wrong! In fact, I’d probably rank it as my second favorite of all Caribou coffees–and I have tried a lot of types of Caribou (especially for a Texan who lives in NYC!).

According to Caribou, Rwanda Nyakarenzo is a light roast single origin coffee with notes of blackberry, cherry, and aromatic spices with a juicy citrus finish.

My Notes:

• Brew method: pour over
• Smells: berries and a hint of sweet orange and lemon
• Tastes: blackberries, bright, smooth, with light mouthfeel
• Finishes: a dry cherry finish with a hint of orange and lemon
• Pairs: with everything. Okay, okay….it pairs well with breakfast pastries, like cinnamon rolls, cheese danish, doughnuts–you know, all the good stuff!

Sadly, this coffee had a limited run and is not currently not available. BUT before you yell at me for piquing your interest in an unavailable coffee, I am hoping beyond hope that–like most Caribou specialty coffees–this will make its way back into stores soon.