For our August 2026 Kurasu Coffee Subscription, we are featuring Kenya Kangocho AA and Brazil João Hamilton—two light-roasted single-origin coffees that also form 90% of our summer seasonal blend, Natsu Ake.

In this video, Kurasu’s Takuya and Chihiro taste both coffees and share a Japanese flash-brew iced coffee recipe designed to highlight the vivid acidity, sweetness, and character of light-roasted coffee.

Explore the Kurasu Coffee Subscription →

Kenya Kangocho AA

Produced at the Kangocho Washing Station, this washed Kenya is graded AA—the country’s larger screen-size classification. Compared with the lighter, more citrus-driven character often associated with AB lots, this AA coffee offers a fuller body and a deeper, berry-like sweetness.

Look for a floral aroma followed by blackcurrant, ripe grape, and a refreshing mint-like finish. When brewed over ice, its sweetness becomes especially vivid, with impressions of pomegranate and Kyoho grape.

Brazil João Hamilton

This rare Sumatra-variety coffee comes from trees that are approximately 80 years old. João Hamilton works with FAF Coffees and practices regenerative agriculture, rebuilding the health of the soil and the farm environment for the long term.

After a 36-hour anaerobic natural process, the coffee is carefully dried on African raised beds—an uncommon approach in Brazil, where patio drying is more typical. The result is remarkably clean and balanced: deep syrup-like sweetness, hazelnut, and a long tea-like finish reminiscent of green tea, sencha, and roasted tea.

Two Coffees Behind Natsu Ake

These two coffees may look familiar: together, they account for 90% of our 2026 summer blend, Natsu Ake.

• 50% Brazil — Anaerobic Natural
• 40% Kenya AA — Washed
• 10% Honduras — Anaerobic Washed

For Natsu Ake, the green coffees are blended before roasting and developed as one unified coffee. In the August subscription, the Brazil and Kenya are roasted separately and lightly for filter brewing, allowing each origin’s individual character to come forward.

If you still have Natsu Ake at home, taste all three side by side. You can also blend the Kenya and Brazil 50:50 after roasting and compare the result with Natsu Ake—a simple way to experience the difference between pre-roast and post-roast blending.

Kurasu Flash-Brew Iced Coffee Recipe

Flash brewing combines a concentrated hot pour-over with ice in the server. Hot water extracts the vivid acidity and sweetness of light-roasted coffee, while the ice cools and dilutes the brew immediately.

1. Rinse the paper filter and warm the dripper.
2. Place approximately 65–70g of ice in the server.
3. Add 15g of ground coffee. Pour 40g of water for the bloom.
4. At 0:40, pour to 100g total.
5. At 1:10, pour gently and slowly to 150g total, avoiding excessive agitation.
6. Allow the brew to finish at approximately 1:40–1:45.
7. Remove the dripper and stir until the remaining ice has completely melted.

The amount of ice directly affects the final strength, so make sure it is fully melted before serving.

Why Flash Brew Works for Light Roasts

Cold brew has a smooth texture and easy-drinking character, but lower extraction temperatures can make the bright acidity and sweetness of a light roast harder to express. Flash brewing uses hot water to extract those flavors first, then chills the coffee immediately.

With Kenya Kangocho AA, the method brings forward juicy berry sweetness and a grape-like acidity. Brazil João Hamilton becomes rich and syrupy, with hazelnut and tea-like depth. The same recipe makes the contrast between the two coffees especially clear.

Coffee from Kyoto, Delivered to Your Door

Kurasu Coffee Subscription is our way of sharing the present moment of Japanese coffee culture from Kyoto. Each month, we deliver carefully roasted coffee together with the stories, techniques, and people behind it.

Discover Kurasu Coffee Subscription