My customer Brian Sharp wrote me this summer after he received his Midnight black beans: They showed up a little over a week ago, and last night I used the Black Midnight beans for something simple. I soaked them for just a few hours and cooked them with shallots, garlic, butter, and the very last of my precious bag of Tierra chipotle powder (did I mention I miss the Ferry market?) and then tossed in an ice cube or two of beef stock I took off some ribeye bones last week. After they finished cooking I spiked them with a shot or two of super-strong cold-brewed coffee (from Ritual, also in SF.) The midnight beans are absolutely perfect. The skins stayed smooth and fully intact, but the beans themselves cooked to an amazing mouth-filling creaminess. All the flavors are great together. They're very pretty beans, too; when they were done soaking they almost looked iridescent, the black skins stretched thin enough that you could see the hite flesh through a bit. Sounds good to me!