Colombian coffee bean is well-known for its superior quality and delectable flavor throughout the world. Most people consider it to be some of the greatest in the world. But what makes Colombian coffee different from the rest of the countries?
Read on and discover what makes it the best among the rest.
The Unique Arabica Coffee in Colombia
Three factors determine the quality of raw coffee, together with an explanation as to why each one plays a crucial role in making Colombian coffee bean stand out.
Geographical setting
As far as climatic and geographical setting is concerned, Colombia has just the ideal place to plant high-quality coffee. Coffee needs the exact and ideal climatic conditions to thrive.
The perfect soil composition, excellent climate, and the consistent rainfall give Colombia coffee bean a rich flavor profile. Coffee thrives in places experiencing at least 80 inches of rainfall annually and where the temperature never decreases below zero degrees.
Moreover, the lush and mountainous terrain, high rainfall, right amount of sunlight, and tropical location make Colombia an undoubtedly ideal coffee-growing country.
People often say that it is a country with amazing biodiversity. Its greatest blessing has been an ideal geographical setting and climatic conditions for growing some of the world’s best coffee.
The harvesting and growing process
Harvesting and growing cannot be underestimated when it comes to producing world-renowned coffee. It is not enough to have the ideal climatic condition and terrain if you grow, harvest, and collect coffee beans poorly or sloppily.
The best coffee is typically grown on steep slopes, primarily surrounded by trees that provide necessary shade to prevent the coffee beans from being roasted under the sun–and every coffee bean is manually picked by hand.
Colombian coffees are picked and harvested by hand.
The hard work and blistered fingers of thousands of coffee bean pickers are a testament to the hard nature of their work; however, satisfaction to the coffee lovers, with the selection process meticulously done where only the best beans are made it to your cups.
Coffee varieties found in Colombia
The choice of which coffee variety to plant on a farmer’s field is heavily influenced by production, resilience to genetic differences (insects), and climate issues (frost). It is altering, though, as many farmers pay greater attention to better cup quality profiles.
1. Typica
Typica is amongst the well-known variety. Most contemporary coffee varieties have evolved from Typica, making it the ancestor of modern kinds. Although several evolved cultivars yield far more than Typica, you find that Typica produces the best cup quality of all the varietals.
This variety produces a round, clean, and sweet cup of coffee.
Its brother cultivar, Bourbon, has shorter seeds and is primarily grown in Central and South America, the Caribbean, and Indonesia.
2. Bourbon
Other than sharing the same name, sibling brother to Typica has had no connection to the brown alcoholic beverage. Instead, the French established this variety on the Isle of Reunion (then called Ilé Bourbon), giving it its French name.
Bourbon is the Merlot of coffee and yields 20–30% more than Typica. In the field of specialty coffee, it is renowned for providing a distinctive and sweet cup character. Like wine, Bourbon is well-known for its fruity qualities and sharp acidity.
There are many distinct types and mutations of Bourbon that are growing all over the world, including Yellow, Red, as well as Orange Bourbon. However, it seems that the Yellow Bourbon cultivar produces more Red Bourbon.
The berries proliferate and are less conical in appearance. Despite being mostly grown and consumed in Brazil, Bourbon is consumed across Central America.
3. Caturra
It was first discovered in the Brazilian town of Caturra as a spontaneous mutation of a Red Bourbon variety. Because it is shorter, this coffee shrub has a higher potential yield and is more disease-resistant.
Caturra is renowned for its low-to-medium body and sparkling acidity. It’s less sweet and clear than Bourbon.
Although initially created this variety in Brazil, it is currently widespread in Colombia, Rica Rica, and Nicaragua due to its excellent adaptation to the local growing environments in these nations.
4. Gesha
Its title and origin stem from a village called Gesha in Ethiopia, frequently spelled as Geisha.
Low-yielding and necessitating ideal growing circumstances, this beautiful, long-leafed plant is a true beauty. Gesha is fussy; it will only develop in minuscule microclimates when, when, and how it pleases. An excellent Gesha has a strong floral scent, luscious sweetness, and perfect acidity.
This coffee will frequently be described as WOW during a blind tasting.
5. Castillo
Castillo is a fantastic illustration of several coffee cultivars and types.
The Colombian coffee growers’ association’s research division, Cenicafe, created the Castillo variety in 2005.
The male father of Castillo, a combination of Timor and Caturra, produced the female offspring (the female parent). The Castillo varietal is the emblem of the “Colombia sin Roya” (Colombia without Rust) program, which aims to revive and rejuvenate Colombia’s high-quality coffee industry. It also has large yields, which makes it a fantastic option for farmers.
Although Castillo formerly didn’t appear in premium coffees, the use of different processing and drying techniques by several specialty coffee growers has brought Castillo back into the spotlight.
Castillo is well-known for its scent, creaminess, and citrus acidity. The distinctive natural Castillo we’ll offer to Southern Africa this year has flavors of fruit, wine, sugarcane cane, and marshmallows.
6. Colombia
This cultivar, also referred to as Variedad Colombia, was created in Colombia by Cenicafe by fusing Caturra with the Timor Hybrid. This cultivar, developed before Colombia saw its first epidemic of leaf rust in 1983, is credited with saving the nation’s coffee industry.
Colombia is famous for small farms because of its excellent production and disease resistance.
This variant has improved through time and served as the Castillo and Tabi cultivars’ breeding foundation. When tasting this coffee, flavors of caramel, chocolate, and traces of cherry stand out. A sweet, vibrant, and full-bodied bean is also mentioned.
7. Tabi
By fusing the varieties Bourbon and Typica, as well as the Timor Hybrid, Cenicafe created and introduced a new variety in Colombia in 2020. Although the Tabi variety is tall with long branches, like Bourbon and Typica, its seeds and fruits are slightly bigger. It adapts to high altitudes exceptionally well, making it ideal for Colombia’s mountainous regions.
The ability to resist coffee leaf rust is one of Tabi’s most significant traits, although it also exhibits excellent cup quality traits like its progenitors, Bourbon, and Typica.
In the Guambiano language (a native tribe of Colombia), the name Tabi translates to “good.”
Grading Categories of Colombian Coffee Beans
Size categories are used to classify various grades, which are frequently equivalent to the quality of the coffee bean. For example, Supremo and Excelso are the two primary coffee bean grades.
The same tree may produce beans for both grades; they are just filtered in various sizes.
1. Supremo
On 17-inch displays, supremo beans are giant. Larger than Excelso beans, they are less prevalent.
2. Excelso
While still substantial, Excelso beans are more petite than Supremo. The bulk of the coffee beans shipped from Colombia is these, making them the most prevalent. They are arranged according to screen sizes, 15 to 16.
The Taste of Colombian Coffee Varies
A sizable nation in South America is the Republic of Colombia. It’s a diversified area with many spots to grow crops like coffee! Because of this, Colombian coffee’s flavor can vary considerably.
Although many reviewers seem to favor the sweet, citrusy flavor with hints of nuts or chocolate, the malty taste can vary widely depending on how and where the beans were cultivated.
For example: fresh-fruity and vibrant, tomato, berry tastes, floral overtones, and jammy overtones are all present.
Colombian coffee is well-liked because it appeals to a wide demographic. However, there are three central coffee-growing regions, each of which has 22 separate areas and three different flavor profiles:
Southern: more acidic and lemonier. In the middle: herbal and fruity. Northern: more substance with less acid, nuts, and chocolate.
Colombian coffee tends to be slightly acidic since it grows in higher altitudes and at lower temperatures. Still, it does not contain more (or less) caffeine than any other form of coffee.
People love Colombian coffee for its mild, well-balanced characteristics in general. Colombian coffee combines the following noteworthy notes: sweet caramel flavor with a bit of acidity.
The most popular prominent coffee flavors in North America are sweet and medium-bodied. There are a few nutty notes, a creamy and caramelized aftertaste.
Conclusion
Before it gets to your cup, coffee goes through a lengthy procedure. It is a procedure that has long since developed into an art form in Colombia and other areas of the world.
Colombia is the home of coffee. And learning a little more about the fantastic effort made by coffee producers only makes us adore this seed even more.
Coffee producers have taken it upon themselves to have the best processes at every step in order to offer their customers outstanding quality coffee and more economic benefits in the modern world and the development of new sustainable practices. Because of this, you must be certain that the coffee you purchase is 100% Colombian. You will have excellent coffee.
Read more: Discovering Guatemalan Coffee Beans