Coffee Characteristics

The Coffee bean is not de facto a bean. It's a fruit! And the coffee fruit (we'll call it a bean hereafter) is very delicate. Every factor you can think of can influence the flavor when you brew your cup of coffee. Below is a list of the major factors that you must consider when picking the best cup of coffee.

Species

Coffee

There are 3 main varieties of beans that you must be aware of when choosing your perfect cup of coffee. Arabica, the oldest and customary cultivated coffee plant is know for the best flavor. Robusta and Liberica are the other plants primarily used as commodity coffee found in most coffee blends.

Please visit our description on Coffee Plants & Botanical Classifications to learn more about these types of species.

Geography/Terrain/Location

Every country in the world produces a dissimilar flavor coffee with its own set of characteristics. dissimilar soils yield dissimilar tasting coffee. Jamaican Blue Mountain with its rich volcanic soil produces some of the worlds most sought after coffee. Costa Rica also produces very high ability coffee but its beans are know for their high acidity and full body. All this comes from the numerous topographical and ecological factors. Coffee grown in higher elevations ordinarily yield the worlds most sought after coffees.

Climate

Rainfall, sunlight, temperature, and other climate factors influence how coffee beans grow and taste. This can vary from how Cloudy skies and rich rain forest safe beans from harsh sunlight to seasonal factors affecting coffee plantings times and growth rate. ordinarily slower growing coffee plants and beans yield stronger, more flavorful coffees.

Farming

Farming techniques influence the growing cycle while also conclude if the beans are going to manufacture to their potential. A estimate of farming techniques such as soil fertilization, watering, pruning, and plant care influence the ability of the coffee crop this year, and into the future. Coffee must be picked at its most ripeness to accomplish the best coffee. Arabica plants, for example, are picked 3 times a year to ensure the ripest coffee crop. Lastly, coffee plants must be replanted after a few seasons to ensure the best crop.

Processing

Making coffee requires that seeds must take off from the trees. Fresh coffee looks like cherries and with skins removed chronicle a green (not brown) bean. There are two main ways to process coffee: dry and wet. Dry processing is the customary formula institution by many of the worlds largest coffee regions. The dry process entails laying the beans on a flat face - much like manufacture dried fruit such as sun-dried tomatoes - causing the skin and fruit to brittle for easy removal. In this process the beans must be turned commonly to ensure even dryness and preclude over-cooking and scorching. Peeling of the bean must be done gradually or you risk the bean lose a layer of security resulting in staleness or mold. Dry Processing is done by hand and is the customary formula used in developing countries.

Wet Processing results in the coffee cherries softening large packaging of water. The seeds are then mechanically removed resulting in the peeled fruit sinking to the bottom with skins floating to the top for disposal. The seeds are next dried plainly or through an oven.

Both wet and dry processing affects the coffees flavor profile. ordinarily speaking, when you process beans with the customary dry method, you are creating the purest coffee bean flavor. Dry processing creates a coffee with more body, depth, lowered acidity, and more earthy flavors.

Wet processing produces a bean with a brighter acidity and cleaner taste. While both dry and wet processing bring risk of mold growth, the introduction of water in the wet process noticeably higher probability.

Storage and Shipping

One of the most overlooked factors in coffee flavor is how it's stored and shipped. The coffee bean, like a fine wine, will pick up flavors from its containers. The coffee bean can pick up bad tasting flavors and odors if they are exposed to any while the warehouse and shipping phase. If you store the beans in a high humidity environment you risk the bean fermenting, rotting, or growing bacteria and mold. Traditionally coffee is shipped in breathable burlap sacks to do low costs. Long sea voyages in vessels not hermetically sealed can result in oft tasting coffee.

Roast

Roasts are how a bean is cooked as well as the distance of heat exposure. dissimilar roasts can result in selfsame beans tasting completely different.

Coffee Characteristics