World of flavours
COFFEE - it is grown in so many places but what makes them different? surely coffee is ‘just coffee?’ -
Coffee from different countries have different flavour profiles. This is affected by the process used in the coffee, but there are still distinctive attributes to each country’s coffee.
This is because the altitude, soil, weather, climate, growing conditions, varietal and processing methods and machinery can affect the flavour
Hawaii
Coffee produced here is known as Kona coffee and is grown in small amounts which is often reflected in price
Guatemala
The high grown Arabicas are very highly sort after for the balanced citrusy and fruity flavours they de- liver
EL Salvador
Another well regarded Central American growing nation exporting high quality Arabcas that deliver balanced sweet, floral and citrus flavours
Colombia
The third largest producing nation with around half a million tonnes produced a year. Known for bal- anced, smooth and often nutty flavoured coffee.
Panama
Known for producing very high quality Arabicas that are brilliantly balanced with floral, citrus and fruit flavours, it is also home to the most expensive coffee in the world coming from the very well respected farm Hacienda La Esmaeralda, run by the Peterson family.
Brazil
The coffee plant was introduced here in 1727 and has now become the largest growing nation in the world with around 2 million tonnes produced every year. Its gentle wheaty flavour is highly prized as a base for many espresso blends. Beans grown on the large Daterra farm are very often found in quality espresso.
Costa Rica
In 1779 coffee plants were introduced here directly from Ethiopia. They continue to produce high quality citrus, floral and sweet balanced Arabicas.
Kenya
Wonderfully citrus and fruity Arabicas with certain growing regions often producing a slight tea-like flavour. This produces a coffee that is often described as having a sweet lemon tea taste that is very enjoyable to many.
Rwanda
After the internal troubles tis country has faced in recent years, Rwanda has started to rebuild its coffee industry and has begun turning out some very good quality Arabicas in the process. Known for having flavours ranging from sweet treacle to fruity red berry.
Vietnam
At just under 1 million tonnes a year, vietnam is the worlds second largest producer of coffee and con- centrates almost entirely on producing robusta beans for the mass market.
Ethiopia
As the fifth largest producer of coffee in the world and also the original birth place of the drink itself, Ethiopia stands out as one of the few countries that consume a large aoount of its own production. Around 50% of the 300,000 tonnes it produces a year stays within Ethiopia. The oldest coffee industry
in the world delivers ARabica of very high quality with different regions offering up an assortment of flavours. From the chocolate, wine-like flavours of the Harrar region to the blueberry, floral notes in the Sidamo region to the fine floral, bergamot-like flavours associated with eh Yirgacheffe region Ethiopia holds much interest for coffee lovers.
Australia
A relative newcomer to the coffee growing industry producing arabicas in the north east of the country. India
A producer of both robusta and arabica. The most well known of the arabicas would be the monsooned malbar bean- these beans are stored in open side warehouses and exposed to the most monsoon winds that move through the area. This swells the beans and encourages a musty, tobacco lie flavour that many people find enjoyable. Indian robusta is also highly prized for adding body to espresso blends, being a little more sweet and refined than lower grade robusta from other producing countries.
Indonesia
The first nation outside of ethiopia/arabia to produce coffee on a large scale with indonesia now being the fourth largest growing area with 25% of its crop being arabcia. With the area being made up of sev- eral islands we find a vast array of flavours, but generally indoesia is known for full bodied and choco- latey favours from its arabicas. More specifically java will have a slightly more spicy taste and texture while sumatra will be slightly smoother and sweeter.